David Eckoff blog » Music

Rhapsody & TiVo: Like Chocolate & Peanut Butter

David Eckoff — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:27:11 +0000

As a subscriber to Rhapsody and TiVo, I was thrilled to see RealNetworks and Tivo team up to make the digital music service available on any broadband-connected TiVo Series 2 and Series 3 standalone box.

Now for the first time, I have access to Rhapsody’s music library of 4 million tracks in my living room through my home theater system. No extra hardware and no extra cost.

The inteface is pure TiVo, operated via the TiVo remote. While navigation is slower than online browsing – and not quite as satisfying – the music sounds stunning through my home theater system.

Overall, a fine job by the folks at Rhapsody and TiVo.

Next: imagine combining Rhapsody/Tivo and Slingbox… and having mobile access to Rhapsody’s music library…

Video: RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser on Rhapsody/TiVo (MarketWatch)

TiVo updates for Rhapsody (TiVo)

Article: Ultimate Ears featured in Inc. Magazine

David Eckoff — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 16:18:17 +0000

Inc. Magazine has a great feature article on Ultimate Ears:

“How Jerry and Mindy Harvey saved Alex Van Halen’s hearing (what’s left of it), learned some important lessons about business, and built Ultimate Ears, a $22 million company that is deeply embedded in the culture of the music they love.”

Having had a chance to meet Jerry and some of the folks at UE a couple of years ago, I enjoyed reading this story behind the story.

Related Links… my other posts about Ultimate Ears:

Review: Ultimate Ears UE-10 (UE10) Custom In Ear Monitors

Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10 earphones reviews

David Eckoff — Thu, 14 Dec 2006 16:13:37 +0000

My friends at Ultimate Ears will soon release “limited edition” units of their newest product innovation: the “triple.fi 10“, high-end triple-driver earphones.

As some of you may recall from my previous review, I use Ultimate Ears UE-10 customer in ear monitors with my iPod.

I am excited to see UE releasing the triple-driver universal fit earphones for people who want an incredible listening experience, at a price much lower than the custom UE-10’s ($399 vs. $900). If they are as good as these advance reviews suggest, they will be worth every penny of the $399 price.

Here is a round up of reviews of the triple.f1 10:

Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10 Pro Earphones
Digital Producer Magazine

Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10 Pro (5 stars, Editors’ Choice)
PC Magazine

Hands On with the New triple.fi 10 Pro
LAPTOP Magazine

Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10 Pro Earphones (A-, Highly Recommended)
iLounge

Article: Internet Is Seizing the Spotlight in the Live-Music Business

David Eckoff — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 13:15:18 +0000

Concert webcasts and online vintage performance clips are gaining traction, according to this article in The New York Times.

What role, if any, will be carved out for fans who take their own pictures and “bootleg” video at concerts? My friend and former co-worker from RealNetworks, Erik Flannigan, is quoted for this article. (If you know Erik, I think you’d agree that he is a top expert on the subject of fans capturing various types of media at concerts.)

Erik Flannigan, general manager of America Online’s music, film and television content, said that at a big arena performance these days “20,000 people walk through the door.” He added: “How many people who went to that show walked out with some kind of media captured? They called someone, they took a photo. Why not harness that and turn it into something?”

Last year’s U2 tour brings to mind photos, audio and video captured by fans with camera phones, digital cameras, DAT and mini-disk recorders – and posted to fan sites immediately after each show (and some even during the shows). As a fan, it was fun seeing the results of this grass roots effort.

What drives 1% of fans to capture and share content? I think it’s as much about the hunt for content as anything else. And for the rest of the fans who seek and consume this fan generated content: it’s very much about re-living the concert experience and collecting. This isn’t the type of content that you tend to listen to or watch again and again.

I’ve got to say, though, there’s something about the experience of going to see a band live that isn’t captured in the online viewing experience of an entire concert webcast. But that’s not just a matter of web video: I find that most professionally produced concert DVDs are of only marginal interest to me – even from my favorite bands. (Notable exceptions: Fleetwood Mac’s “Say You Will” tour DVD; and U2’s “Vertigo” tour DVD.)

Like many things music, I prefer a concert CD with audio – a passive listening experience – vs. the active viewing experience required of a DVD. And who has the patience to watch a two hour concert on their computer?

Some companies have tried charging admission to view concert webcasts online. I am a big fan of live music, but quite frankly, I’m not inclined to pay to watch a webcast of even my favorite bands perform live.

I think the better bet is for bands to put short form video clips of their live performances out onto the web as a means of connecting with their existing fans and reaching new fans – and a way of building interest in going to a show in-person.

Related Link: Concert, rehearsal venues get wired

Article: How Sony failed to Connect

David Eckoff — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 12:50:02 +0000

A fascinating inside look at what went wrong with Sony’s Connect digital music project. A case study in how not to manage the engineering side of a digital media consumer business.

What happened at the start?

Digital media start up Kinoma had developed a specialized code base called FSK, a new system for handling multimedia files as they’re transferred online, to PCs and between handheld devices. By early 2005, Kinoma demonstrated prototype digital music software dubbed KTunes, which was based on FSK. For Sony, with a severe case of Apple envy, partnering with Kinoma could provide a way to jump-start their digital music effort.

Seemingly a good match. NOT. The project, said one high-level Sony insider, was an “unmitigated disaster.”

What went wrong?

FSK was not a mature technology, according to critics, and lacked most of the documentation sought by Sony programmers working with the system.

The platform wasn’t designed to integrate with Sony’s existing Web or commerce systems

FSK wasn’t based on the HTML or XML standards used by traditional Internet applications, so it required significant work to build almost any feature.

Relations between the core Sony programmers and Kinoma were poor, with both sides pointing fingers and assigning blame.

The software that finally emerged pleased few, with customers reporting critical bugs, sometimes rising to complete unusability.

The Connect software debacle destabilized Sony’s online music plans, and ceded 14 critical months of development and consumer awareness to Apple.

In summary, a dysfunctional mix of politics and programming were deeply destructive to Sony’s digital music ambitions, according to this article.

Review: Ultimate Ears UE-10 (UE10) Custom In Ear Monitors

David Eckoff — Sun, 26 Mar 2006 22:39:31 +0000

I recently ditched the earbuds that came standard with my iPod, and upgraded to UE-10 (UE10) custom in-ear monitors from Ultimate Ears.

We’re talking studio reference with a true 20Hz to 16k frequency range – you hear precisely what the artist intended.

I have “wow” moments every day with my UE’s, hearing layers of music and instruments in my favorite music that I never even knew were there.

The triple driver configuration delivers what I like to call “high definition” for your ears. I’m blown away by how music sounds.

The UE-10’s also provide 26db of isolation passive noise-cancellation – these are terrific for flying. Several people have asked me how the UE-10’s perform vs. the very popular Bose Quiet Comfort 2 noise canceling headphones. In my head-to-head tests on multiple flights, I strongly preferred the UE-10’s for noise reduction – and music was no contest, with the UE-10’s far superior to the Bose Quiet Comfort 2.

The only thing more impressive than the technology: the people behind the product. While on a tour of UE’s laboratory in southern California, I had the chance to meet Jerry Harvey, co-founder and inventor. Jerry struck me as being the consummate inventor, with great passion for the product. I’ve also had the privilege of getting to know Mike Dias, who handles artist relations and VIP customers. Mike is professional in every regard. In a world in which I rarely feel connected to the people who create the technology I use, my experience with Ultimate Ears has been exceptional.

This is one of the few products I’ve used where I can find no negatives about the product. The UE-10’s deliver as promised. Perhaps the only negative I see is price – but if you can afford them, these are well worth the price.

[Update: Logitech acquired privately held Ultimate Ears in August 1998 for $34 million in cash. I've continued to experience exceptional customer service from the company. And UE continues to innovate, releasing the new top of the line UE-18 in January 2010.]

What Others Are Saying:

Ken Levy’s Blog: Ultimate Ears deliver on how music is meant to be heard

iPodlounge: Review of Ultimate Ears UE-10 Pro Earphones

HeadRoom: Review of Ultimate Ears UE-10 Pro