LATEST ADDITIONS

The CEA-2047 CE-Energy Usage Information Standard allows information about a device’s energy usage to be programmed in and used to calculate its energy use over time. Says Bill Rose, chair of the working group that developed the standard: “Energy consumption in the Internet of Things can be broken down to individual devices such as appliances, pool pumps and heaters, air conditioning systems, and other devices so consumers can see exactly where, how much, and when electricity is being used.” The standard can apply to any device operating on a home network.

Forty-five years ago this past weekend, the Woodstock Music & Art Fair took place on Max Yasgur’s Farm in Bethel, New York, and the world hasn’t been the same since. The music and overall collective harmony in evidence August 15-18, 1969, showed how the counterculture had spread to and ultimately influenced the mainstream. To further commemorate this 45th anniversary, besides producer/recordist Eddie Kramer, I spoke with five other Woodstock principals about their experiences during that storied weekend: Michael Lang, Woodstock’s chief organizer and festival impresario nonpareil; Gregg Rolie, keyboardist for Santana; Tom Constanten, keyboardist for The Grateful Dead; Graham Nash; vocal cornerstone of Crosby, Stills & Nash (and sometimes “& Young”); and folk singer Melanie, who went from relative obscurity to international acclaim in the span of her 30-minute set. It’s been a long time coming…

When you think about technology, you probably imagine the sexy-cool stuff like multichannel home theater systems, über-thin flat-panel displays, or high-res audio from your favorite artist streamed to any room of your home. And, yes, these are definitely the fun parts of tech that make this such a great hobby for us all.

Editor's Note: Following Sound & Vision's initial print publication of this article, Neil Young took the post of PonoMusic CEO, replacing John Hamm. The company also named Rick Cohen, PonoMusic's general counsel, to be its COO, and accomplished producer Bruce Botnick to be its Head of Content Acquisition.

If there’s one thing we know about Neil Young, it’s that he’s deeply passionate about how his music gets heard. As an artist who’s long championed sound quality over final-mix compromise, Young has been on a lifelong quest to make sure listeners have the opportunity to hear his music the way he intended from both the studio and the stage, whether it be via high-grade 180-gram virgin vinyl or high-resolution stereo PCM on Blu-ray. “That’s all I do now—192/24,” he tells me. “Back when I started recording, we did everything we could so that our listeners could hear the music. The more we presented and the more you were able to hear, the happier you were. We lost touch with that.”