BizJournals Portfolio
Home >   Business Views, Opinions and Blogs >   Business Blogs >   Tech Observer >  

Dear Lou Reed Mp3s Wont Go Away

Tech Observer

by Kevin Maney
Main
Eric Schmidt, Still Seeing the Devil in Microsoft   Tech Stars Look Different From a College Student's Seat

Recent Blog Posts

Links

Mar 14 2008 12:00am EDT

Dear Lou Reed: MP3s Won't Go Away

Lou Reed, owner of perhaps the most tuneless voice in rock music (which is more fact than criticism), whined at the SXSW conference about the quality of MP3 music. Indeed, MP3s are about 10 times worse fidelity than music on CDs. As Reed noted in his keynote speech, you can't hear the richness of the music. "People have got to demand a higher standard," he said.

But...most won't. It's a funny thing, recorded-music fidelity moving backward after a long march forward from the 1930s to the 1980s. But the mass market has traded high fidelity for good-enough fidelity and much greater convenience -- i.e., you can carry around your entire music collection in your pocket, and buy specific songs you want. We're not going to give up that convenience. Just look at the comment-revolt at Lifehacker when an editor suggested it was time to go back to buying CDs.

14-reed-sxsw-large.jpg

Jack Plunkett/AP Photo.

. □

blog comments powered by Disqus
Real Business, Real Results
Out of the 'Family'

Did anyone at Microsoft ever watch the (gasp!) offensively funny show Family Guy?

Cruz Missile Lands

Ex-Morgan Stanley exec Zoe Cruz is now heading her own hedge fund. Are Wall Street's leaders done?

Scandal Chic

Martha, Bernie and Skilling know that what you wear for court can go a long way in public perception.

spotlight on

Health Care

Bad to the Bone No More

Companies such as General Mills say they're stepping up efforts to change employees' bad behavior and promote healthier lifestyles. Read More