Articles about Music

Nowadays, many manufacturers seem to think all speakers should contain a virtual assistant. Yeah, having Siri, Cortana, Google, or Alexa can be convenient, but not everyone wants one of them integrated into their speakers. From a privacy perspective, these always-listening assistants can be a nightmare. Not to mention, these virtual "beings" can complicate something that should be very straightforward and relaxing -- listening to music. The largely panned (non-portable) $350 HomePod, for instance, doesn't currently support Bluetooth and only works with Apple Music.

That's one of the reasons I was intrigued by the JBL Boombox -- no gosh darn integrated assistant or lock-in. As the name implies, it is a throwback to boomboxes of yesteryear, but it is on a much higher level. Rather than play cassettes, CD, or FM radio, it connects with Bluetooth so you can play tunes from your smartphone, tablet, or other device. Because it has a handle, you can walk down the street while blasting your favorite music or just easily transport it between locations. Be warned -- it is quite heavy.

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Part of the reason why Windows 10 S failed was because it only allowed software from the Microsoft Store and the Store is famously lacking in quality apps.

It’s always news when a big name app arrives in the Store, and today Amazon Music debuts there for users in the US, UK, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Japan.

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HomePod arrived yesterday at 9:40 a.m. PST; thank-you UPS for prompt delivery of my preorder. My initial reaction: Wow and uh-oh. The wow harkens back to the original iPod, which Apple released in October 2001. The company's design ethic treated the overall experience as the user interface: Attach FireWire cable to Mac and device, music syncs. iTunes manages music on the Mac; for iPod, a simple scroll-wheel navigates tracks displayed on a small screen. The uncomplicated and understated approach defied the UX of every other MP3 sold by all other manufacturers.

HomePod is a defining, roots-return that's well-deserving of the portion of name in common with its forebear; both share in common emphasis on music listening as primary benefit.

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Tonight is the annual music extravaganza known as the Grammys. It's a long-standing awards show and many prominent artists are up for receiving one of the coveted trophies, most notably Jay Z who is nominated for eight of them.

Artists set to perform include Lady Gaga, Pink, Elton John, Miley Cyrus, Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar and Little Big Town. There will also be a tribute to the victims of the shooting in the Las Vegas nightclub last year.

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As well as being a handy way of storing items you've bought from the site, Amazon Music also allowed you to upload your own tracks and stream them from its cloud.

Now though the company is quietly pulling the plug on this aspect of its service. Previously you could store 250 tracks for free, or 250,000 if you paid an annual subscription. But the ability to upload new songs is now being withdrawn.

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The massively prolific Neil Young has just made his entire musical back catalog available to stream free of charge. Obsessed with audio quality -- you might well remember Young's Pono music player and streaming service, as well as his hatred of the MP3 format -- tracks are provided at an extremely high bit rate.

Of course, this is not a completely selfless offering from the Canadian musician. The free availability of tracks is a time-limited offer -- it's really little more than an advertising stunt for his paid-for Xstream Music subscription service.

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YouTube is -- of course -- about video, but it is becoming more than that. Google has just announced that it is teaming up with Ticketmaster, giving people the opportunity to learn about concert dates and buy concert tickets while watching artists' videos.

For now, the feature is limited to the US, but there are plans to roll it out on a wider scale. With YouTube increasingly used as a marketing tool by musicians, the progression to using it as a ticket outlet is hardly surprising -- but it's not clear what sort of cut Google is planning to take, and whether this could ultimately push up tickets prices.

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You are almost certainly familiar with Pandora, the popular music app that allows you to build stations based upon your favorite artists or songs. It's available in both free and paid versions, and you can choose which one to go for based on your tolerance for commercials.

You may, however, be less familiar with Sonos. For those who don't know, it is a whole house music system that allows you to connect multiple speakers, each of which can be individually controlled -- you can have them all synced to play the same thing, or different songs in different rooms.

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There are lots of sites and tools out there that can be used to rip content from YouTube, saving them either as videos or MP3s. Predictably, this is something that the content owners -- record labels in particular -- take issue with.

YouTube-MP3 recently shut up shop following pressure from the music industry, and a number of MP3 ripping sites were lined up as the next targets. Apparently pre-empting any legal action that might be taken against them, MP3Juices.cc and YtMp3.cc have started to block traffic from the UK.

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Fans of Plex will very soon be able to access their music through Android Auto. Whether you have Android Auto built into your car, or you're going to rely on the app on your phone instead, Plex can now sit alongside your travel directions.

Plex for Android Auto allows for voice-control of music playback, and the interface has been enlarged and simplified for ease of use when in your car.

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How many times have you found yourself listening to your favorite music outdoors, and all of a sudden, you get very thirsty? Quite often, right? And then you reach for your bottled beverage and realize you don't have an opener. The horror! Even if you do manage to open your beer or soda with a stick or something, where are you going to put it? In the dirt? Ants and slugs can get in there, bro. If only there was an elevated place to put the drink.

What if I told you that your wildest dreams could be a reality? It's true, y'all. There is finally a giant Bluetooth speaker that not only has a bottle opener and cup holders, but it has a retractable handle and is on wheels so you can easily take it with you! Called "ECOXGEAR EcoBoulder+", it is quite possibly the most important device ever for camping, tailgating, or backyard barbecues.

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With many consumers owning laptops or tablets as their sole computers nowadays, the concept of installing a sound card -- let alone any add-on card -- can be totally foreign. Believe it or not, however, many people still use and love desktop computers -- including yours truly. Not only can a tower be more powerful than their mobile counterparts, but they can be much easier to upgrade too.

Even if you do own a desktop computer, a high-end sound card, such as the Creative Sound BlasterX AE-5 which I have been testing, may not be in your best interest. This card is designed for computer enthusiasts that are audiophiles, gamers, or both with decent headphones or speakers; there is no point in buying a high-end sound card to use with $10 Walmart speakers, right? The big question is, should you purchase the card?

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If you want to become the next YouTube star or record a thrilling podcast, content is king; you need to have interesting things to talk about so that you can develop an audience. Great content isn't enough these days, however. With so much competition, you need to have good production values too. No, you don't need fancy special effects, but exceptional audio quality is key -- no matter how good you are, people won't want to struggle to hear you.

If media creation is your goal, one of the best purchases you can make is a quality microphone. Believe it or not, you don't need to break the bank to get a respectable model. Today, Samson unveils a new professional-grade microphone, and it is rather affordable for all you get. Not only does it seem to be a good choice for vlogging or recording a podcast, but also for music creation. Heck, gamers and Twitch streamers should check it out too.

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Microsoft has announced plans to close down its Groove Music Pass subscription service. The company is also going to kill off the ability to purchase music from the Windows Store.

Microsoft is partnering with Spotify, and offering a seamless migration from Groove Music to its former competitor. The cull is coming on December 31, and after this date the Groove Music app will no longer offer the option to stream, purchase, and download music.

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It's the time of year that many college students dread, although some secretly love -- back to school. Yes, the university doors are open once again; textbooks are being loaded into backpacks and alarm clocks are being set for ungodly early hours.

When these students aren't studying or going to class, they need to relax. Many of them choose streaming music and video as a way to unwind. Unfortunately, college is quite expensive, so splurging on multiple services is often not possible. To cater to the needs of these cash-strapped students, Hulu and Spotify have joined forces on a new bundle deal that will save them a few dollars.

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