Here's one from the "why haven't they thought of this before?" files. Hip-hop godfather Dr. Dre, Interscope Records Chairman Jimmy Iovine and computer maker Hewlett-Packard are banding together to improve the sound of computer products and headphones in an effort to make online music sound better.
Industry insiders have told CNET that HP will release better-sounding laptops, headsets and software featuring the Beats by Dr. Dre brand this fall.
While Iovine has not publicly admitted that HP is involved, he did tell CNET he and Dre are working on a project to improve the "digital music ecosystem," from quality of MP3s right through to high-end heaphones and headsets.
When asked by CNET why Iovine is involved in the project, he actually provided some very fan-centric reasons. "I just want our product to sound better," Iovine said. "The record business committed many, many mistakes in the last ten years, and I'm right in there. One of them was letting its product get degraded. It's one thing to let it get stolen, it's another to allow it to be degraded because then you really don't have a chance... videogames and TV quality are getting better and the quality of our work is getting lower. If that happens, then music will become disposable. That's something we can fix."
Although we're not sure if the efforts will pass the strict tests of hardcore audiophiles, it should at least placate the folks out there who complain that their computers and earbuds sound too tinny.
Industry insiders have told CNET that HP will release better-sounding laptops, headsets and software featuring the Beats by Dr. Dre brand this fall.
While Iovine has not publicly admitted that HP is involved, he did tell CNET he and Dre are working on a project to improve the "digital music ecosystem," from quality of MP3s right through to high-end heaphones and headsets.
When asked by CNET why Iovine is involved in the project, he actually provided some very fan-centric reasons. "I just want our product to sound better," Iovine said. "The record business committed many, many mistakes in the last ten years, and I'm right in there. One of them was letting its product get degraded. It's one thing to let it get stolen, it's another to allow it to be degraded because then you really don't have a chance... videogames and TV quality are getting better and the quality of our work is getting lower. If that happens, then music will become disposable. That's something we can fix."
Although we're not sure if the efforts will pass the strict tests of hardcore audiophiles, it should at least placate the folks out there who complain that their computers and earbuds sound too tinny.
