records

Filmmaking at the atomic level? IBM nets Guinness world record

If you're looking to attract attention, setting a Guinness World Record is probably a good way to start.

That was the goal -- attracting attention, that is -- for a group of IBM Research scientists who recently set out to make what turned out be the Guinness World Record-certified smallest stop-motion film ever.

Called "A Boy and His Atom," the animated film features a small boy having a good old time as he bounces around, playing catch, and dancing. The twist? The film was shot at the atomic level and features 130 atoms that were painstakingly placed, atom by atom, as the researchers shot 250 individual frames. The images were created at a temperature of negative 268 degrees Celsius and were magnified 100 million times. … Read more

Born in the U.S.A.: Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum amplifier

A lot of audiophiles love tube amplifiers, and I've owned my share, but I don't currently have tubes in my main hi-fi system. I instantly remembered what I was missing when I hooked up the Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum integrated amplifier with my KEF LS50 speakers. They're good together.

Before founding Rogue Audio in 1996, Mark O'Brien worked for Bell Labs and other companies doing electronics development, lasers, and transformer design. Like so many audio designers I've met over the years, O'Brien started building amplifiers when he was a little kid. Audio is a … Read more

iTalk Recorder 4.6.3 Review

Our iPhone already came equipped with a Voice Memo app, but, hey, we're all about choices. iTalk Recorder claims to be a "full-featured recording app with a streamlined and intuitive user interface." And after putting it to the test, we'd have to agree with that statement.

iTalk Recorder does indeed offer a simple and intuitive interface. Users are greeted with a large, prominent red button that you press to start recording. To get started, simply give the recording a name, select from the three different recording quality options (Good, Better, Best), and press the Record button; … Read more

Alexander Graham Bell's voice captured from old recordings

Alexander Graham Bell is known for inventing the telephone; but for someone so associated with sound, it's curious that no one living has actually ever heard the tenor of his voice.

However, as of Wednesday, anyone can hear what he sounded like. New technology has brought a 128-year-old recording made by Bell back to life, according to Smithsonian magazine.

The artifact, a wax and cardboard disc, has most likely been unplayable for at least a century. According to Smithsonian, Bell worked on several different ways to record sound, including using foil, wax, glass, paper, plaster, metal, and cardboard. Not … Read more

Another groovy Record Store Day

If you still buy music in a physical format, Record Store Day is for you. Stores stock special releases and have sales on LPs and CDs, so if you're lucky enough to live near a record shop, drop by on Saturday and see what's up. Check the RSD Web site to find participating stores, and touch some (physical) music.

Here in NYC, two of my favorite shops, Downtown Music Gallery and In Living Stereo, are pulling out all the stops. Downtown's Bruce Lee Gallanter and Manny Maris are two of the guys I count on for their … Read more

YouTube honors birthday of video recorder with VHS-style videos

Anyone who misses the fuzzy quality of old VHS tapes can take a nostalgic tour courtesy of YouTube.

Celebrating the birth of the first commercial videotape recorder 57 years ago, YouTube has added an option to certain videos to let you view them in old VHS mode. Instead of sporting today's cleaner digital look, the videos appear in a scratchy, static-filled screen.

One such video to get the VHS treatment is a clip from the Pixar film "Ratatouille." Just click on the Enable Tape Mode icon to travel back in time and watch the video in all … Read more

iRig Recorder 1.0.1 Review

If you want to ditch your personal recording device, you can use your smartphone to replace it. iRig Recorder is an app specifically designed to capture the full power of your smartphone's microphone to record audio. Its layout is smooth, but the features and recording quality leave a lot to be desired.

The app doesn't put any limit on your recording and even lets you know how much data you have left. That makes it easy to know when you should cap your recording for space concerns. The app's menu also tells you how much battery life … Read more

Ondesoft Audio Recorder for Mac Review

Users who want to apply audio files to their project may need to edit them first. Ondesoft Audio Recorder for Mac, despite its basic interface, applies desired, albeit limited, modifications to songs or other audio files.

Ondesoft Audio Recorder for Mac offers a free trial version, which limits playback to two minutes of audio. Unlocking the full version requires a $29.95 payment. The program's small size allowed for a fast installation. Other than a pop-up menu describing the trial version and requesting a key to unlock the program, setup did not require any user actions. It is unclear … Read more

Capture your mouse movements easily with Mouse Recorder

If you use your computer daily, you might have thought about how much time you spend doing the same things over and over again. Mouse Recorder is a tool designed to automate tasks you perform with your mouse by letting you record the steps and replay them easily. While it worked for some tasks, others weren't so easily reproduced.

The small interface holds only a few options, including the two main buttons, Record and Repeat. We liked that each button includes a keyboard shortcut to start the processes, as well. The rest of the interface lets you fine-tune how … Read more

MP3 resale violates copyright law, court rules

A court ruling has put the kibosh on reselling digital media.

In a lawsuit between Universal Music Group's Capitol Records and MP3 reseller ReDigi, U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan has sided with the record label and said that reselling songs bought on iTunes, Amazon, or other digital music venues is akin to copyright infringement.

"The court grants Capitol's motion for summary judgment on its claims for ReDigi's direct, contributory, and vicarious infringement of its distribution and reproduction rights," Judge Sullivan wrote in a summary judgment filed Saturday. "The court also denies ReDigi's … Read more