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Neil Young's Pono


Tarheel

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from http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/an-interview-with-neil-young-and-pono-ceo-john-hamm/:

 

 

The Absolute Sound: When you’re at home, vinyl or digital?

 

Neil Young: Both. Depends on my mood and the quality of the digital. Old vinyl is great, but Pono is great. Pono through a good system is really great. In my car I use Pono.

 

TAS: How do you convince the younger generations to adopt Pono when compressed music services like Spotify, Pandora, and iTunes have such a stronghold?

 

NY: First of all, young people are interested in doing new things, and very few aren’t interested in trying something new. Young people aren’t just looking back, they are also looking forward. I have a lot faith in the younger generation of music lovers. Youth isn’t living in the past; if somebody tells them that there’s something better than what they currently have, they’re going to check it out. And if they like it, they’re going to get it. I’m not worried about the youth.

 

TAS: What about the diehard vinyl fans? Will they use Pono?

 

NY: If you can take your vinyl into your car and put it in your pocket, then you should do it, because it would be a miracle and you should be on TV [laughs all around]. Vinyl is great, I made a lot of vinyl, but I don’t want new vinyl that’s from digital sources, because that’s a rip off. 44/16 is ok, but I’m not happy with it, and I don’t want vinyl sourced from it, either.

 

TAS: How did Pono initially start? Did you lead the charge, or did someone come to you?

 

NY: No, no one came to me and asked to partner. People actually ran away from me. No one said that they wanted to rescue an art form. An old buddy and I just kept working at this, and we never stopped. The people working with me here have been working with me for over a year without getting paid. They just love music. I explained what I wanted to do, and they saw the vision. We built this thing called “The Revealer” that would play various resolutions in real time, no A/B comparison, and it allowed people to hear the difference between MP3 all the way up to 192/24. It was really jury rigged, but it was real.

 

TAS: Did people notice the difference?

 

NY: Instantly. One artist heard 192/24 and didn’t want to go back. And that’s the key. We didn’t have to do anything, the quality did all the work.

 

TAS: What about the people who say they can’t hear a difference in file resolution?

 

NY: They Probably haven’t heard high-quality music. They need to be alone with the music, they need to try it out without anybody looking at them and pressuring them. If they take it home and listen, they will hear the difference. People will check it out, and if they like it, they like it.

 

TAS: What kind of stereo do you have at home?

 

NY: I have a lot of McIntosh equipment that I use for listening. My studio is full of different stuff, Tannoy and an old pair of Altec [Lansing] speakers with Mac 275s running them. It’s the old Voice of the Theater speakers. They’re ridiculous [laughs]...

 

TAS: ...how does Pono source its material?

 

NY: We make sure to go to the Master Tape, right to the original. That’s what our goal is. When we do Thriller, we’re going to get the master...

 

TAS: You mentioned that everyone understands the importance of high-res photography and other digital media. Why do you think there is a disconnect between high-res music and the general public?

 

NY: It’s because they’ve never had a choice. When digital music downloads became available, there was only low-res. It’s simply not there. In America, of all places, there’s no freedom of choice when it comes to digital music like there is in France and Germany and elsewhere. There are the niche sites, but most people are handed MP3s, and that’s it. The giants who sell that music have actually created the largest opportunity yet for a renaissance in music.

 

TAS: The readers of hi-fi magazines like The Absolute Sound are already very familiar with the benefits of high-res music. How do you plan to attract them to Pono?

 

NY: We build a great, easily accessible platform. We’ve built a player, we’ve built a site, and we guarantee that the music is the highest quality available—no upsampling, no gimmicks, just the original master as it was meant to be heard from the best source we can get. And if it ever gets better, and you’ve already bought it, you will get the best version for free. We will pay the record companies to upgrade the music.

 

TAS: Are there plans to push record labels to upgrade?

 

NY: They’re already doing it. Whatever the artist wanted to do, that’s what we’ll do. If they recorded in 192/24, then we’ll sell it at that rate. But we don’t judge it. Resolution is a tool that the artist uses to get a sound, and we support that. We present it how they want, whether hip-hop or classical. We just give people the platform to distribute it.

 

TAS: How many albums will be available on PonoMusic?

 

NY: As many as we can possibly get. Record labels don’t want to hold back. If an album comes out, there’s no reason why people shouldn’t have access to it immediately. We want people to buy the music the same day, in the original quality.

 

TAS: Any final thoughts?

 

NY: Yeah, thank you music lovers for supporting this. It’s a pleasure and an amazing opportunity to change the music world...

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There are several issues. The following are my opinions, based upon my actual experience.

First: Pono playing good high resolution recordings, whether actual Pono files, HDTracks, Linn recordings, etc. sounds better to me than the same recordings in vinyl, CD or mp3 formats. The potential of digital is finally realized. Physical media is going the way of the Dodo.

Second: Most of the Pono critics have never actually heard one, or held one in their hands. Recall, Pono is only recently available to the retail market. For the most part, only Kickstarter funders have finally received their long awaited Pono players.

Third: There are other ways to play high resolution digital files to obtain similar results, but most other hardware options cost several times the cost of a Pono player and are not as easily portable. The ESS DAC and other high quality Pono components, that are too large to fit in a phone, allow Pono to produce excellent SQ at a relative value. You'd need to spend a lot more to enjoy a significant improvement in SQ.

Fourth: Portability is a welcome feature, but not the reason I purchased a Pono player. If I want to listen to music while jogging, my phone, IEMs and mp3s are more than up to the task. I use Pono to play the best available source material into my 2-channel system. The fact that I can easily take it to someone else's 2-channel system is merely a bonus. When travelling, it's convenient to connect Pono to the "aux" input in the car. I rarely listen to Pono using IEMs or cans.

Fifth: Mp3s, WAV files, etc., sound better through Pono than my Android phone. I suspect that the quality of the Pono components explains this. Furthermore, the JRiver based Pono Music player is probably a factor. It’s not necessary to buy yet another copy of Respect to enjoy the benefits of Pono. That said, it might be worth it if a high resolution Respect file is available. You will never have heard Respect sound so good.

To demonstrate the superiority of Pono to the unwashed, I play Michael Jackon's Billie Jean from his Thriller album. MJ is not my typical choice in music, but the performance and recording are spectacular as a demonstration piece. Using the Pono player, I first play a good mp3 version downloaded from Amazon. Whether through a quality 2-channel rig, car stereo or iPod dock, the results are consistent. People who have no interest in audio hardware agree that it sounds very good. Next I play the Pono version of the same song without changing the volume. Again, the universal reaction is that the second version sounds better. Some can articulate why it sounds better, others just agree it sounds better. The benefits of dynamic range are noticeable. The compressed mp3 sounds dead by comparison.

Sixth: Although not yet accomplished, it is my plan to eventually rip cleaned vinyl to high resolution FLAC files that can be preserved on a hard drive, as well as enjoyed using Pono. I have no intention of (again) getting rid of my turntable and vinyl. I will still haunt used record stores, thrift shops, garage sales, etc. looking for recorded treasures that are only available on vinyl. Once preserved digitally to the best possible degree, the vinyl will be stored. The days of flipping vinyl to listen to music are over.

Seventh: While I agree that you can’t make gold out of lead, the Pono alchemy will make your good lead sound better than ever. A poorly recorded performance of inferior music will not sound better just because it has been converted to a high resolution digital file. Most here know how bad recordings sound when played on an excellent 2-channel system. Whether using Pono or some other way to play high resolution digital files, the way to preserve and play worthy recordings is to convert them to the best possible digital files.

YMMV, but please withhold your criticism of Pono until you have actually heard a Pono player.

Edited by DizRotus
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  • 3 weeks later...

The PONO player sounds like a successful new portable device.  Looks like it it well built too and comes with good software.  My opinion of it, just reading about it, and not having tried it, is its strength is the portability.  I have every bit the capability on my Benchmark DAC-2.........as everyone else who has any decent DAC.  The capability is nothing new at all.

 

The other strength is that Hi Res library.  Very good idea.  I believe this will go a long way.

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Hello all .  Got mine a month ago   AWESOME   looking at the  " I am loving musical over again "  above this post.    That says it all !!!  

The PONO makes music everywhere you use it sound fantastic.   I'm dancing in the music cave,  rocking in the car , jamming with headphones at work while in spreadsheets.  Thank you Neil !  Thank you Kickstarter believers.

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Hello all .  Got mine a month ago   AWESOME   looking at the  " I am loving musical over again "  above this post.    That says it all !!!  

The PONO makes music everywhere you use it sound fantastic.   I'm dancing in the music cave,  rocking in the car , jamming with headphones at work while in spreadsheets.  Thank you Neil !  Thank you Kickstarter believers.

 

Glad you like it.

 

IMO, the best way to quickly demonstrate the superiority of Pono high resolution to mp3s is with Michael Jackson's Billie Jean from Thriller.    I purschased only the single from Pono.  Next, I purchased the mp3 single from Amazon.  Both were loaded onto the Pono player.  Whether played via IEMs, 2-channel or the car, EVERYONE immediately recognizes the superiority of the Pono version.

 

First I play the mp3 version.  All agree it sounds very good.  Then I play the Pono version.  From the opening beats, the dynamics and fidelity of the high resolution Pono version are amazingly obvious.  The openness and 3 dimensionality of the sound are intoxicating.

 

Some high resolution recordings are better than others.  High resolution versions of poor performances, poor recordings and/or poor master tapes will sound like a CD or mp3.  My favorites are excellent live performances that are excellently recorded and then mastered with maximum dynamic range.

 

When I have time, I'll rip some vinyl to FLAC and see how that sounds on Pono.  I expect the results to be better than CDs or mp3s.

Edited by DizRotus
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Hello all .  Got mine a month ago   AWESOME   looking at the  " I am loving musical over again "  above this post.    That says it all !!!  

The PONO makes music everywhere you use it sound fantastic.   I'm dancing in the music cave,  rocking in the car , jamming with headphones at work while in spreadsheets.  Thank you Neil !  Thank you Kickstarter believers.

 

Glad you like it.

 

IMO, the best way to quickly demonstrate the superiority of Pono high resolution to mp3s is with Michael Jackson's Billie Jean from Thriller.    I purschased only the single from Pono.  Next, I purchased the mp3 single from Amazon.  Both were loaded onto the Pono player.  Whether played via IEMs, 2-channel or the car, EVERYONE immediately recognizes the superiority of the Pono version.

 

First I play the mp3 version.  All agree it sounds very good.  Then I play the Pono version.  From the opening beats, the dynamics and fidelity of the high resolution Pono version are amazingly obvious.  The openness and 3 dimensionality of the sound are intoxicating.

 

Some high resolution recordings are better than others.  High resolution versions of poor performances, poor recordings and/or poor master tapes will sound like a CD or mp3.  My favorites are excellent live performances that are excellently recorded and then mastered with maximum dynamic range.

 

When I have time, I'll rip some vinyl to FLAC and see how that sounds on Pono.  I expect the results to be better than CDs or mp3s.

 

great review - thanks for sharing the pono experience -

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