Dr. AIX

Mark Waldrep, aka Dr. AIX, has been producing and engineering music for over 40 years. He learned electronics as a teenager from his HAM radio father while learning to play the guitar. Mark received the first doctorate in music composition from UCLA in 1986 for a "binaural" electronic music composition. Other advanced degrees include an MS in computer science, an MFA/MA in music, BM in music and a BA in art. As an engineer and producer, Mark has worked on projects for the Rolling Stones, 311, Tool, KISS, Blink 182, Blues Traveler, Britney Spears, the San Francisco Symphony, The Dover Quartet, Willie Nelson, Paul Williams, The Allman Brothers, Bad Company and many more. Dr. Waldrep has been an innovator when it comes to multimedia and music. He created the first enhanced CDs in the 90s, the first DVD-Videos released in the U.S., the first web-connected DVD, the first DVD-Audio title, the first music Blu-ray disc and the first 3D Music Album. Additionally, he launched the first High Definition Music Download site in 2007 called iTrax.com. A frequency speaker at audio events, author of numerous articles, Dr. Waldrep is currently writing a book on the production and reproduction of high-end music called, "High-End Audio: A Practical Guide to Production and Playback". The book should be completed in the fall of 2013.

8 thoughts on “Sony “HiRes Audio” Logo May Identify HRA

  • Yes, leverage the public’s understanding that HD-something means “better than what they used to have”.

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  • Jack Gammer

    Us consumers want to know both that the bucket is Hi Res and what the provenance of the source was. The Sony schema is too vague. Even the definition “lossless audio at better than CD quality” covers too much and therefore becomes quite meaningless. I like “ultra high resolution audio” term, It sounds like the term “ultra Hi Def Video” – 4K. Would there be confusion over this similarity for some folk? Just as the video world has gone from SD, to BD to ultra Hi Def, I think the audio world may be headed the same way, albeit a bit more slowly.

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  • Édouard Trépanier

    Of course the labels will want to reveal as little as possible regarding the resolution of each stage. Why wasting time. While using their logo when appropriate, you should protect & go with “Ultra High-Resolution Audio” accompanied with full provenance.

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  • Alphonso Soosay

    DR. AIX. You are correct to say that Sony design is way too generic. I believe HRA is the way to go. It makes alot of sense as far as high-resolution audio is concerned.

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  • Hi Mark,

    While I agree totally with your take on this (I am a graphic designer/illustrator), including your addition to the logo, I think there is a lot more going on here.

    I’ve been following your (sometimes) despairing reportage of how the ‘industry’ is way too easily accepting a dumbed -down definition of hi-rez and I find myself constantly shaking my head at how it appears a golden opportunity is slipping away from us all – you are fighting a valiant fight and it’s much appreciated.

    Having said that I feel that the ‘big boys’ have already got it sown up and worked out – it’s about money, future revenue, spin, look and feel but no substance, pretty typical corporate approaches really. Something that popped up the other day was the lead-in article, ‘As We See It’, in July Stereophile mag, by Steve Guttenberg – ‘Start making Sense’. http://www.stereophile.com/content/start-making-sense

    Steve points out where he sees it going and from my perspective I think he has, unfortunately nailed it in one (apart from his blather about LPs…). He gives a link (http://www.stereophile.com/content/start-making-sense) to an address by Marc Geiger of WME, a talent/media agency set-up, at this year’s Midems Music expo – Marc is spruiking a general sweep away of things old, no physical media, no files even – just STREAMING and the big boys are salivating beyond their wildest dreams.

    True high quality sound is of no interest to these people, just the ‘appearance’ of it to further boost sales. The small number (relatively) of audiophiles or others who value fidelity and dynamics etc as well as the sheer joy of the music itself will not be catered for, the general public will be/is being having the wool pulled over their eyes with the industry’s ‘re-definition’ of Hi-Rez. This is what you/we are seeing in action, a concerted effort to keep things as they always have been but presented in a shiny new suit of clothes.

    Thanks for your work.

    Ian

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    • I’m with you Doc! As a consumer that spends a lot of money on a lot of technology, I DESERVE to know what I’m getting for my money. I don’t think I should be tricked into spending extra money for something it’s not. It blows me away that some of my decades old CDs blow away a vast number of new recordings. I don’t miss the worries of wow & flutter, azimuth, rumble, etc.
      Keep fighting the good fight!

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  • Oh, I should have popped in a nice comment from one of the reply letters on the Stereophile site:

    HEY, STOP PISSING IN OUR CUPS AND TELLING US IT’S CHAMPAGNE.

    I rather like that…

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  • You are 1000% correct that HD-Audio is a far better moniker than Hi-Res Audio because it corresponds well with HDTV, which is something everybody already understands and has experienced, so HD-Audio creates a much clearer and complementary association with an already-extant hi-rez technology.

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