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 “Audio Renaissance Conference

  • Craig Allison

    All too true, but… what it’s all about is offering the public the right balance of convenience and sound quality.

    While 16/44 is not hi-res, it is a format that if used to the full extent of it’s capabilities, can sound quite listenable on a good system. So if the eventuality for most is streaming 16/44, I call that progress relative to MP-3/128, and that combination should be a winning one for most. Yes, I have come to believe that high-res will mostly be explored by audiophiles. Thus we will end up with good sound for everyman, and great sound for the few, exactly what I personally feel is a very positive scenario overall.

    As for devices, we had tinny x-istor radios in the old days, and the I-phones and jamboxes of this world are nothing more than today’s tinny devices. What remains to be seen is whether or not the millennials, who do not buy cable or satellite tv subscriptions or follow hardly any boomer patterns, will ever buy good loudspeakers and learn to sit, listen, and be blown away. Their current music consumption habits only feed them “appetizers.” Will they ever dig into the main dish? That is something I do wonder about, and CD quality streaming might just be enough to get them to the dining table. I always would rather be aware and hopeful than aware and cynical or nay-saying.

    Reply
  • OK, I’m a dinasour and I really don’t understand this whole “streaming” business model.

    A couple days ago the Gods looked down on us and Pink Floyd released Endless River. That night I had the HDTracks download in my server and playing anywhere in my house, on my portable media player and playing in my phones on my walks, playing on my pickups radio, etc, etc, etc. You understand.

    So now we’re 5 years in the future, hard media and downloads are gone and they’ve been replaced by “streaming”
    So how do I now get the whole album Endless River and have it available anytime and anywhere that I want. I just don’t understand how streaming works and how besides putting X dollars in someones pocket every month whether I use them or not how does streaming differ from downloads.
    My old brain just can’t keep up.

    Reply
    • BTW , For $22.98 HDTracks can’t even get the file-song names right. Track 12s name is Autumn ’68, not Autumn ‘6 as it reads on their files.

      Reply
      • Admin

        I’d have to ask the HDtracks guys whether the metadata is input by them or does it come fully completed by the labels. I don’t think this is too big a deal…I certainly have found a lot of mistakes on my sites.

        Reply
    • Admin

      Sal, think of streaming like electricity. You turn on the switch and the lights come on. In the music delivery model, all of your music will be stored on someone else’s hard drive (the cloud) and you will be able to access any recording at any time in any location. At this point, the only downside is that you can’t get any quality. Having that flexibility for say $20 per month is pretty compelling.

      Reply
      • Wayne Blair

        1 Data for most is not unlimited.

        2 Data is noy accessible everywhere.

        3 Telco data has inconsistent coverage and dead spots.
        Data is yet another expensive service times toe cost of a data plan for each device.

        4 dependent upon connectivity to the server and their capacity to serve it.

        5 the political whims of the company, country where service originates. Content can be blocked.

        6 something getting taken away from me… consider when 1984 got wipped off device where legally purchased.

        7 media or downloaded content i will alway have at no cost beyond purchase.

        8 Much more content in media or download. Content such like AIX not likely as a stream.

        Yes media and downloads have their fragilities but far, far less than streaming, especially the hidden costs.

        Reply
        • Admin

          Good points but with the “Offline” aspect of the Music Key program…that means most of your concerns go away. They’re going to be doing downloads as well.

          Reply
  • Thanks guys, I’m a little clearer now on things.
    I’m sure I can depend on my Linux developer bros to hack a program that will allow me to record, trascode, etc to do whatever I’d want with a stream.

    Long term I wouldn’t worry about getting locked to 16/44 or whatever. This is all about greed and money. Once 16/44 is the norm they’ll be looking for a way to get more money, then the big PR will start for upgrading to a HiRez stream.
    Just look at TV. HiDef, 3d, 4k etc ever more.
    Don’t matter that 16/44 is good enough for most folks-equipment. When the need for the suppliers to make more $ becomes a priority, the $ will be put into PR to convince people they need better. 24/192 DSD64 or something that can be sold is just around the corner.
    But at my age I’ll be dead before I have to worry about it. LOL

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *