I feel bad for the Teegan and Tara group. I've never heard of them, but at this point, only 22 people bought a Pono with their signatures on it..
For those that are interested, here's a little info on Tegan and Sara and their connection to Neil: They are twin sisters from Canada and were signed to Neil's Vapor Records label in 2000. They played Neil and Pegi's Bridge School Benefit concerts in 2000 and 2004. In 2004 they released an album called 'So Jealous' with the very catchy tune 'Walking With A Ghost'.Here's a link to that song - I bet you remember it. The White Stripes even covered it!
Binaural would sound amazing on this. So would Yield, Riot Act, No Code, and Vitalogy. (Just saying)
Yo, tribe! Cool to see you over at ponopeople
Binaural is the obvious first choice for me too
I recognized you on there from the profile pic )
"There's a $10,000 bill in it for you."
"Oh yeah? Which president's on it?"
"Uh, all of them. They're having a party. Jimmy Carter's passed out on the couch."
Kenny Rodgers Pono added. Maybe some will drop their Pearl Jam Pono for Kenny?
"There's a $10,000 bill in it for you."
"Oh yeah? Which president's on it?"
"Uh, all of them. They're having a party. Jimmy Carter's passed out on the couch."
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
That's why he suckered all these people into paying for it. 400 bucks for a laser engraved music player......?
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
Na, dude. I pledged for one but I don't think you're off base for having suspicions. It's a new, untested thing. I know I'm taking part in an experiment of sorts but I'm cool with it. I hope you're wrong but I totally respect that point of view.
If I worked at it... I could probably get me parents to buy one.
Of course... I'd have to have a little more info than Neil Young took guys for a drive and then got them to say something about the music they heard in his car.
If I worked at it... I could probably get me parents to buy one.
Of course... I'd have to have a little more info than Neil Young took guys for a drive and then got them to say something about the music they heard in his car.
Yeah, the car thing is really annoying. No shit music sounds awesome in Neil Young's fucking car! Do you have any idea how much money he put into that sound system? They really should have testimonials from people using their own headphones; pulling them out of their phones or iPods and into a Pono player. That would be a much greater sell of what the thing can do and a more believable test than only through the speakers of a tricked out car.
If I worked at it... I could probably get me parents to buy one.
Of course... I'd have to have a little more info than Neil Young took guys for a drive and then got them to say something about the music they heard in his car.
Yeah, the car thing is really annoying. No shit music sounds awesome in Neil Young's fucking car! Do you have any idea how much money he put into that sound system? They really should have testimonials from people using their own headphones; pulling them out of their phones or iPods and into a Pono player. That would be a much greater sell of what the thing can do and a more believable test than only through the speakers of a tricked out car.
In all likelihood... they'll be cool, but I'm not inclined to think they are going to revolutionize music. I thought long and hard about buying one- still considering DMB... but I just couldn't and can't bring myself to do it.
If I worked at it... I could probably get me parents to buy one.
Of course... I'd have to have a little more info than Neil Young took guys for a drive and then got them to say something about the music they heard in his car.
Yeah, the car thing is really annoying. No shit music sounds awesome in Neil Young's fucking car! Do you have any idea how much money he put into that sound system? They really should have testimonials from people using their own headphones; pulling them out of their phones or iPods and into a Pono player. That would be a much greater sell of what the thing can do and a more believable test than only through the speakers of a tricked out car.
In all likelihood... they'll be cool, but I'm not inclined to think they are going to revolutionize music. I thought long and hard about buying one- still considering DMB... but I just couldn't and can't bring myself to do it.
I hear you. Honestly, I look at it as a can't lose situation. I picked up a PJ early knowing they'd sell out quickly but also knowing I had 30 days to change my mind before I was charged. When I get it, I can see how much I like it/use it and if I'm not into it, it would be a very easy find someone to take a limited edition Pearl Jam item off my hands.
I don't think it's going to revolutionize music at all either but ever since I bought an iPod (in 2001) I've hated the fact that when I buy a cd, I convert it to mp3 and immediately degrade what I've just purchased. Whenever I buy something I really want to hear well (new PJ album for example), I walk around with my old discman for a few days. Now, with Pono, I don't have to make that compromise and for me there's value in that. Especially since both my iPod and discman are now old as fuck and on their last legs.
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
It's not just you. The way I'm seeing it, the only thing this device does that is different from anything else we have today (besides being triangular) is the onboard DAC. I don't know enough about DACs to know if $300-400 is a good deal for this one alongside it's other components, but I'm sure the presence of one compared to an iPhone without one does produce a noticeable difference in sound/clarity. Everything else we have now, from the format to the player to the storefront, it's just not all marketed under one brand.
The promise of this thing in its infancy was Neil's crusade against the loudness wars, poor mastering and mixing of music to make it portable, etc. We're now seeing him shrug and say something along the lines of "the masters are what the masters are" and there doesn't appear to be (formally stated anyhow) any statement of intent to use the Pono business model to deliver better sounding versions of albums regardless of format (256kbps AAC or hi-res FLAC).
From a business perspective it doesn't make much sense. If your value proposition is to deliver the best possible version of an album yet you have zero control over whether or not the albums your service will offer will actually be remastered/mixed (not just offered in a lossless format), you not only fail to deliver what you're promising, but you also fail to differentiate yourself from your competition and must go all-in on (as he is with all of these artists, like Beats Music before him) on pure marketing hype to set yourself apart and hope like heck consumers don't see behind the curtain.
[i]Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?[/i]
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
Some believe they'll see a good return on their investment on the secondary market. Others are paying $400 for the laser-engraved signatures of their favorite musician. And some just purchase anything and everything related to the band.
I passed as well.
To quote the 10C from Newsletter #8: "Please understand we have a lot of members and it is very hard to please everybody. If you are one of those unhappy people...please call 1-900-IDN-TCAR."
"Me knowing the truth, I can not concur."
1996: Toronto - 1998: Chicago, Montreal, Barrie - 2000: Montreal, Toronto - 2002: Seattle X2 (Key Arena) - 2003: Cleveland, Buffalo, Toronto, Montreal, Seattle (Benaroya Hall) - 2004: Reading, Toledo, Grand Rapids - 2005: Kitchener, London, Hamilton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City - 2006: Toronto X2, Albany, Hartford, Grand Rapids, Cleveland - 2007: Chicago (Vic Theatre) - 2008: NYC X2, Hartford, Mansfield X2 - 2009: Toronto, Chicago X2, Seattle X2, Philadelphia X4 - 2010: Columbus, Noblesville, Cleveland, Buffalo, Hartford - 2011: Montreal, Toronto X2, Ottawa, Hamilton - 2012: Missoula - 2013: London, Chicago, Buffalo, Hartford - 2014: Detroit, Moline - 2015: NYC (Global Citizen Festival) - 2016: Greenville, Toronto X2, Chicago 1 - 2017: Brooklyn (RRHOF Induction) - 2018: Chicago 1, Boston 1 - 2022: Fresno, Ottawa, Hamilton, Toronto, NYC, Camden - 2023: St. Paul X2, Austin X2 - 2024: Vancouver X2, Portland, Sacramento, Missoula, Noblesville, Philadelphia X2, Baltimore - 2025: Hollywood X2, Nashville X2, Pittsburgh X2
For the record (and my own self respect), I couldn't give a damn about a laser engraved signature (or any signature for that matter) but those etchings are depreciation insurance.
If I can't switch to a PJ one, I doubt I will keep it. I sit here and F5 the shit out of my computer throughout the day and haven't scored one yet.... Hopefully before the end of this time period.
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
It's not just you. The way I'm seeing it, the only thing this device does that is different from anything else we have today (besides being triangular) is the onboard DAC. I don't know enough about DACs to know if $300-400 is a good deal for this one alongside it's other components, but I'm sure the presence of one compared to an iPhone without one does produce a noticeable difference in sound/clarity. Everything else we have now, from the format to the player to the storefront, it's just not all marketed under one brand.
The promise of this thing in its infancy was Neil's crusade against the loudness wars, poor mastering and mixing of music to make it portable, etc. We're now seeing him shrug and say something along the lines of "the masters are what the masters are" and there doesn't appear to be (formally stated anyhow) any statement of intent to use the Pono business model to deliver better sounding versions of albums regardless of format (256kbps AAC or hi-res FLAC).
From a business perspective it doesn't make much sense. If your value proposition is to deliver the best possible version of an album yet you have zero control over whether or not the albums your service will offer will actually be remastered/mixed (not just offered in a lossless format), you not only fail to deliver what you're promising, but you also fail to differentiate yourself from your competition and must go all-in on (as he is with all of these artists, like Beats Music before him) on pure marketing hype to set yourself apart and hope like heck consumers don't see behind the curtain.
Prior to the announcement of the Pono I would of said the best portable music players are made by Cowon. With the rise of smartphones the new models release by cowon have been slowing down (as demand has slowed down). Cowon puts really nice DACs in their players and the sound quality is probably the best amongst portable players. The downside is they can do CD quality FLAC but the older ones can't do the higher quality flac formats. I think the newer model can when 3rd party software is installed.
I guess for me I would think the DAC in the Pono would be similar in quality to a Cowon device, so the question is do I need easy access to play HD Flac files. Not really. If my Cowon dies would I consider replacing it with a PONO?. Possibly. I would definitely look at another Cowon first.
In regards to album loudness. I'm not sure there's much Neil Young can do on that front. He doesn't run the record companies nor own the content. He really doesn't have any leverage to coerce the record companies into remastering albums for release on the PONO (a player which could very well be a niche product and not drive a lot of sales).
I'm sure his intentions were good, but you always hit a brick wall when you don't own the content. It reminds me of all these companies trying to make set top boxes to replace cable TV. Then those companies have to license the content just like cable companies do and they can't really offer it any cheaper.. lol. They hit a brick wall because they don't own the content.
i know i'm gonna creamed for this, but I just don't buy this. Neil Young and his Pono crew are making it sound like music is no longer enjoyable thanks to the mp3. if this was true, i would have stopped listening to music 15 years ago. this seems like nothing more than an artist's vanity project. My guess is that most people will regret dropping $300-400 for a music player they will find redundant and clunky
It's not just you. The way I'm seeing it, the only thing this device does that is different from anything else we have today (besides being triangular) is the onboard DAC. I don't know enough about DACs to know if $300-400 is a good deal for this one alongside it's other components, but I'm sure the presence of one compared to an iPhone without one does produce a noticeable difference in sound/clarity. Everything else we have now, from the format to the player to the storefront, it's just not all marketed under one brand.
The promise of this thing in its infancy was Neil's crusade against the loudness wars, poor mastering and mixing of music to make it portable, etc. We're now seeing him shrug and say something along the lines of "the masters are what the masters are" and there doesn't appear to be (formally stated anyhow) any statement of intent to use the Pono business model to deliver better sounding versions of albums regardless of format (256kbps AAC or hi-res FLAC).
From a business perspective it doesn't make much sense. If your value proposition is to deliver the best possible version of an album yet you have zero control over whether or not the albums your service will offer will actually be remastered/mixed (not just offered in a lossless format), you not only fail to deliver what you're promising, but you also fail to differentiate yourself from your competition and must go all-in on (as he is with all of these artists, like Beats Music before him) on pure marketing hype to set yourself apart and hope like heck consumers don't see behind the curtain.
I'm sure his intentions were good, but you always hit a brick wall when you don't own the content. It reminds me of all these companies trying to make set top boxes to replace cable TV. Then those companies have the license the content just like cable companies do and they can't really offer it any cheaper.. lol. They hit a brick wall because they don't own the content.
Copyright is a bitch
Yea, I agree completely. I just can't help but wonder (as a business guy) if there wasn't a better strategy/model Neil and company could have put around PonoMusic to really set it apart and deliver the dream he was after. This direction is starting out in a weaker position IMO.
[i]Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?[/i]
I was doing some google research on a new Cowon model and found a lot of people had moved companies to a device called the "Fiio X3" which has a high quality DAC, Supports FLAC HD, gets great ratings, and sells for 200 on amazon.com. Apparently the successor (x5) should be out soon.
It seems the Pono already has some competition that does what it's trying to do?
For the record... it wasn't my parents. I'm pretty sure it was Neil. Now that the floodgate's open... look out.
The Kenny Rogers model includes a coupon for a bucket of his roasted chicken. Unfortunately, he closed all of his U.S. restaurants - you'll have to go to Asia to redeem it. Mmmm...chicken.
Comments
They are twin sisters from Canada and were signed to Neil's Vapor Records label in 2000.
They played Neil and Pegi's Bridge School Benefit concerts in 2000 and 2004.
In 2004 they released an album called 'So Jealous' with the very catchy tune 'Walking With A Ghost'.Here's a link to that song - I bet you remember it. The White Stripes even covered it!
Binaural is the obvious first choice for me too
"Oh yeah? Which president's on it?"
"Uh, all of them. They're having a party. Jimmy Carter's passed out on the couch."
Columbus 2000
Columbus 2003
Hershey 2003
Toledo 2004
Cincinnati 2006
Chicago/Lollapalooza 2007
Columbus 2010
Chicago/Wrigley 2013
Pittsburgh 2013
Portland 2013
Cincinnati 2014
"Oh yeah? Which president's on it?"
"Uh, all of them. They're having a party. Jimmy Carter's passed out on the couch."
Columbus 2000
Columbus 2003
Hershey 2003
Toledo 2004
Cincinnati 2006
Chicago/Lollapalooza 2007
Columbus 2010
Chicago/Wrigley 2013
Pittsburgh 2013
Portland 2013
Cincinnati 2014
Of course... I'd have to have a little more info than Neil Young took guys for a drive and then got them to say something about the music they heard in his car.
I don't think it's going to revolutionize music at all either but ever since I bought an iPod (in 2001) I've hated the fact that when I buy a cd, I convert it to mp3 and immediately degrade what I've just purchased. Whenever I buy something I really want to hear well (new PJ album for example), I walk around with my old discman for a few days. Now, with Pono, I don't have to make that compromise and for me there's value in that. Especially since both my iPod and discman are now old as fuck and on their last legs.
The promise of this thing in its infancy was Neil's crusade against the loudness wars, poor mastering and mixing of music to make it portable, etc. We're now seeing him shrug and say something along the lines of "the masters are what the masters are" and there doesn't appear to be (formally stated anyhow) any statement of intent to use the Pono business model to deliver better sounding versions of albums regardless of format (256kbps AAC or hi-res FLAC).
From a business perspective it doesn't make much sense. If your value proposition is to deliver the best possible version of an album yet you have zero control over whether or not the albums your service will offer will actually be remastered/mixed (not just offered in a lossless format), you not only fail to deliver what you're promising, but you also fail to differentiate yourself from your competition and must go all-in on (as he is with all of these artists, like Beats Music before him) on pure marketing hype to set yourself apart and hope like heck consumers don't see behind the curtain.
I just picked up a PJ Pono. How in the world are singles becoming available at this point!? I'm happy.
I passed as well.
"Me knowing the truth, I can not concur."
1996: Toronto - 1998: Chicago, Montreal, Barrie - 2000: Montreal, Toronto - 2002: Seattle X2 (Key Arena) - 2003: Cleveland, Buffalo, Toronto, Montreal, Seattle (Benaroya Hall) - 2004: Reading, Toledo, Grand Rapids - 2005: Kitchener, London, Hamilton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City - 2006: Toronto X2, Albany, Hartford, Grand Rapids, Cleveland - 2007: Chicago (Vic Theatre) - 2008: NYC X2, Hartford, Mansfield X2 - 2009: Toronto, Chicago X2, Seattle X2, Philadelphia X4 - 2010: Columbus, Noblesville, Cleveland, Buffalo, Hartford - 2011: Montreal, Toronto X2, Ottawa, Hamilton - 2012: Missoula - 2013: London, Chicago, Buffalo, Hartford - 2014: Detroit, Moline - 2015: NYC (Global Citizen Festival) - 2016: Greenville, Toronto X2, Chicago 1 - 2017: Brooklyn (RRHOF Induction) - 2018: Chicago 1, Boston 1 - 2022: Fresno, Ottawa, Hamilton, Toronto, NYC, Camden - 2023: St. Paul X2, Austin X2 - 2024: Vancouver X2, Portland, Sacramento, Missoula, Noblesville, Philadelphia X2, Baltimore - 2025: Hollywood X2, Nashville X2, Pittsburgh X2
I guess for me I would think the DAC in the Pono would be similar in quality to a Cowon device, so the question is do I need easy access to play HD Flac files. Not really. If my Cowon dies would I consider replacing it with a PONO?. Possibly. I would definitely look at another Cowon first.
In regards to album loudness. I'm not sure there's much Neil Young can do on that front. He doesn't run the record companies nor own the content. He really doesn't have any leverage to coerce the record companies into remastering albums for release on the PONO (a player which could very well be a niche product and not drive a lot of sales).
I'm sure his intentions were good, but you always hit a brick wall when you don't own the content. It reminds me of all these companies trying to make set top boxes to replace cable TV. Then those companies have to license the content just like cable companies do and they can't really offer it any cheaper.. lol. They hit a brick wall because they don't own the content.
Copyright is a bitch
It seems the Pono already has some competition that does what it's trying to do?
For the record... it wasn't my parents. I'm pretty sure it was Neil. Now that the floodgate's open... look out.
Unfortunately, he closed all of his U.S. restaurants - you'll have to go to Asia to redeem it.
Mmmm...chicken.