PonoMusic - My Morning Jacket Artist Edition

[johnnYYac]

I'm so very tempted, but it goes beyond the $400 cost of the player to the cost of the music that will make the player worthwhile.  I'll save for One Big Holiday II instead.

[rincon2]

From All Songs Considered on NPR today.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

18 minute long video interview with Neil.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

Don't get me wrong, I think this is a great option for anyone who has the inclination to upgrade everything just one more time, but I thought Neil came off as condescending and just another corporate con man. Was he complaining when everyone was listening to shitty 8 tracks, while less shitty cassettes were an option? He ridicules anyone who feels an mp3 whether listened via bluetooth,  good earphones, or any other mode, is  having a satisfying experience. That is like him walking onto a Toyota lot and telling someone buying a Camry that it sucks because it is not a Tesla. (I rode in one this week, the Camry does suck in comparison, but not the point.) When he pulled it out of his jacket pocket to prove it is pocket friendly I wanted to jump through the computer screen and slap his shaky ass. It is a purely luxury item in this phase.  MR. White, I am not insinuating you made a bad purchase by any means. I just resent his approach that implies I'm an idiot because I use an iPhone with a Bose bluetooth speaker. In over a year, not one person has failed  to be blown away by the sound. If Pono is better, great! There is always something better coming down the pike. But it does not have to be marketed by an icon telling you your a putz if you don't buy his product. (Next he will be telling parents who buy Thomas The Tank Engine toys they need to buy a Lionel train set because it is more realistic. He owns Lionel also.) I am not bias against Neil. I thought he was the reigning king of RNR. I do feel some of the newer bands have taken what he has laid the groundwork of, and actually improved on it. MMJ is only one example in my mind.

[GO4IT]

From All Songs Considered on NPR today.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

18 minute long video interview with Neil.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

Don't get me wrong, I think this is a great option for anyone who has the inclination to upgrade everything just one more time, but I thought Neil came off as condescending and just another corporate con man. Was he complaining when everyone was listening to shitty 8 tracks, while less shitty cassettes were an option? He ridicules anyone who feels an mp3 whether listened via bluetooth,  good earphones, or any other mode, is  having a satisfying experience. That is like him walking onto a Toyota lot and telling someone buying a Camry that it sucks because it is not a Tesla. (I rode in one this week, the Camry does suck in comparison, but not the point.) When he pulled it out of his jacket pocket to prove it is pocket friendly I wanted to jump through the computer screen and slap his shaky ass. It is a purely luxury item in this phase.  MR. White, I am not insinuating you made a bad purchase by any means. I just resent his approach that implies I'm an idiot because I use an iPhone with a Bose bluetooth speaker. In over a year, not one person has failed  to be blown away by the sound. If Pono is better, great! There is always something better coming down the pike. But it does not have to be marketed by an icon telling you your a putz if you don't buy his product. (Next he will be telling parents who buy Thomas The Tank Engine toys they need to buy a Lionel train set because it is more realistic. He owns Lionel also.)

Maybe you're having a bad day, but if you're labeling Neil as a "corporate con man" you no nothing about the man, his life and his passions.  I don't see him in this clip or anywhere else implying that you are an "idiot" or telling anyone that they are a "putz".  He's passionate about retaining as much of the music quality as possible in this digital age and making it convenient to access.  What is wrong with that, coming from an artist of his stature?  And in the price structure of smartphones and decent audio components, is $300 really that extravagant?  If you don't think it's worth it, no one is forcing you to buy it.
Certainly you can find more worthy targets of your animus these days.

[LB]

yea silly question but do they have these pono players in certain stores where I can sample them? Do y'all think any store would do this? kinda like best buy where you can sample headphones

[rincon2]

From All Songs Considered on NPR today.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

18 minute long video interview with Neil.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2014/03/19/291130878/neil-young-wants-you-to-truly-hear-music

Don't get me wrong, I think this is a great option for anyone who has the inclination to upgrade everything just one more time, but I thought Neil came off as condescending and just another corporate con man. Was he complaining when everyone was listening to shitty 8 tracks, while less shitty cassettes were an option? He ridicules anyone who feels an mp3 whether listened via bluetooth,  good earphones, or any other mode, is  having a satisfying experience. That is like him walking onto a Toyota lot and telling someone buying a Camry that it sucks because it is not a Tesla. (I rode in one this week, the Camry does suck in comparison, but not the point.) When he pulled it out of his jacket pocket to prove it is pocket friendly I wanted to jump through the computer screen and slap his shaky ass. It is a purely luxury item in this phase.  MR. White, I am not insinuating you made a bad purchase by any means. I just resent his approach that implies I'm an idiot because I use an iPhone with a Bose bluetooth speaker. In over a year, not one person has failed  to be blown away by the sound. If Pono is better, great! There is always something better coming down the pike. But it does not have to be marketed by an icon telling you your a putz if you don't buy his product. (Next he will be telling parents who buy Thomas The Tank Engine toys they need to buy a Lionel train set because it is more realistic. He owns Lionel also.)

Maybe you're having a bad day, but if you're labeling Neil as a "corporate con man" you no nothing about the man, his life and his passions.  I don't see him in this clip or anywhere else implying that you are an "idiot" or telling anyone that they are a "putz".  He's passionate about retaining as much of the music quality as possible in this digital age and making it convenient to access.  What is wrong with that, coming from an artist of his stature?  And in the price structure of smartphones and decent audio components, is $300 really that extravagant?  If you don't think it's worth it, no one is forcing you to buy it.
Certainly you can find more worthy targets of your animus these days.

Not a bad day. You just must by anything your heroes say.First off it is $400 plus replacing all of your music with $20 replacements. Fine if you can afford it. He implies nothing short of listening to an album, or his system in a car is adequate, and he can't listen to an album. You did not pick up on his condescending approach to anything mp3 related? Road noise alone makes it relatively silly. For the home, sure. I thought he was a dick in his approach. You did not see his total dismissal of the interviewer when he stated the positive aspects of CD's or MP3s. I guess we disagree. I do know quite a bit about the man. A very long history of screwing his fans in concert. I have seen him 3 times. Once was the Weld tour, unbelievable. Also saw Trans and Greendale. I was prepared, but most fans were livid.

[rincon2]

According to him I am stupid because I don't insist on having access to the highest quality player available. I am not hearing music, and my ears hurt, even though I don't feel any pain. If I got a Pono would Arc suddenly sound wonderful?

[Fully]

Trust me, no one thinks you are an idiot for not buying a Pono.

[rincon2]

Trust me, no one thinks you are an idiot for not buying a Pono.

Neil does.

[walterfredo]

Trust me, no one thinks you are an idiot for not buying a Pono.

Neil does.

well if Neil believes it, he's probably right. 

[rincon2]

Trust me, no one thinks you are an idiot for not buying a Pono.

Neil does.

well if Neil believes it, he's probably right.

Thanks. Unless you ordered one, we share that quality.

[iLikeBeer]

Just thought I would chime in on this subject.  Personally, is it really all that shocking that all of those musicians in that promo piece for the PonoMusic player are raving about the quality of the music?  I mean, they're the ones that will also have a chance to profit from the music sales for this PonoMusic are they not?

One thing I think is funny is how all of these musicians are so down on cd's and digital music, yet I wonder what their feelings were when cd's were first introduced which forced people who had large collections of cassette tapes to have to go out and re-purchase their entire music collection on cd because cassette tapes were now obsolete?  I'm guessing there were some pretty nice profits being made off of these now horrible cd's???  And I doubt there was much groaning about the quality of the music on cd's back then?!   

But now, as digital music such as mp3's have basically made cd's obsolete, it's now time for the music industry to come up with something new to make even more money off of us, the consumers.

Look, these PonoMusic players might just be musical ecstasy for all I know and might just give my ears an orgasm every time they listen to one.  But I guess I won't know for a while because I'm perfectly content listening to my mp3's under water as Neil would have us believe is how it sounds listening to such poor quality music.  Funny thing is, as a former swimmer, I have swam in pools where the music is pumped in underwater and I have to say, my mp3's I play over my home stereo sure do sound a tad bit better than anything I ever heard through music pumped in through underwater speakers...     

[rincon2]

Oh, the irony! Neil Young's Letter Home came out today. Recorded with Jack Whites 50's tech direct to vinyl process, it sounds like it was recorded in a cigar box with a fish hook as a stylus. So, we are supposed to be appalled by mp3's yet he can release analog turds and it is OK? I don't know if it is hypocritical, marketing, or just plain crazy.

[Santo]

Oh, the irony! Neil Young's Letter Home came out today. Recorded with Jack Whites 50's tech direct to vinyl process, it sounds like it was recorded in a cigar box with a fish hook as a stylus. So, we are supposed to be appalled by mp3's yet he can release analog turds and it is OK? I don't know if it is hypocritical, marketing, or just plain crazy.

Its fits perfectly with his plan. You can get the Deluxe Set which includes both "Standard Audiophile" recordings. Its only $109 ($75 on Popmarket). Nostalgia (and lack thereof) is expensive. Love Neil Young, but he is rarely affordable.

[rincon2]

Oh, the irony! Neil Young's Letter Home came out today. Recorded with Jack Whites 50's tech direct to vinyl process, it sounds like it was recorded in a cigar box with a fish hook as a stylus. So, we are supposed to be appalled by mp3's yet he can release analog turds and it is OK? I don't know if it is hypocritical, marketing, or just plain crazy.

Its fits perfectly with his plan. You can get the Deluxe Set which includes both "Standard Audiophile" recordings. Its only $109 ($75 on Popmarket). Nostalgia (and lack thereof) is expensive. Love Neil Young, but he is rarely affordable.

So marketing it is. Marketing with hypocrisy. If listening to the OBH recordings is akin to listening to music underwater, then listening to his new album is like being underwater with dogpoop in your ears.

[Emb1528]

Would love to hear the PCs and OBHs on here. Probably not likely they'll put the new album on here. The 400 bones is a lot to shell out. Buuttt would be sweet to score the mmj version.

I'm still waiting for them to release the early greats in flac!!! Or even better, vinyl!

[Emb1528]

White - Oh I totally agree that the high quality stuff makes a huuuge difference. I to have all the flac-HD offerings of the shows. I just feel like I am going to have to do some serious upgrades to my stereo system to REALLY get the full effect.

Converting all your current media is a great idea. Forward thinking my friend! Niiice.

[Emb1528]

Yeah it's a very interesting little device. I watched some of those testimonial videos which seemed pretty cool. Some Sennheisers would be awesome!

Wait till they start offering this on quality on phones  :happy:

[GO4IT]

Great posts, Mr. White, articulating what Pono is and isn't.  I'm happy, along with you, that I jumped on early even though I had to take a lot on faith.  Certainly looking forward to getting my MMJ edition!

[johnnYYac]

I wish I could, but I'm focusing on expanding my vinyl collection. I'd love to hear one someday, though.

[itrainmonkeys]

I wish I could, but I'm focusing on expanding my vinyl collection. I'd love to hear one someday, though.

Same here but replace "expanding my vinyl collection" with "trying to pay my bills" haha.

Would have loved to have been able to afford this but just couldn't pull the trigger.