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Gossip&News<br />
New Digs for<br />
Pierre Gabriel<br />
Pierre Gabriel Acoustics has<br />
long been known for upscale<br />
audio cables, some of which we<br />
use ourselves, and which can be<br />
found at our Audiophile Store.<br />
The company has been known<br />
even longer for upscale loudspeakers<br />
that you couldn’t find<br />
in stores. And it is now known<br />
as <strong>the</strong> Canadian distributor of<br />
Jadis products.<br />
That last part in particular<br />
meant getting a little more<br />
space. Or a lot more. Pierre<br />
Raymond, designer and CEO,<br />
Microsoft of course owns <strong>the</strong> technology<br />
behind <strong>High</strong> Definition Compatible<br />
Digital. And we liked HDCD ever since<br />
it came out, because it was <strong>the</strong> best way<br />
to do a (badly-needed) end run around<br />
<strong>the</strong> limitations of Red Book CDs. But is<br />
it dead now?<br />
Well, no. We still like it better than<br />
straight CD. And although it is a transitional<br />
technology, meant to keep us<br />
happy until <strong>the</strong> SACD catalog gets built<br />
up (or <strong>the</strong> DVD-A catalog if you still<br />
have <strong>the</strong> faith), <strong>the</strong>re are now thousands<br />
of encoded recordings, and many dozens<br />
of players too.<br />
But this is only <strong>the</strong> start for HDCD.<br />
Microsoft has been hinting that it wants<br />
set up quarters next to Créabec,<br />
manufacturer of fancy kitchen and<br />
office furniture…and also <strong>the</strong> manufacturer<br />
of PG’s speaker cabinets.<br />
Pierre Raymond is shown at left,<br />
next to <strong>the</strong> bench where cables are<br />
assembled, tested and burned in.<br />
Behind him but not shown is a row of<br />
speakers in various stages of assembly.<br />
Below is one of Pierre Gabriel’s two<br />
listening rooms…featuring PG speakers<br />
and cables, and (of course) Jadis<br />
electronics.<br />
Microsoft and HDCD<br />
to get into <strong>the</strong> <strong>download</strong>able music business,<br />
like Apple. Will it use MP3? Or<br />
AAC? No, not when it has Windows<br />
Media.<br />
HDCD almost certainly figures<br />
in Microsoft’s plans. The system was<br />
designed to sneak extra information<br />
past <strong>the</strong> CD’s 16 bit resolution limit, by<br />
using what would o<strong>the</strong>rwise be “unused”<br />
bits. But Windows Media has even more<br />
severe limits. As with CD, its limits are<br />
especially severe for low-level detail.<br />
And that’s exactly where HDCD can<br />
help.<br />
Of course, Bill Gates is rich enough<br />
to buy a technology and throw it away.<br />
We don’t think that’s his plan.<br />
ADVERTISERS<br />
Alternative Audio . . . . . . . . . 12<br />
Applause Audio . . . . . . . . . . 17<br />
Audiomeca . . . . . . . . . . . . 17<br />
Audio Plus Services. . . . . Cover 4<br />
Audio Room . . . . . . . . . . . 25<br />
Bluebird Music . . . . . . . . . 9, 16<br />
Blue Circle . . . . . . . . . . . . 17<br />
Charisma Audio . . . . . . . . . . 8<br />
Chord Cables . . . . . . . . . . . 16<br />
Copland . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 3<br />
Daruma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15<br />
Diamond Groove . . . . . . . . . . 6<br />
Divergent Technologies . . Cover 3<br />
Eichmann . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61<br />
Europroducts Internat. 41, 61, 63, 67<br />
Fab Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13<br />
Globe Audio . . . . . . . . Cover 3<br />
Griffin Audio . . . . . . . . . . . 16<br />
Hi Fi Fo Fum . . . . . . . . . . . 41<br />
Jadis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9<br />
Justice Audio . . . . . . . . Cover 2<br />
Just May Audio . . . . . . . Cover 2<br />
Living Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . 9<br />
Marchand Electronics . . . . . . 14<br />
Moon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38<br />
Murata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12<br />
Mutine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64<br />
Natural Frequency Audio . . . . 14<br />
Pierre Gabriel. . . . . . . . . . . . 9<br />
Plurison . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 4<br />
ProAc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16<br />
Rega . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 2<br />
Roksan . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 2<br />
Shanling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8<br />
Simaudio . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38<br />
Signature Audio . . . . . . . . . 11<br />
Sound Room . . . . . . . . . . . 67<br />
Soundstage . . . . . . . . . . . . 41<br />
Take 5 Audio . . . . . . . . . . . 15<br />
Totem Acoustic . . . . . . . . . . 64<br />
UHF Back Issues . . . . . . . . . 45<br />
UHF Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4<br />
Vecteur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64<br />
Venus Hi-Fi. . . . . . . . . . . . 15<br />
YBA . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 4<br />
ULTRA HIGH FIDELITY <strong>Magazine</strong> 71