When it comes to technology format wars, the best doesn’t always win out. Many other factors (generally of the economic variety) dictate which format comes out on top in a particular field. The classic example is VHS’s triumph over the technologically superior Betamax format at the dawn of the home-video era.

So, it was a pleasant surprise to read news stories yesterday about the triumph of the Blu-Ray disc format over its technologically inferior rival, HD-DVD (single layer Blu-Ray discs hold 25 GB to HD-DVD’s 15 GB). Toshiba, which was the company behind HD-DVD, capitulated on Tuesday, announcing that it was suspending development of the format, which was losing its attempts to become the disc of choice for high-definition DVD movies. The nails in the coffin of HD-DVD were recent announcements that movie retailers like Amazon.com, Blockbuster, Netflix, and Wal-Mart were all going exclusively with Blu-Ray.

So why am I writing about it in this blog? After all, EM is concerned with recording gear not consumer electronics. The answer is that now that the format war has ended, we can expect to see lower priced Blu-Ray disc drives for computers, allowing data-hungry recordists to store and backup large projects to disc that in the past exceeded the capacity of conventional DVD drives. Imagine being able to archive up to 25 GB at a time (double that on double-layer drives). I presume that prices will come down for both the drives and the discs. Now we can buy Blu-Ray gear without the fear of the format dying after we’ve invested in hardware—at least not until the next best thing comes along.

Last night I saw the bluegrass group Blue Highway at Joe’s Pub in NYC. It was an awesome show. The band blends traditional and modern bluegrass influences, and features a lineup packed with really amazing musicians.

Blue Highway is touring in support of their new album, Through the Window of a Train (Rounder, 2008). Mixing material from the new CD, some older songs (the band has seven other albums), as well as a couple of traditional tunes, the set was eclectic and highly energized, and the band received three encores from a very enthusiastic audience. Blue Highway really showed their range, as they played everything from breakneck-speed instrumentals to uptempo and medium tempo vocal tunes (with excellent instrumental solos), to ballads and beautifully sung a cappella gospel tunes.

Blue Highway’s lineup includes all-world dobro player Rob Ickes, mandolinist/fiddler and superb vocalist Shawn Lane, virtuostic banjo player Jason Burleson, flashy flatpicker and vocalist Tim Stafford, and solid bassist/vocalist (and frontman) Wayne Taylor. These guys have been playing together for a long time, and you could tell. They really know how to play as an ensemble.

The band got an excellent live sound using mainly individual mics on their instruments (Stafford combined a pickup and a mic on his flattop, and Taylor had an upright with a pickup). Ickes got a great sound from his dobro through an AKG C1000 with the hypercardioid capsule in it. He says he’s been using that mic for years and has found that it works really well for him onstage.

I asked Stephen Kay, master synth programmer for Korg and inventor of KARMA, “What did you see at NAMM that impressed you the most?” Without missing a beat, he said, “Spectrasonics’ new Omnisphere.” So I strolled over to the Spectrasonics booth to have a look for myself. I had already missed a series of full-length demos given to large groups of NAMM attendees, so company founder and creative director Eric Persing graciously agreed to give me a brief personal demonstration. It was his final demo during NAMM, so I shot him. We’ll try to post a video clip on this site within the week.

Omnisphere is the forthcoming flagship soft synth from the makers of Stylus RMX, Trilogy, and Atmosphere. Containing many times the sample content of all those programs, it incorporates the new STEAM Engine, which will also be the basis of future Spectrasonics products. Omnisphere combines just about any synthesis architecture you’ve ever heard of (granular, FM, polyphonic ring mod, timbre shifting, and lots more) with some very unusual samples, complex modulation routing, and a new technique for morphing one instrument’s harmonics into another’s. And I was floored by its method for drawing and assigning finely detailed modulation envelopes and arpeggiation patterns in real time. Just about everything else I saw this week had a projected ship date around the end of February, but not this one. Look for Omnisphere on September 15 (they promise it won’t be late), selling for $499.

Today I had a semi-private demonstration of Kurzweil’s PC3X, the resurrected company’s first new keyboard in several years to incorporate VAST technology. The latest variation in the old K-Series’ synthesis architecture is called Dynamic VAST, apparently because you can specify as many components as you need to construct whatever sound you’re aiming for, and you can save your own algorithms as starting places for future sounds.

The factory-programmed voices I heard very accurately reproduced a tremendous variety of signature sounds from music made popular over the past few decades, from Led Zeppelin and David Bowie to the latest hip-hop hits, and it absolutely excels at orchestral and piano sounds. Judging by first impressions, I was simply blown away by the quality of every patch, without exception. Running off custom integrated circuits, the PC3X is a 128-note polyphonic instrument with an 88-note keyboard and an onboard multitrack sequencer. It’s expected to sell for around three grand and ship by the end of February. Or as they say around here, N.A.M.M. (Not Available, Maybe March)!

There’s something new at Universal Audio, crafted from hand-picked components, including new old stock (NOS) vintage vacuum tubes and custom-wound CineMag input and output transformers. It’s the LA-610 Signature Edition, a limited run version of UA’s respected LA-610 channel strip, comprising a mic preamp, DI, EQ, and opto compressor. Only 500 will be manufactured, and each will be signed by Bill Putnam, Jr. With a black faceplate and an electroluminescent front panel, the Signature Edition costs about $500 more than UA’s standard LA-610, and it’s destined to become a collector’s item.

Maurice Gainen here. My studio, Maurice Gainen Productions (what else?) was profiled by Matt Gallagher in the Mix July ‘07 edition. NAMM is awesome….I’ve been here almost every year for about 20 years. I recommend coming on Thursday first thing as it is empty and you can get maximum face time with all the reps, tech people and any of the many stars haniging out that you may run into. Highlight for me was running into Stevie Wonder and getting a picture. Other cool things: Mix publication Electronic Musician has been re-designed and looks great. Cool gear and software: Waves, Fishman “Aura” acoustic guitar shound shaping boxes, Guitar Rig 3, ProTools 7.4 “Elastic time”, Melodyne and Serrato Pitch ‘n Time. Nice live performances all over the floor. Free champagne and DJ jam 5:00 everyday at Propellerhead (Reason). Saturday is cool for networking and seeing old friends………it’s packed and loud, a real party. Final word: The gear is GREAT!! It’s up to us to make great music. Therein lies the challenge…have a good one! www.mauricegainen.com

The folks at iZotope announced that their RX audio restoration software will be released soon as a group of five plug-ins. Each plug-in will handle the duties of one of RX’s five modules. The modules include Spectral Repair, which lets you zero in on a specific part of the audio using a spectral display, and then attenuate and otherwise process it. The Declipper takes audio that is clipped and restores it. The other modules are the Hum Remover, Declicker, and Denoiser. Overall, it’s an excellent Audio Restoration package, and with the plug-ins will now be even more flexible.

The plugs will be included with the standalone version of RX, which lists for $349 (standard version) and $1199 (Advanced version with additional tweaking options).

METAlliance today announced a Pro Partner program, inviting professional audio manufacturers to join the founding Board of Directors in recognizing quality and high-resolution in the recording arts. The first group of manufacturers, Audio-Technica, Cakewalk, GML, JBL Pro, Lexicon, Manley Labs, Millennia Media, Royer Labs, Sanken and Universal Audio, have joined METAlliance founding members Ed Cherney, Frank Filipetti, George Massenburg, Phil Ramone, Elliot Scheiner and Al Schmitt to recognize the call for quality in the recording arts. “We’re living in an era where formats are reduced in resolution,”Frank Filipetti said. “There are high-res formats in video and film, but we’re going backwards in audio.”

Under this new alliance, METAlliance member manufacturers will have their products evaluated by the panel. Gear is put through exhaustive testing procedures, and for a product to be certified, it must be approved unanimously by the entire “Gang of Seven.”

“Some may argue that there is no need for higher quality because the average consumer doesn’t care,” said Jim Pace, METAlliance director of business affairs. “It’s not a question of bandwidth or delivery anymore. So who is the METAlliance speaking to? One group would be the people who buy these products here at NAMM-people who try to create and craft their art in any way they can. Because they work to get it right, these are the ‘consumers’ that realize it’s worth it to get the full sonic experience at home or wherever they play music. It doesn’t have to be ‘almost good enough,’ it can be a truly fulfilling experience.”

The latest mode of NAMM transportation, caught by our roving cellphone reporter…

At NAMM today the most exciting thing I saw and heard was a synthesizer called the Solaris. It’s a work-in-progress by veteran synth and sound designer John Bowen. What began as a soft-synth project outgrew the confines of John’s computer, so he brought it to life as a living, breathing (okay, not really) keyboard instrument with lots of knobs and big, bright displays. It uses a variety of synthesis algorithms, from sample playback to FM to wavetable and more, and it gives you eight envelopes, five LFOs, and more types of filters than you ever imagined you might need. And the sound! It’s a beautiful thing, and it will be April (or so) when John hopes to begin shipping the Solaris. I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait! But don’t take my word for it; head on over to http://www.johnbowen.com/solaris.html and hear what I mean.