Articles tagged Music
Latest Andru Edwards Videos
CD Revenue Jumped 58.6% in Six Months, and K-Pop Fans Get Most of the Credit
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Misc. Tech, Music,
Nobody was supposed to be buying CDs in 2026. US CD revenue hit $171.1 million in the first half of the year, up 58.6% from $107.9 million in the same six months of 2025, according to the RIAA's mid-year report. Shipments rose 45.7% to 17.5 million discs. Labels moved $312.4 million worth of CDs in all of 2025, so the format cleared more than half of last year's entire haul before July.
That is a real number and a small one. Physical formats account for 12% of US recorded music revenue. CDs on their own are under 3%. Streaming took 82% of the money, and streaming's six-month increase of $219 million was bigger than the entire CD business. Keep the scale in mind. What changed is who is buying, and that has a specific answer.
Advertisement
Sonos Bets on the Beam Ultra, Ace Ultra, and Sonos27 App Update It Can’t Afford to Botch
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Home Entertainment, Portable Audio / Video, Artificial Intelligence,
Sonos showed up at IFA today with a $699 soundbar, a pair of $449 headphones, and a new version of the app that did the company real damage two years ago. The app is the one that will decide how this year goes.
The hardware is easy to like. The Beam Ultra is a mid-size soundbar with nine drivers, and for the first time in a Beam, two of them fire upward. That is the difference between Dolby Atmos your soundbar fakes with processing and Atmos with sound actually bouncing off your ceiling. Sonos is calling the result true 7.1.2. Pre-orders open today, and it ships September 29.
2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Sonos PLAY:5
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Music, Family, Men, Techies, Under $500,
Yes, Sonos is back in our 2015 Holiday Gift Guide, and for good reason. That reason is the absolutely incredible redesigned Sonos PLAY:5. The Sonos PLAY:5 houses six high-quality digital amps individually paired with six speakers to deliver fantastic sound in any room, and it does it with clarity and no distortion. This means that every voice and instrument shines through in detail, even when turned up to the max. You really can’t go wrong with any Sonos products, but the Sonos PLAY:5 is the new kid on the block getting all the attention, which it deserves. As soon as I opened it up and started playing music through it, the quality and attention to detail was apparent. This is a real home run from Sonos, and would be the perfect gift for any music lover.
You can pick up the Sonos PLAY:5 now. It also goes nicely with the other Sonos components:
You can use a pair of Play:1, Play:3, or Play:5 units to create a wide stereo pair as well!
2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Sonos PLAY:1 Bundle
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Music, Men, Techies, Under $250, Under $500,
We're music fans here at Gear Live, so we wanna make sure to include great music gadgets in our 2015 Holiday Gift Guide. This year, we're kicking it off with the Sonos PLAY:1 Bundle - not only do you get a rare disocunt on Sonos gear, but you get a pair of Play:1 units for the price. They sell for $199 each, but the bundle gives you two for $349. If you're unfamiliar with Sonos, it's basically the best way to get music from just about any location (your computer, your iPhone, the web, the cloud, etc.) to play in any room in your house. It's super intuitive, and even years after using Sonos, the technology still blows us away. The Sonos PLAY:1 is a wireless all-in-one music system that lets you jump right into the Sonos experience. If you have an iOS or Android device, you can download the Sonos remote control app, and you can also control the system with a computer using the Sonos Desktop Controller. Here are some other Sonos products that go nicely with the Sonos PLAY:1, which itself you can get for $199 from Sonos:
You can use a pair of Play:1, Play:3, or Play:5 units to create wide stereo sound as well!
Click to continue reading 2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Sonos PLAY:1 Bundle
Bleeding Edge TV 541: How to connect Monster SoundStage to Wi-Fi with WPS
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Music, Podcasts, Videocasts, Videos, Wireless / WiFi,
Once you pick up a Monster SoundStage wireless speaker, the first thing you'll want to do is get it hooked up to your wireless network. The easiest way to do this is to use the WPS feature that's built-in to the entire SoundStage speaker line! All you need to do is press the WPS button on your router (make sure it has one,) and then press the WPS button on the SoundStage speaker itself. After a couple of minutes, your Monster SoundStage will be connected to your home network and ready to stream!
Check out the video for a more in-depth look at how it all works.
You can get the Monster SoundStage wireless speakers now!
Don't forget to subscribe to Gear Live's YouTube channel--also, we are giving away awesome perks for our Patreon backers - thanks for your support!
Click to continue reading Bleeding Edge TV 541: How to connect Monster SoundStage to Wi-Fi with WPS
Unboxing Live 168: Monster SoundStage S2 hands-on
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Videocasts,
The Monster SoundStage S2 is the medium-sized wireless speaker in the SoundStage line, and it brings with it a seriously big punch when it comes to sound. The audio can easily fill a room without distortion. The SoundStage S2 connects wirelessly to your smartphone or tablet over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. You can also connect it directly with an AUX cable or digital optical Toslink cable. SoundStage speakers support multi-room audio, allowing you to control the audio across your home from the palm of your hand thanks to Qualcomm AllPlay technology.
You can pick up the Monster SoundStage S2 wireless speaker now.
Don't forget to subscribe to Gear Live's YouTube channel, and also--we are giving away awesome perks for our Patreon backers - thanks for your support!
Click to continue reading Unboxing Live 168: Monster SoundStage S2 hands-on
Unboxing Live 166: Monster SoundStage S1 hands-on
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Videocasts,
The Monster SoundStage S1 is a small wireless speaker that packs a seriously big punch when it comes to sound. The audio can easily fill a room without distortion. The SoundStage S1 connects wirelessly to your smartphone or tablet over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. You can also connect it directly with an AUX cable or digital optical Toslink cable. SoundStage speakers support multi-room audio, allowing you to control the audio across your home from the palm of your hand thanks to Qualcomm AllPlay technology.
The SoundStage S1 is even humidity-proof!
You can pick up the Monster SoundStage S1 wireless speakerr now.
Don't forget to subscribe to Gear Live's YouTube channel, and also--we are giving away awesome perks for our Patreon backers - thanks for your support!
Click to continue reading Unboxing Live 166: Monster SoundStage S1 hands-on
How to set up the Sonos Play:1 wireless speaker
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Music, Product Reviews, Videos, Wireless / WiFi,
In this video I show you how to set up the Sonos Play:1 wireless speaker. We unboxed the Sonos Play:1 in our last episode, and setting it up after taking it out of the box is simple when using the free Sonos app for your smartphone or tablet.
As we covered previously, Sonos connects to your wired or wireless Wi-Fi network, allowing Sonos components to talk to each other in different rooms. It's a fantastic system, and thanks to the free Sonos app, it is simple to control. Watch as we set it up in this episode.
You can get the Sonos Play:1 now!
Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel for the latest videos, and to be automatically entered into our gadget giveaways!
Unboxing Live 163: Phorus PS5 Wireless Play-Fi Speaker
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Home Entertainment, Networking, Peripherals, Videocasts,
The Phorus PS5 is awesome. It's a wireless speaker that supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and even AirPlay! If those wireless options aren't enough, it also supports direct connection through its 3.5mm AUX port. With DTS Play-Fi, the Phorus audio products offer a universal wireless audio experience. Stream content from your favorite music services wirelessly, directly to the Phorus PS5 wireless speaker. Play-Fi technology means you aren't locked in to any one brand for multi-room streaming audio. Get all the details in this episode!
You can pick up the Phorus PS5 Play-Fi speaker now.
Don't forget to subscribe to Gear Live's YouTube channel, and don't forget--we are giving away awesome perks for our Patreon backers - thanks for your support!
Click to continue reading Unboxing Live 163: Phorus PS5 Wireless Play-Fi Speaker
Sonos Play:1 unboxing & overview [Video]
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Home Entertainment, Music, Videos,
The Sonos Play:1 speaker sports one tweeter and one mid-woofer, resulting in great sound that comes out of a little, Wi-Fi connected package. With it, you can stream from services like Pandora, Spotify, Rhapsody, and Rdio, as well as from your local library of music from your computer, all by using the Sonos Controller app on your smartphone, tablet, PC, or Mac.
You can get the Sonos Play:1 now.
For more of our videos, and to be automatically entered into all of our gadget giveaways, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel!