Neil Young solving music snobs' problems for $399

Quit complaining about your terrible MP3. Young takes his music genius digital to "restore the soul of music"

Published March 10, 2014 3:30PM (EDT)

On March 12 music listeners who are dissatisfied with their iProduct or smartphone's sound quality will have the chance to pony up $399 on Kickstarter for Neil Young's PonoMusic. "It's about the music, real music. We want to move digital music into the 21st century and PonoMusic does that," Young said in the company's release, "We couldn't be more excited -- not for ourselves, but for those that are moved by what music means in their lives."

PonoMusic is not just a portable digital music player (PonoPlayer); it will also have an online music store (PonoMusic.com), where according to the makers you'll be able to buy the "finest quality, highest-resolution digital music from both major labels and prominent independent labels, curated and archived for discriminating PonoMusic customers."

The player is in the shape of a triangular prism, rather than the nearly flat, pocket-size design of most players. Its odd configuration allows it to rest on its side in a home or car. PonoPlayer can store between 100 and 500 high-resolution digital-music albums, depending on the size of the album, on its 128GB of memory. It also has an LCD touchscreen for "intuitive" navigating, and promises the highest fidelity of sound, as if you're hearing it live. If you're an audiophile, the device seems to bridge the gap between quality and convenience -- with Neil Young's stamp of approval.


By Sarah Gray

Sarah Gray is an assistant editor at Salon, focusing on innovation. Follow @sarahhhgray or email sgray@salon.com.

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Innovation Music Neil Young Pono Music Tech