PAUL MESSENGER, REST IN PEACE
Jim Austin
As this issue went to press, we learned that longtime Stereophile contributing editor Paul Messenger had died after a long illness. His career will be remembered in an online post and in Stereophile’s next issue.
THE FLORIDA AUDIO EXPO GETS A BIGGER VENUE AND NEW DATES
Jim Austin
In early March, following the completion of another successful show at its original location, the organizers of the Florida Audio Expo announced a new, larger venue and new dates for the 2025 show. Next year’s show will take place Friday to Sunday, February 21–23, at the Sheraton Tampa Brandon Hotel. Quoted in a press release, FLAX Managing Partner Bart Andeer praised the show’s previous venue, the Embassy Suites Tampa Westshore, then added, “Our new venue will offer more options for larger exhibitor spaces and a suitable marketplace area.” Companies interested in exhibiting should contact Andeer at barta@floridaaudioexpo.com.
MRL LIVES! (CALIBRATION TAPES STILL ROLLING)
Tom Fine
Magnetic Reference Laboratory, the last US-based maker of industry-standard analog calibration tapes, is rising after a near-death experience and, if all goes well, is expected to have resumed regular production by the time you read this.
As reported in January’s Industry Update, MRL, the last American manufacturer of alignment tapes, was in the process of closing up shop due to the deteriorated condition of its antique equipment. Alignment tapes are essential for recording, playback, and digital conversion of analog; they’re the only way to ensure that a tape machine’s playback equalization and the azimuth of its magnetic heads are set to a standard. Company owner Jay McKnight died in 2022, leaving the company to his heirs. Former operator Chuck Booye, who ran MRL out of his garage, stopped accepting new orders in mid-December of 2023—and had been feeling hard-pressed to complete the orders
