Audio and Video Equipment Basics for Libraries

Sound recordings have existed since the last quarter of the nineteenth century, and libraries have collected them since the early twentieth century. Audio and video recordings, unlike books, require a playback device-an intermediary piece of equipment connecting the user and the object. The world of audio and video gear is frequently foreign to many librarians, and what libraries need in terms of equipment is often different than the needs of both the individual audiophile and the professional sound archivist. Today's changing audio landscape-including audio/video streaming via the Internet and the emergence of the iPod culture-has called into question the need for valuable library space to be occupied by listening and viewing carrels. Audio and Video Equipment Basics for Libraries presents all of the information that librarians need to make intelligent decisions about providing listening and viewing facilities in libraries. Everything from what to look for when buying new equipment, to how it works, to what to think about when designing a new listening facility or retrofitting an existing space is considered. Book jacket.

Jim Farrington is head of public services at the Sibley Music Library, Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York, where he also teaches music bibliography.