Apr 15

NBA and Skullcandy Team Up to Unveil NBA Mix Master Headphones

Posted in: audio, headphones, MP3 Digital Audio, peripheral, Sports, Today's Chili

NBA Skullcandy - Mix MasterJust in time for the playoffs, the NBA and Skullcandy have joined forces to unveil a limited edition NBA Mix Master Headphones series featuring designs and colors from six popular NBA teams, and the jersey numbers from famous players on each of those teams.

The NBA Mix Master series is a limited edition, and only 100 headphones of each team and player will be made. Once they’re sold out, they’re gone for good. Skullcandy unveiled the lineup this week, but the NBA Mix Master headphones will be available to purchase on the Skullcandy Web site and at select Apple Store locations in cities that match up with the featured teams on April 20th, for $299 each.

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Apr 14

Bang Olufsen Intros BeoLab 11 Subwoofer

Posted in: audio, MP3 Digital Audio, speakers, Today's Chili

BeoLab11.jpgIt’s like modern art, but art that makes your teeth rattle. Bang & Olufsen‘s new subwoofer, the BeoLab 11, has a gorgeous sculptural quality that hides its audio power. You can hide it away in a corner, make it the center of attention, or even mount it to the wall. It gives off minimal vibrations, so it’s one of the few subwoofers that can be wall-mounted.

Meant for a small to medium loudspeaker setup, the BeoLab 11 adds low frequencies from 300Hz and down. It’s composed of two identical loudspeaker cabinets with baffles facing each other. The outer shells are made of aluminum, and can be removed for color customization. Because of its omnidirectional audio properties, it can be rotated as you like. Look for it in North American showrooms by mid-May, with a list price starting at $1,997. Color options at launch will include silver and white, with black, dark grey, red, blue, and gold to follow.

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Apr 14

Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May

Posted in: audio, speakers, Today's Chili
Not getting enough “sub” with your “woofer”? Tweeters tweeting all over the place, ruining your enjoyment of the low-end? Finding yourself unable to fully appreciate your King Tubby LPs? We hate that! And so does Bang & Olufsen, fine purveyor of home audio equipment we can’t afford. The company’s newest, the BeoLab 11 subwoofer, is vaguely pornographic looking, albeit in a surreal way (please try and control yourselves in the comments, people). This bad boy promises superlative bass quality in a “strong sculptural presence.” At the very least, the designers here are trying — which is more than we can say for almost every other subwoofer on the market (though we really did like the Rubik’s Cube). Composed of two 6.5-inch drivers facing each other in an aluminum shell, this bad boy will handle the low frequencies (below 300Hz) and push 200W of bass in yo’ face. Available in North America by mid-May 2010 in silver anodized aluminum or white; black, dark gray, red, blue, and golden anodized aluminum should be available shortly thereafter. Prices begin at $2,000. PR after the break.

Continue reading Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May

Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 13

Sony Ericsson Announces Two Walkman Phones

Posted in: audio, MP3, Sony Ericsson, Today's Chili

Sony_Ericsson_Zylo.jpg

Sony Ericsson has unveiled two devices that attempt to recapture the company’s elusive Walkman phone legacy.
The Sony Ericsson Zylo–which sounds way too much like Mylo, something Sony should really be helping us forget as soon as possible–features background music listening during chats with friends. It also features a 3.2-megapixel camera, a 2.6-inch QVGA LCD, preloaded ambient sounds, plus support for the excellent, uncompressed FLAC audio format.
In addition, the Zylo features TrackID, the PlayNow music store, Facebook and Twitter connectivity, Flickr and Picasa photo sharing, and YouTube video uploads.
The lower-end Sony Ericsson Spiro, meanwhile, includes a standard-size 3.5mm headphone jack, stereo Bluetooth, an FM radio, TrackID and PlayNow, and Facebook and Twitter support. It also features a 2-megapixel camera and a 2.2-inch QVGA LCD.
Both devices will appear overseas in a variety of colors sometime after July. Joking aside, both of these phones look promising; audiophiles seem to have fewer and fewer gadget options these days, so the Zylo’s FLAC support and overall audio focus is welcome.
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Apr 12

Integra Ships Nine-Channel, 150-Watt Home Theater Amp

Posted in: audio, Today's Chili

IntegraDTA_70_1.jpgIn a first for the high-end AV component company, Integra is shipping a nine-channel home theater power amplifier that’s rated at 150 watts per channel. Integra says the DTA-70.1 is a first for the industry, as well. The amplifier can drive all the speakers in a nine-channel home theater system to THX output levels and beyond, and was awarded THX Ultra2 certification, THX’s top level award.

The DTA-70.1 is meant as a companion to Integra’s DHC-80.1 9.2-channel AV processor. Like all Integra amplifiers and receivers, it uses the company’s WRAT (wide range amplifier technology) which offers low negative feedback, closed ground-loop circuits, and HICC (high instantaneous-current capability) to deliver an extended frequency range, low noise, and high dynamics.

You can pick up the DTA-70.1 for a list price of $1,800, so better hope that tax refund shows up soon. Once you’ve got it installed, invite me over for movie night. I’ll bring an Iron Man 2 bootleg and we’ll crank that volume.

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Apr 02

Yamaha Debuts First Line of In-Ear Headphones

Posted in: audio, headphones, MP3, MP3 Digital Audio, Music, Today's Chili
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Looking around for new worlds to conquer, Yamaha realized it had never created in-ear headphones and decided to change that. Introducing the EPH-20 (shown above; $29.95 list), the EPH-30 ($49.95 list), and the EPH-50 ($99.95 list).

No matter which you choose, each model comes with a set of three different-sized ear buds to provide the optimum fit. The entry-level EPH-20 is available in five flashy colors, which is apparently what cheapskates like. Look for them in black, hot pink, indigo blue, lime green and red berry brown. The EPH-30 and EPH-50 only come in no-nonsense black and white, appropriate for people who can pay a little more. The reasons to splurge for the high-end EPH-50 include the larger audio driver, the included 1/4-inch plug adapter for home stereo use, and the extra durable construction.

See all three models here on Yamaha’s new products page.

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Mar 31

Hands on with the Astro A30 Gaming Headset

Posted in: audio, gaming, headphones, headset, MP3 Digital Audio, Music, Today's Chili

Astro - A30 - Banner 2Fans of console and PC gaming headsets know about Astro. Even though they may not have the market share of their larger competitors, they have a large and dedicated following among gamers and arguably some of the most versatile headsets on the market.  Last month Astro unveiled the A30 Cross-Gaming Headset, one of the first headsets available designed to be portable, and complete with an in-line microphone for telephone calls as well as a boom mic for gaming sessions. The A30 is also designed to be used with consoles and PCs and doesn’t require driver installs or custom hardware to work.

Astro sent us an A30 to test, and it’s as versatile as they say. The A30 performed well as a general use headset to wear connected to an mp3 player on the go, or connected to a cell phone to take a call using the in-line microphone. It also worked just as well when connected to its boom mic and a PC for multiplayer gaming or everyday applications like listening to music or watching video.

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Mar 31

An Upgrade Sneak Peek for Zunatics

Posted in: audio, MP3 Digital Audio, Music, portable, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd

ZuneHDSmartDJ.jpgEarlier this year, Microsoft announced that it would introduce new features to the Zune HD with a firmware upgrade in the spring. No, it’s not ready yet, but Microsoft is back to tantalize with details.

Here’s what you can expect with the free download, which will be available in the next few weeks:

  • Smart DJ: This feature is already available on the Zune, and now it’s coming to the Zune HD. With it, you can create an instant playlist mix in seconds by selecting a song or artist from your collection or the Zune Marketplace and pressing the Smart DJ icon. The software will create a new mix based on your selection. If you have a Zune Pass music subscription, it will pull music both from your collection and the Zune Marketplace catalog.
  • Picks: Another music recommendation feature now coming the Zune HD, Picks analyzes what you listen to and compares that to millions of other Zune users to deliver personalized recommendations. You’ll be able to listen to these recommendations on your Zune HD or on your computer.
  • Zune Marketplace improvements: You’ll now be able to browse and stream music from the Zune Marketplace on your TV when using the Zune HD A/V dock. It sounds like a great way to add a soundtrack to any party.
  • Expanded Video Codec Support: The Zune HD will now play MPEG-4 Part 2 Advanced Simple Profile (ASP) videos, and includes Xvid and AVI support.
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Mar 25

SweetSpotter keeps your music coming at the right angle, regardless of flailing

Posted in: audio, Music, open source, opensource, research, Software, sound, Today's Chili, university

For years now, home theater and / or entertainment rigs have been built so that your sofa, recliner or aged bar stool was right in the sweet spot when it came to audio distribution. In short, you built your system around your seating arrangement. With the introduction of Nintendo’s Wii, Sony’s PlayStation Move and Microsoft’s Project Natal, folks aren’t staying put in the same place as often, and that — friends — has created a problem in search of a solution. The fine gurus over at TU Dresden believe that they have the answer, and even if it fails miserably (highly doubtful, mind you), who could really harsh on a product called the SweetSpotter? The software is designed to work in conjunction with your webcam (or console camera, in theory), and as the sensor tracks your movement in real time, the code “adaptively adjusts the sweet spot of your stereo play back system to your current listening position.” In short, it results in “correct stereo phantom source localization independent of your listening position,” and frankly, it just might change your life. The code itself can be downloaded for free down in the source link (it’s open source, so pass it along while you’re at it), and if you end up creating a plug-in to use this in your favorite gaming scenario, be sure to drop us a line about it.

SweetSpotter keeps your music coming at the right angle, regardless of flailing originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 00:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 25

Jabra Offers Bluetooth Exclusives

Posted in: audio, bluetooth, headset, Today's Chili, Wireless

Jabra-CLIPPER.jpg

Exclusivity just makes things a little more desirable, right? The cell phone carriers certainly think so, which may be why premiere Bluetooth headset-maker Jabra is offering a couple exclusive products.

The Jabra Clipper, a clever stereo headset introduced at this year’s CTIA Wireless show, will be available exclusively in Verizon stores in May for $59.99. The Clipper includes a tiny clip-on device with noise-blocking ear buds. It works with both phone calls and music, and looks like a great way to enjoy stereo sound without a lot of bulk.

The company’s innovative Stone, which combines a Bluetooth headset and charger in one compact package, is getting whitewashed and sent to AT&T. AT&T stores will have the new White Stone exclusively starting May 16 for $129.99.

Also at CTIA, Jabra announced the Jabra Mobile Developer Program, so that developers currently producing voice-enabled apps can get access to Jabra technology. Can’t wait to see what comes out of that.

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