speakers

Yes, we know. Life as a media technophile can be so tiring sometimes.

It took forever for you to find the right home theater projector, but persistence paid off because you snagged a $10,000 model for only $99,995. And then there's the $150,000 turntable you stumbled across at a neighborhood garage sale.

But what, praytell, will you do about speakers? Apple industrial designer Ross Lovegrove has just the answer for you with his "Muon" masterpiece, which goes for a mere $140,000 a pair. These auditory wonders employ a technology that "doubles the … Read more

With audio technology on the verge of becoming microscopic, it's comforting to see that some manufacturers aren't afraid to go in the other direction in a big way, literally. One product that lives up to its name, for instance, is the "Geneva Sound System XL."

This all-in-one beast, which includes a CD player and FM radio as well as serving as an iPod player, has 8-inch subwoofers and a 600-watt digital amplifier, according to Red Ferret, and comes in red, white and black. All of this is housed in a petite cabinet that measures 21.7 … Read more

Listen up, hoodies: if your nearest and dearest are on the verge of murdering you because of your penchant for listening to music through your mobile phone's tinny, squealing-cat speaker, here's a way to sort your mobile music life out.

Behold the Bluetooth beast that is the Parrot Boombox, an iPod Hi-Fi-like speaker system that blasts out tunes from your mobile, MP3 player, computer and any other device via Bluetooth or a standard headphone jack. Of course, it's not portable, but it offers a handy living-room audio solution for listening to digital music from multiple sources.… Read more

TDK seems to be going the opposite route from Cabasse, at least in the shape of its speakers. Where the latter seems partial to spheres, the Japanese company has gone cubic with its latest design.

The "Flat Panel 2.1ch Acoustic Sound System" (we thought only TVs and shoji screens were allowed to call themselves "flat panels") does have rounded corners, though. That's apparently to reduce cabinet distortion, according to Tokyomango. It also comes in red, black, yellow and gray, but we're not sure if that's such a good thing: With those kinds … Read more

Even luxury media equipment makers know that people have budgets, including Cabasse. The French speaker specialist has been the subject of some mockery (we can't imagine why) for such offerings as its $150,000 "La Sphere" line, so it's apparently decided to come up with some products that are a little closer to Earth.

The "Karissima" full-range speaker, for example, is priced at a mere $24,400. Each.

These are no ordinary tweeters and woofers, of course. They come in your choice of "Wild Cherry, Santos or Wenge finishes," according to Electronic … Read more

Hiding consumer electronics behind the facade of home furnishings can often be an exercise in excess or silliness (or or both). So we're not sure that it's a good or bad thing that people are starting to create their own camouflage designs for their entertainment technologies. Just as SoundArt does custom art to hide speakers, Snell is apparently doing something similar with its products.

But the company isn't limiting its facades to paintings and photographs, as it's proven with a its "ICS 1030 Bookshelf Speaker." Luxurylaunches says the speaker has been disguised to look … Read more

As mobile phones grapple with their identity crisis as MP3 players, handset makers have worked themselves into contortions trying to provide decent sound quality--creating some ugly accessories in the process.

The Chinese-made "Super Audio Phone" aims to change all that by building in a speaker that's much larger than today's standard sizes in the back of the handset, where a second, smaller LCD screen that provides song titles and other audio information, according to Slashphone. The front looks like a regular phone, with a larger display and buttons.

We have no idea how its music actually … Read more

We almost passed over this weird-looking thing, at first mistaking it for one of those surrealistic wall-climbing power strips. But despite the creepy resemblance, it's actually an iPod dock.

The "Dragon I," as it's called (we think "Octopus" would be more appropriate), has bendable speakers masquerading as tentacles that appear poised to reach out of the screen and grab us at any moment. Maybe it's just our fear of deep-sea creatures, but the red-on-black color scheme makes it seem even more cephalopod-like in appearance.

We've still got to tip our hat to … Read more

And you thought the iPod bed was weird. The collision of two consumer technology trends--iPod docks and media furniture--may have seen the ultimate mashup in the iPod fireplace.

Yes, you heard it right. Cal Spas, the purveyor of Marin County-style hot tub culture products, has done it again in offering a musical hearth complete with built-in speakers and iPod docking station. It's not just for looks, either. BornRich reports that this "Home Resort" piece puts out a full 65,000 BTUs.

But, believe it or not, there's some stiff competition. Why confine yourself to … Read more