Gear Patrol

Typically, buying a set of custom molded earbuds from brands like Ultimate Ears (now a subsidiary of Logitech) or Etymotic can take months. That’s because consumers must first visit the Audiologist to have inner-ear molds made, which are then shipped to the headphone company for production. Sonomax’s Sculpture Eers Custom Molded Headphones ($199+) ship with…

If there’s one thing that Bose does well, besides marketing, it’s noise cancelling headphones. They just work, even if they scream “I live for middle-management”. And despite efforts from some of our favorite brands, most of the offerings have been pretty lackluster. AKG aims to remedy that, including their former noise-cancelling headphones, with the all-new…

Did you lust after Widealab’s Aurender S10 music server, only to have your heart crushed by its $6,800 price tag? Pioneer’s newly announced N-50 and N-30 streamers might be just the substitute for those with more humble budgets and who couldn’t care less about internal storage. The N-50 ($699) is the higher-end model and features…

It doesn’t take a sleuth to see that the analog stereo bandwagon is growing beyond its fringe enthusiast roots into a mainstream consumer request. But unlike their positively eyegasmic flat screens, we can’t recall a time we’ve ever clamored for a piece of Samsung audio gear, much less an iPod dock, but the Samsung DA-E750…

The Arcam rCube is another high-end iPhone dock to hit the home audio market along the lines of the Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Air. What sets Arcam’s offering apart from the rest is the Sonos-like ability to wirelessly network up to four rCubes throughout the house, using an included USB dongle, for a complete home…

Services like Pandora and Apple’s Genius technology changed the way many of us consumed music, by intelligently mixing and matching songs to fit a particular theme or mood. These jukeboxes of the digital age, however, still fall well short of what professional DJs do best — the continuous mix. Pioneer’s newly launched Mixtrax music software…

Yeah, we know. Another day, another iPod Dock. But unlike the one sitting in your bedroom, the 8-foot by 4-foot Behringer iNuke Boom ($30,000) probably won’t fit on your nightstand. Then again, it won’t win any awards for classy product names either. Inside the 700 pound stereo beast, the iNuke has been endowed with 10,000…

As rabid movie, music fans and gamers, we’re always on the hunt for gear that can push our home entertainment experience to 11 (much to our better half’s chagrin). This roundup includes some of our favorite home theater products out today that we’d love to host in our living room. Continues after the jump.

Ahh, that musty smell of dusty, disorganized vintage record shops. Or how about the high-pressure unapproachability of hi-fi audio retailers? Instant turn-off, right? Not so fast. The crew at In Living Stereo prove that purveying fine audio gear and records can indeed live in harmony. With a recent move from deep in the East Village…

We credit the Rams’-like looks of the new hidden radio & Bluetooth Speaker on Kickstarter for catching our eye this morning — despite our luke warm feelings about most Bluetooth audio. The monolithic can avoids spoiling its clean lines with external buttons by incorporating a simple but effective twist top design. The first twist turns…

It’s hard to believe that only three years have passed since Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine launched a line of headphones designed to bring their studio sound to the masses. History now shows the move was a prescient business decision that spawned a title wave of copy-cat products endorsed by anyone with a hip-hop single….

Whether or not you’ve got ambitions to host the next All Things Considered or Howard Stern Show, quality sound (besides subject material) is essential. Poor quality audio causes listener fatigue — a troublesome notion when you’re waxing poetic about everything from Apple to Aaron Sorkin. The Yeti Pro ($249) combines a traditional analog XLR output…

Knowing that nearly all of us are guilty of what co-founders Jason Stoddard and Mike Moffat would consider an abomination is an interesting notion. The crime? Listening to the music coming through today’s primary audio consumption tool. Headphones. Luckily, the duo also have a hefty, if not vigorous, solution: Schitt Headphone Amps ($250+). Obvious moniker…

One serious benefit of Apple’s decision to revamp only the guts of the new iPhone is that all of the iPhone 4 cases, accessories, and peripherals received an extended lease on life. West Elm’s new Parsons audio end table ($400) has an integrated dock for charging your precious iPhone or iPod and it’s apparently compatible…

Full-sized, over-the-ear headphones (known as Circumaural cans to you purists) typically provide a level of audio fidelity that measly earbuds can’t match. The trouble is they don’t exactly store nicely when not in use on your desk. These Woo Audio Aluminum Headphone stands ($60-$75) can help remove clutter from your workspace or listening station by…

In-car telematics are a losing proposition. As many features as brands tout it seems like it’s hardly 6 months before your $3000 navigation and audio system are outdated. If you’re like most American’s and own your vehicle anywhere close to the average of a decade then forget about it — you’re lucky to even have…

Shrouded in gleaming aluminium and molded rubber, the Revo K2 ($470) tower not only out-looks other, plebeian docks, but also offers access to virtually every radio signal under the sun including old-fashioned over-the-air and internet streaming stations including last.fm. Perfect for your morning dose of NPR. Besides a dearth of plastics, the K2 also features…

Buying a great pair of headphones is a big first step in upping your audiophile cred. Many of the models we’ve covered before can be an ear opening experience to what music is meant to sound like. That said, most of us listen to music in digital format these days, whether it be from out laptop,…

Most TV speakers have the acoustical chops of a cowbell orchestra. We put up with them simply because alternatives are pricey, bulky, and a pain in the ass to install in a clean and proper manner. The Yamaha YAS-101BL Front Surround System improves on these common drawbacks in several ways. It’s relatively easy on the…

At the helm of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain was crowned by many as the voice of Generation X. The distinctive guitar he used in his final three years of his life just happened to be from another generation — 1965. In celebration of his talents and lasting influence, Fender has meticulously reincarnated his unique lefty axe…

Don’t feel like shelling out for a Pioneer DJM Nexus, but still want proper Pioneer DJ gear? Vault the Pioneer DDJ-T1 ($899) to the top of your list. A lower price doesn’t mean a half-baked controller though. Pioneer has infused the DDJ-T1 with pro performance jog wheels that are both ruggedized and responsive, touch search…

It may look like something snagged for three cents out of the bottom of a bargain bin, but bedroom style is a necessary bedside sacrifice for a particular type of sleeper. You know — the kind who could doze through a taser to the jugular. The Thunderclap Alarm’s 113-decibel ringer provides the same get-the-hell-up-and-go drive…

Using planar magnetic technology, essentially a thin-film diaphragm housed between two magnetic structures, and an arsenal of knowledge pooled from a cache of industry sound engineers Audez’e (pronounced “odyssey”) has managed to create what might be the smoothest pair of headphones we’ve ever auditioned. Sure, the Audez’e LCD-2 Headphones ($945) may cost a pretty penny,…

The Elite SC-57 receiver’s ($2,100) biggest claim to fame is power. Its proprietary D3 digital amplifier assumes the throne as the most powerful amp of any multichannel A/V receiver in the industry and is the only one of its kind to receive THX Ultra 2 Plus certification. From a capabilities standpoint, this unique power plant…

Old school DJs were just as much showmen as they were beat droppers. Then computers made the whole craft much more nerdy. As it turns out, clicking on trackpads just isn’t as engaging as tearing up vinyl. Replace the laptops of today with an enormous, transparent touch panel display, and the pendulum could swing back…

Dutch designer Michiel Cornelissen has devised a clever product to tame Apple’s ubiquitous ear buds. The CableGuy ($13) features four slots for holding the ear buds and 3.5mm plug in place, leaving room in the middle to wrap up the pesky cord in a nice ‘n tidy fashion. There’s also a built-in clip for attaching…

AirPlay continues to invade the home and this time, packed into the Klipsch Gallery G-17 ($530) wi-fi portable speaker system. The G-17 touts four individually powered drivers: two 10-watt Tractrix-horned tweeters alongside dual 20-watt woofers alongside all the usual ports like USB and 3.5mm inputs. Charge up its batteries (or plug-in directly), and take it…

Long before AirPlay was on the scene, Sonos products made streaming music wirelessly throughout the home an easy affair. The company’s new Play 3 ($299) speaker is no exception. Designed to act on its own as a small but mighty audio solution for apartments, or as part of a larger Sonos system, its 5.2 x…

The dictionary defines criterion as “a standard of judgment or criticism; a rule or principle for evaluating or testing”, so it goes without saying that christening your flagship product with such a definitive term shouldn’t come casually. It’s a good thing then that “casually” describes anything but the Jeff Rowland Criterion Preamplifier ($18,000). Built to…

We’d be hard pressed to find an answer if you asked us to identify two pieces of audio gear we love listening to more than our Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin or PS5 headphones. But, we doubt you’d ever see us using them. Neither are exactly portable. That may soon change though with the upcoming release…