Tag archive: Home Audio

While House of Marley is mostly known for its line of headphones (they released 52 styles last year) and its laid-back vibe, the brand is entering the home and portable audio market with a new roster of wooden speaker docks; three new designs were showcased at CES Unveiled and we got a quick first look.  For the company's top-of-the-line home audio solution, House of Marley introduces the One Foundation ($600) AirPlay system that will… Read More

It's not everyday that we see a new piece of technology that actually simplifies something instead of making it more complex. There's something to be said for simplicity; not everything needs 10 different buttons and a bevy of options to choose from. Industrial designers John Van Den Nieuwenhuizen and Vitor Santa Maria kept that in mind when they designed the Hidden Radio & Bluetooth Speaker ($119), which appears to be perfectly… Read More

While most of us think that the only option for having good, Internet-based music at home is either playing it from your crummy computer speakers or buying a nice smartphone-compatible speaker dock, the people over at Q2 Wi-Fi Internet Radio have come up with something else. Instead of using smartphone-based apps or your computer, the Q2 Cube ($130) uses a Wi-Fi network and four personally-selected Internet radio stations to create a simple and… Read More

With a back panel riddled with connections, a front panel speckled in all manner of buttons, and an array of different wires needed to get everything all hooked up, a receiver can be an intimidating piece of equipment. Contrary to that feeling in your gut when you open the box, however, setting up your receiver doesn’t have to be palm-sweat inducing. In fact, it’s really not as complex as it seems, especially with all the handy features on… Read More

These days, even entry-level A/V receivers are likely to come with some form of auto-setup system that promises to make crucial speaker-related adjustments by simply plugging in a microphone and hitting the go button. Sounds appealing, right? Why would anyone want to spend an hour or more reading a manual, busting out a tape measure and fiddling with a decibel meter when the auto-setup will do it for you, hassle free, in a matter of minutes?

Speaker docks are nothing new, and the options for what to use to charge and play music from your iPhone or iPod are practically limitless, but the trend usually seems to be big size or small sound, take your pick. If you want something beyond your generic iPod dock to play some tunes and give you more freedom of input, the Vita Audio R4i Music System (about $975) is a step up from any other desktop or bedside setup we've seen in both… Read More

You may not recover the $10 you threw in your office's March Madness pool this year, but you could still walk away from this year's NCAA Championship with a sweet prize: an Axiom's Epic Grand Master 500 speaker system worth over $2,500. We've been collecting entries all month and the April 4 deadline is coming up fast, so this is your last shot to enter!

Plain box-style speakers seem to be a thing of the past. Who wants a square when you can have speakers designed like any beautiful shape in the world, including the beveled cut of a solitare diamond. Hercules now offers a pair of USB computer speakers that look like just that: large, beautiful, black diamonds. The Hercules XPS Diamond speakers ($40) have a glamorous beveled design with a shiny black lacquer and translucent stand. The unique… Read More

This new TDK Boombox ($499) combines the retro novelty of the boombox with sophisticated audio and a stylish modern form. The boombox features a dedicated, high-excursion 6-inch sub-woofer driver as well as two 6-inch coaxial drivers to deliver premium sound quality. The front also includes a control panel with touch-sensitive buttons and an equalizer to add a visual element to whatever tunes you are blasting. The boombox also allows for… Read More

This shiny, alien-like object will make using your home speaker system with your laptop and smartphone a snap thanks to the wonders of Bluetooth. The device plugs into your stereo system and pairs with up to nine different devices via Bluetooth. Weezy ($91) is always ready for a connection, so turning on your stereo from your phone or laptop is quick and painless. Change tracks from your phone while in a different room, or instantly send a new… Read More

The most expensive laptop speakers ever, or a pair of killer rear surrounds for your new home stereo? Up to you. Aperion Audio’s new Zona wireless speakers snip the cord for either application, letting you put them where you want them – not where the cables from your receiver happen to reach. As long as you can power them, anyway. Like all wireless speakers, you’ll need to run power to each shoebox-sized bookshelf speaker to drive the dual… Read More