Portable Audio
Pioneer lowers prices on Elite A/V receivers again, the well-heeled respond with derision
Pioneer is introducing a new batch of Elite A/V receivers aimed at making the line more affordable (if less, well, elite). The VSX-30 and VSX-31 feature iPhone and iPod control via Pioneer’s iControl AV app, HDMI 1.4a with 3D support, THX Select2 Plus audio, and an Ethernet port for accessing Sirius XM, Rhapsody, and files off of your home network
Engadget Podcast 198 – 05.29.2010
How many executives does it take to screw in a light bulb? Fewer than you would think! How many screens do you need to coordinate your digital life with the cloud
Audiophilleo 1 USB audio to S/PDIF converter is really high-end, really expensive
We don’t see too many USB-to-S/PDIF converters ’round these parts. Really, who but the most insane audiophile (the type who thinks they can discern frequencies well outside the human range) actually needs one — especially when they can cost as much as a new laptop? But then again, insane audiophiles (as well as, quite frankly, the plain ol’ insane) do read this space, so we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that an outfit called Audiophilleo has put together something called, oddly enough, the Audiophilleo 1 Advanced USB to S/PDIF Transport
Pulse Music Box evokes 1930s factory life, also happens to play tunes
We’ve seen more designer iPod docks than we can shake a stick at, but we’ve never laid eyes on one quite like this. Part pipe organ, part black monolith, this one-of-a-kind work of art is called the Pulse Music Box, and actually uses that brass organ crank to control the volume from the amp and stereo speakers tucked inside its black tiled frame. Creators Johannes Tjernberg and Rasmus Malbert told Moco Loco the dock’s design was inspired by the classic Charlie Chaplin film Modern Times ; hopefully, we won’t have to drag them through the bowels of a giant machine to get hands-on
Something ‘big’ coming from SanDisk, complete with cape
Something big is coming March 23rd, and like a good used car salesman, SanDisk has rolled out an inflatable superhero in its honor. What could it be
Is Canada’s iPod tax back? And if so, will BJ Snowden get her cut?
We know, BJ Snowden is an American artist — but since her song “In Canada” is probably on every iPod and computer up north, we have to wonder whether a proposed amendment to the Canadian Copyright act will help her finally get what’s coming to her. The brainchild of the New Democratic Party’s Charlie Angus, the bill would extend 1997′s Private Copying Levy “to the next generation of devices that consumers are using for copying sound recordings for personal use.” Proponents of the plan says that it ensures that artists get paid for their work — essentially, the government wants you to pay upfront for the music you’re likely to steal anyways by taxing your next digital audio player purchase. Of course, much about the plan doesn’t make sense (it doesn’t address digital video, for instance, or the computers that people use to download and store their music in the first place) but we guess we’ll let the Canadian government hash that one out
