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Music
Ears-on with Beats by Dr. Dre Studio headphones
By Tim Hanlon
00:15 January 10, 2009 PST
While we covered the Beats by Dr. Dre headphones back in July 2008, it took a trip to the Monster Audio booth at CES 2009 for Gizmag's Tim Hanlon to get his ears on a set. So how do they compare with the benchmarks set by the German engineering coming out of companies like beyerdynamic and Sennheiser? To put it bluntly, he was blown away. Read More
Shure announce PG27USB/PG42USB condenser microphones and X2u XLR-to-USB adapter
By Tim Hanlon
00:06 January 7, 2009 PST
With the democratization of digital music recording and production in full flight thanks to applications like GarageBand, Shure have released three new USB-based products to cater for the ever increasing market of users who need to record audio to their computers, but don't have access to professional pre-amplifiers - the PG27USB and PG42USB USB condenser microphones, and the X2u XLR-to-USB adapter which turns any existing XLR microphone into a plug-and-play USB microphone. Read More
Pacemaker portable digital DJ system gets an update, lower price
By Tim Hanlon
23:59 January 6, 2009 PST
We first covered the Pacemaker portable digital DJ system back in June 2007, and it has since won a number of awards including a CES Innovations and Engineering Award for 2009. A new model targeted at consumers has arrived with a smaller 60GB hard drive, a lower price point (US$550) to match, and one key new feature designed to aid beginner DJs - the ability to beatmatch and synchronize two songs with a single button press, and get straight to the fun stuff like EQ, filters, effects and crossfading. Read More
iTunes changes: more DRM-free music, three-tiered pricing and iPhone downloads over 3G
By Tim Hanlon
11:45 January 6, 2009 PST
Apple today announced a number of changes to their popular iTunes Music Store, with all four major labels on board to offer a substantially increased range of music in the DRM-free iTunes Plus format, access to the store available via the 3G network for iPhone users, and a new three-tier pricing system. Read More
GarageBand '09 will teach you how to play guitar and piano
By Tim Hanlon
10:52 January 6, 2009 PST
Today at MacWorld 2009, Apple unveiled the next feature to be added to their entry-level music production application GarageBand, that is sure to capitalize on the mass of budding musicians created by games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero. The software ships with nine included lessons for the guitar and piano, and an integrated store that allows you to buy "Artist Lessons" from famous musicians such as Sting and John Fogerty. Read More
The iDea Ovation - guitar with recording studio built-in
By Mike Hanlon
15:32 December 19, 2008 PST
The marriage of a recording device and a guitar seems natural, but the iDea Ovation guitar is apparently the first one. The guitar is the analog instrument of choice for the majority of the world's musicians and with a high quality MP3 recorder/player built-in, it offers a direct port into the digital world. Songwriters suddenly have a single convenient tool to record song ideas, hooks, melodies, lyrics, even commentary and guitarists who enjoy jamming will find tireless accompaniment, all controllable from their fingertips. You can record to the iDea's memory from the guitar and/or built-in microphone, or any audio signal via the auxiliary input. The melding of a high quality MP3 recorder/player also makes the iDea a learning tool, with audio lessons and jam tracks pre-installed in the memory, and more downloadable. Mixes from recording software, rhythm tracks, or songs you want to learn can be downloaded and played either through the guitar output or headphones. Files in theiDea can be moved, renamed, deleted and rearranged on the computer desktop. While the list price is $859, iDea's can be had for US$600 new if you do your shopping right. Musicians have never had it so good! Read More
iPhone speaker-dock caters for landscape viewing
By Emily Clark
22:14 December 9, 2008 PST
One of the issues with many iPhone and iPod speaker docks is inability to view pictures or watch video in landscape view without straining your neck. The i-Station25 is the second design from Logic3 that's aimed at solving this problem, but rather than allowing the media player itself to be rotated this unit solves this problem with accelerometer technology that enables users to simply turn the whole thing sideways with out diminishing the sound output quality. Read More
Pioneer HDJ-2000 DJ Headphones
16:33 November 26, 2008 PST
Pioneer's latest high-end HDJ-2000 professional DJ headphones promise new levels of sound quality and durability in a lightweight magnesium swivel/fold design that's both comfortable to wear and easy to transport. Key specs include a frequency response of 5 Hz to 30,000 Hz, 50 mm driver units, a zero resonance heavy-duty build and the capacity for 3,500 mW of input which prevents distortion at sustained loud volumes. Read More
Gibson Les Paul Dark Fire - every imaginable guitar sound
By Loz Blain
00:47 November 24, 2008 PST
Gibson Guitars have pushed the envelope forward again - barely a year after the release of the self-tuning 'Robot Guitar' in 2007, the company has announced its next-gen technology with the Dark Fire, which incorporates an upgraded Robot tuning system and adds a piezo neck pickup system to let the player blend acoustic and electric sounds for a much broader tonal range. Gibson sees the Dark Fire as a guitar that tunes itself in seconds and offers such a wide range of tone that you only need the one axe for the whole gig - but how will this progressive instrument be received by the market? Read More
Daito Manabe demonstrates bizarre electrified face-dancing
By Loz Blain
23:38 October 27, 2008 PDT
October 28, 2008 Tokyo's Daito Manabe, an electronic music producer, programmer and designer, has pioneered a fascinating new form of music performance. In the YouTube video after the jump, Manabe wires his face up to a series of electrodes that cause his facial muscles to twitch and distort in sync with the music. A bit harrowing to watch, but compelling nonetheless. Read More
Sandisk releases Sansa slotMusic Player
By Darren Quick
21:34 October 15, 2008 PDT
SanDisk is looking to expand its market with the introduction of the Sansa slotMusic Player. The plug & play, portable music player was specially designed for use with the new slotMusic cards available today in the US. SanDisk are pushing slotMusic as a new format of high-fidelity, DRM-free MP3 music on a microSD card, which gives consumers the ability to listen to and quickly swap music between a mobile phone, personal computer, and any MP3 player with a microSD slot. Read More
The humble guitar-stand gets a clever revamp
02:44 October 15, 2008 PDT
While they are a must have on stage, most guitar stands out there are either so over-designed that you almost need a trailer to transport them or, more commonly, so flimsy that they won't support your axe and inevitably fall apart - and even then they are an awkward shape to lug around when folded down. This design from RKS solves the problem. Read More
Harman Kardon's diamond-like GLA-55 speakers
By Kyle Sherer
20:45 September 16, 2008 PDT
Sound quality is always the key consideration when it comes to speaker systems, but if you are looking to combine this with some serious visual impact, Harman Kardon's GLA-55 two-piece speaker set for computers, laptops and portable media players could well be an option. Read More
Korg DS-10 for the Nintendo DS in-depth
By Tim LeFevre
17:29 September 12, 2008 PDT
Inspired by their mighty MS-10 monosynth, Korg have teamed up with AQ Interactive to deliver the Korg DS-10 software application for the Nintendo DS. It borrows the simple, effective semi-modular synth design of the Korg MS-10 and MS-20 and re-invents it to exploit everything the Nintendo DS has to offer. Read More
ION Audio's DESK ROCKER speakers
By Kyle Sherer
05:26 September 9, 2008 PDT
ION Audio’s US$149.95 DESK ROCKER speaker system plays audio from any PC, Mac, TV, DVD, CD, and connected guitar or keyboard. The DESK ROCKER system consists of two self-powered desktop speakers, which plug into a standard wall outlet. Read More
Able Planet releases budget version of noise canceling headphones
By Emily Clark
23:52 September 7, 2008 PDT
Able Planet has introduced a new model of noise canceling headphones aimed at cost-conscious audio-philes who also like to protect their hearing. The new USD$99 Clear Harmony NC200 foldable headphones utilize the company’s patented LINX AUDIO and state-of-the-art active noise cancellation (ANC) technologies. Read More
JBL module makes any speaker wireless
19:37 September 7, 2008 PDT
Having the convenience of wireless audio set-up doesn't necessarily mean investing in a whole new sound system. Shown recently at IFA in Berlin and CEDIA in Denver, JBL's On Air WEM-1 Wireless Expansion Module solves the problem by enabling any speaker to operate wirelessly up to a range of around 70 feet. The USD$359 expansion system consists of a transmitter module which connects to the audio source (this includes portable media players), a receiver/amplifier unit that connects to a pair of speakers and a remote control. The company has also introduced two new subwoofer units that incorporate the same technology - the 400-watt ES250PW and the 300-watt ES150PW. Read More
Universal Audio ships the UAD-2
By Tim Hanlon
23:13 September 1, 2008 PDT
After four and a half years of being an industry standard DSP platform, Universal Audio's UAD-1 system was getting a little long in the tooth. While there were multiple versions of the card for desktop users and the portable UAD-Xpander, they all used a single, aging SHARC DSP. Read More
The Olympus LS-10 Linear PCM Recorder gets some compelling accessories
By Jack Martin
03:32 August 31, 2008 PDT
August 31, 2008 The Olympus LS-10 is a pocket-size Linear PCM compact recording device that captures audio in the highest quality. It perfect for use on the go, and enjoys a fine reputation with musicians, journalists and podcasters (gotta be a joke in there somewhere). Olympus trotted out an infrared remote control and an exceptionally effective windshield for the LS-10 at IFA this week that make it even more attractive to these oft maligned professionals. The mandatory introductory stunt at IFA was to have a guitarist record a song in a sound proof phone box (pictured) and then play it backed - it worked ... impressive sound reproduction meeting promised CD quality. Read More
Sony joins the in-car iPod wagon
By Darren Quick
11:06 August 28, 2008 PDT
August 28, 2008 If you’re sick of fumbling with your iPod while hurtling down the freeway Sony have just the thing with the announcement of four new Xplod in-dash head units that are able to connect directly to compatible iPods and allow users to charge and control their iPod devices on the road. Each new unit supports HPF/LPF sound quality, feature 52 watts X 4 peak output enhancements and, if you’re one of the few holding out from joining the iPod brigade, there’s an auxiliary input on the faceplates, facilitating the use of other portable music players with a standard 1/8-inch mini jack cord, which is available separately. Read More
Griffin iTrip Universal streams anything with a headphone jack to an FM radio
By Emily Clark
21:23 August 13, 2008 PDT
August 14, 2008 The downside to prior FM transmitters for the iPod is that they only work with an iPod. The new iTrip Universal from Griffin adds an FM transmitter to any audio player with a headphone jack. Read More
TASCAM GT-R1 portable guitar recorder
17:25 August 6, 2008 PDT
So you've nailed that killer riff but the studio is miles away. The latest solution aimed at songwriters in this predicament is TASCAM's GT-R1. The follow-up to the company's DR-1 model, this portable recorder for guitar and bass players features direct plug-in recording along with built-in condenser microphones for capturing rehearsals and live shows and amp simulation and effects. Read More
Beats by Dr. Dre Headphones
By Tim Hanlon
19:14 July 22, 2008 PDT
July 23, 2008 Beats by Dr. Dre headphones are the result of collaboration between Dr. Dre, Monster Cable and industrial designer Robert Brunner. There's certainly no question that they look the part, but with an impressive list of features and specifications to back them up, you might just consider dropping USD $349 on a pair this Friday. Read More
Belkin BreakFree protects amplifiers and guitars
By Jack Martin
23:54 July 21, 2008 PDT
July 22, 2008 If you’ve ever owned an Apple laptop and experienced the plain practicality and common sense of the MagSafe magnetic power cord connector, which detaches under extreme tension, you’ll understand our excitement at Belkin’s announcement of its new BreakFree adapters for amplifiers and guitars. The connectors are designed to eliminate the popping that occurs when cables are unplugged from a live amplifier. Read More
Parrot Party portable wireless audio system
By Emily Clark
22:05 June 26, 2008 PDT
Designed as a quality alternative to the often unsatisfying speaker systems in mobile phones, this compact and totally wireless sound audio system offers four hours of playback from Bluetooth devices to a range of 33 feet, as well as a plug-in solution for listening to personal media or CD players while you're out and about. Read More
Sam Munro
- November 26, 2009 @ 08:08 UTC
