My second Linn LP12 turntable.
(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)
CNET.com Poll
Audiophiles have been known to develop unnaturally strong bonds with their gear, but civilians also have their faves. It might be a type--a speaker, an MP3 player, a car audio system--or a specific product. For me it was my first Linn LP 12 turntable I bought in 1979. I told my wife I wanted to be buried with it. That 'table rocked my world.
Or are you just hung up on 8-track players, or maybe it was a radio your father gave you? In other words, I want to know if it's a type of gear, or a specific product you've owned. Please tell us about your favorite piece of audio equipment in the comments below, and also be sure to vote in the poll.
My first hi-fi speakers looked a lot like this.
CNET News Poll
I bought my first hi-fi with money I made working at a supermarket when I was 16 years old.
The system had a Garrard turntable, XAM amplifier, and XAM speakers. The system cost $106 in 1965, that would be more like $600 to $700 in 2009 dollars.
Man, that little system ruled! My records came to life like never before. A month or two after I bought the system I accidentally crushed the "needle," so I bought a better phono cartridge and my records sounded even better. I became an audiophile! It didn't take long before I had the best stereo of all my friends, and they brought their new LPs over to my house to check it out.
What was your first music system like? Vote in the poll.
The Phonofone II
(Credit: Tristan Zimmermann)I'm no fan of iPod speakers; most of the ones I hear at the CNET offices tend to sound pretty awful. But Tristan Zimmermann's Phonofone II iPod speaker is just so cool I couldn't resist writing about it. The ceramic device uses what looks like a miniature horn modeled after an old-fashioned Victrola.
Conceptually the Phonofone II owes a lot to the earliest pure acoustic record players that made sound without electrical amplification. I have heard some of those sound remarkably good. Victor-Victrolas were made from 1901 to 1929.
According to Unica Home's Web site the Phonofone II "... boosts the audio output of standard earphones to up to 55 decibels (or roughly the maximum volume of laptop speakers) upon connecting active earphones to the Phonofone their trebly buzzing is instantly and profoundly transformed into a warm, rich and resonant sound." In other words the horn acoustically amplifies the sound of the earbud/headphone driver.
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Plug 'em into an iPod or your computer
(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)A couple of days ago I blogged about possibly (hopefully) the world's most expensive speaker, Transmission Audio's Ultimate ($1,000,000 each), so I guess it makes sense to write up a dirt cheap speaker, Kikkerland's Woodchuck iPod/computer speakers.
Thing is, Kikkerland's Web site doesn't list the Woodchuck, but I see it's on Amazon going for $13.99 a pair. So I guess I can't complain too much, but the sound is so weak, bassless, trebleless, and dynamically compressed the Woodchuck is without doubt the lamest sounding speaker I've ever heard. Kinda sounds like the speaker in my Panasonic answering machine.
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There are lots of very expensive parts inside this high-end CD player
(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)We've all read those blogs that "reveal" the parts cost of a fill-in-the-blank, Kindle, iPod, or Palm Pre. If you ask me, this simplistic, by-the-numbers gambit overlooks most of the costs of bringing a product to market.
First and foremost, products, all products, are priced to what the market will pay. I don't care if it's a 16-ounce bottle of Poland Spring water, Coldplay concert tickets, or a Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, retail prices are determined by what the market will pay. And luxury products have higher profit margins than mass market stuff. Oh really?
But the mindless rash of blogs that purport to add up the parts costs, for example $39.51 for the display, $15.96 for 8 gigabytes of flash memory, $15.41 for components, and $12.39 for the 3-megapixel camera, to calculate the cost of anything are hugely misleading. The writer merely subtracts the parts cost from the retail price and concludes the difference is the "profit."
Does the writer assume the company's factory doesn't pay rent or for electricity or heating and air conditioning? And that the factory labor force works for free?
These articles completely ignore other costs, such as research and development and engineering expenses associated with creating say, a Kindle. Manufacturers also pay significant licensing fees for technology used in their products.
Shipping costs of large products such as flat-screen TVs must be factored in before determining the final cost to the consumer.
Oh, and what about the online or brick and mortar retailer? They have their own set of expenses for rent and employees. Some of whom might need health insurance.
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CNET News Poll
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
What's wrong with you?
Doesn't everybody have at least one of these things? I'm just curious, is there anyone out there who flat-out refuses to buy an iPod or Zune or whatever? Are you just bucking the trend? Oh, and please tell us how old you are. I want to know if there are any iPod-less kids reading the Audiophiliac.
The new C22 and MC75
(Credit: McIntosh Labs)Apple was founded in 1976; McIntosh Laboratories goes all the way back to 1949.
Computers get old really fast, while TVs age a bit more gracefully. But there's not much of a collectors market for old TVs or computers, at least by people who use them on a daily basis. Face it: computers, iPods, and TVs are disposable technology, while the useful working life of great audio designs is measured in decades. Many decades. Case in point: McIntosh's classic designs from the 1960s still fetch big dollars. Which is why buying really good stuff makes sense.
I doubt Apple will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Apple II in 2037 with a commemorative reissue, and I can't imagine Sony announcing plans to offer Trinitron CRT TVs anytime soon. Audiophiles still covet classic tube and solid-state electronics, and pay big bucks for good condition originals.
Which brings us to McIntosh's 60th anniversary limited-edition reissues of its legendary amplifiers, the 75-watt MC75 monoblock tube amplifier (modeled after the original 1961 version) and the C22 stereo preamplifier (originally introduced in 1962).
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The Panamera
(Credit: Porsche)The Panamera is a different kind of Porsche.
It's a four-door sedan, a really fast sedan. The Panamera S at $89,800 comes with a 400hp 4.8-liter V8, capable of punching out 0-to-60 mph in 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 175 mph. Not quick enough for you? Move up to the Panamera Turbo, with a twin-turbo 4.8-liter V8, 0-to-60 mph in 4 seconds, and a top speed of 188. That bad boy will retail for $132,600.
So why is the Audiophiliac filling space with upcoming German super sedans? 'Cause they're going to have totally awesome ultra-high-end audio systems from Berlin manufacturer Burmester Audiosysteme. I love of the idea of matching super-performance luxury cars with bona-fide high-end audio systems. Hey, if Porsche buyers happily pay an extra $42,000 (!) to go a little faster, why not also spring for a sweet sound system?
For Panamera, Burmester crafted a 16 channel amplifier system that drives, you guessed it, 16 loudspeakers. The speaker system was designed specifically for the Panamera. In keeping with the Panamera's spirit as a true sports car, the sound system's weight was a key concern.
Specially developed software-supported menu functions allow for precise sound contouring for each individual seating position. They can also compensate for cabin and engine noise, and use proprietary sound algorithms developed exclusively for Porsche. Funny, the press release didn't mention an iPod dock, but I'm sure it's in there.
The Panamera is set to go on sale in the U.S. on October 17.
Erica Ogg's post "Report: Pioneer to exit TV business" made a point abundantly clear: TV buyers won't pay a premium price for a better display.
"The company is reportedly exiting the TV business rather than continuing to incur losses in that division," Ogg wrote. "This latest report comes a few months after Pioneer announced that it anticipated huge losses at the end of its fiscal year in March and plans to lay off 2,000 workers."
The market's demands for lower and lower prices eventually take high-quality manufacturers out of the game.
I'm not a video guy, but I do know that while Pioneer made some of the best displays, the market wasn't willing to pay for its quality. The race-to-the-bottom environment is certainly in full swing on the audio side. Sales of high-quality speakers continue to erode, thanks to booming sales of lower-quality home-theater-in-a-box systems and iPod speakers.
I'm sorry, but I want companies making the highest-quality products to prosper. But the way things are going, only the bottom-feeders will survive.
What do you think?
Let's face it, iPod speakers are a cheap and cheerful group, but the market is about to get a boost of class, thanks to Parrot's Zikmu stereo iPod speakers ($1,500 a pair).
The striking design, created by Philippe Starck, stakes out a new approach to iPod speakers. Starck employs aerial curves and jet-black color, along with a generous helping of cutting edge technology to make the Zikmu an elegant lifestyle solution.
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
The Zikmu is iPhone- and iPod-dock compatible, and employs up-to-date Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technologies. The wireless stereo speakers need to be plugged into an AC power outlet.
The three-way, 2.5 foot tall speakers utilize flat-panel NXT tweeter and midrange panels that project 360-degree dispersion to create a room-filling sound. Each speaker is tri-amplified with a dedicated 10-watt amp for each midrange and tweeter panel, and a 30-watt amp for the woofer located in the bottom of the trumpet-shaped lower cabinet enclosure (that adds up to 100 watts total for the stereo pair of Zikmu speakers).
At yesterday's demonstration at a chic restaurant in New York City, the Zikmu's sound was overly reverberant. Stereo imaging was extremely vague, but I will grant that the speakers almost disappeared as sound sources. Bass was acceptably deep, but no threat to even small-powered subwoofers. The Zikmu is for buyers who believe it's more important for speakers to look good than sound good.
The Zikmu is due in April.
