Woman-size speakers make a big, room-filling sound
(Credit: Ferguson Hill)Heard, but hardly seen speakers aren't new.
There's a number of glass and clear plastic speakers on the market, but these fetching British models are something else again. People seem to want speakers and audio gear that "disappears" and still sound great. Ferguson Hill makes a full line of see-through designs, and from the looks of it the FH001 just might be a real contender.
It's a "horn" speaker made of clear acrylic, and its ultrahigh efficiency design allows it to play nice and loud with as little as 3 to 50 watts. So there's no need to use the FH001 with power hungry amplifiers! Horn speakers are easily the "greenest" of speaker types, and work well with even the smallest, most power-efficient amplifiers. I first heard about Ferguson Hill on the Ultimate AV Web site.
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Amazon)
In case anyone was wondering, the ringtone craze is officially out of control. Well past their cell-phone roots, custom tunes for home land lines are just one example of a phenomenon that has even extended to doorbells. But its application in car horns are clearly the worst of the bunch.
And accessories such as the "Wolo 485 Star Trek Air Horn," we fear, may indicate that the trend is gaining in popularity. For better or worse, this device blares only one tune with its five air trumpets--the theme from the final frontier--similar to the custom old-school horns that played the likes of the opening notes of The Godfather theme.
Given universal obession with all things Star Trek, however, the Wolo 485 has the potential to go where no horn has gone before--at 118 decibels the whole way, according to Geek Alerts. If alien life forms were to launch an attack in retaliation, their actions would be perfectly justified.
Custom built Ale system with Brooks bass and midrange horns
(Credit: Kevin Brooks)Put that silly iPod away--this time it's the real deal--extreme hi-fi by and for fanatics. Chances are you've never heard a truly great sounding audio system, so it'll be hard to imagine living with sound that can take you to another place. The very best systems can summon up hot blooded performances of your favorite artists. It's music in the foreground, upfront and real--sure, your $29 plastic computer speakers can play tunes, but without a hint of passion, totally devoid of human spirit. It's merely music as background noise, a drone to fill in the spaces in your life.
Kevin's turntable
(Credit: Kevin Brooks)Kevin Brooks is a hard-core audiophile, the man is serious about his sound. But in the context of what people obsess about, it doesn't seem all that whacked out to me. You know, some guys blow wads of cash on 1950s baseball cards, clothes, or just to get good and drunk every weekend, Kevin is into hi-fi. Stuff you civilians have never heard of. He offers a line of custom solid African Mahogany horns. This is the sort of artisan audio that formed the foundation of the American high-end audio business in the 1970s and still continues today. It's all about the passion for sound and music. There's something going on, but you don't know what it is. If you want to get more out of your music, check out high-end audio.
A pair of Kevin's horns
(Credit: Kevin Brooks)
A pair of gigantic bass horns that stick out of a house!
(Credit: Kevin Brooks)
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Brando)
What ever happened to old-fashioned sirens? We hate the way that just one tap on the obnoxious horns of today's fire engines routinely make everyone jump out of their skin. But there's a something on the market that can give everyday sclubs like us a chance to do the same thing right back--from a bike, no less.
The frame-mounted "Thunder Horn" claims to emit a 115-decibel auditory assault, which Technabob says is the equivalent of "standing in the front row of a Metallica concert." Brando, its Hong Kong-based manufacturer, warns not to use it within 18 inches of your ears to avoid permanent injury.
It may not be pretty, but it's a lot better than trying to strap a "Sonic Bomb" alarm clock to your handlebars. Besides, everyone knows that Critical Mass needs more noise.
To celebrate this Feb. 14, what better way to show your affection than to fire off an audio Valentine to a fellow motorist who cuts you off? Horntones has taken the concept of custom ringtones and applied it to the car horn for use on those special occasions.
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Horntones)
The FX-550 won't actually be ready to order until the day after this Valentine's Day, but that will give you more time to look for just the right tunes to match your various bi-polar moods on the road. Uber-Review says you can store eight audio files that can be loaded from any USB drive, so you'll always have a variety of ways to express your emotions at your fingertips.
Disclaimer: Crave will not be held responsible for any acts of road rage that result from the use of this device.
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