I long for the days of pops and hisses and scratches of turntables and analogue sound. Nah, I lied. I'm too lazy for vinyl, unless we are talking about vinyl bras. And while most of you probably haven't ever seen a long play, if you want to buy yet another piece of craptabolous plastic that says you once wanted to be a DJ and live in Ibiza raving all day, the Dreams DJ Speaker has to be yours. Because nothing says "I'm a Cool DJ" better than a tiny $US45.99 speaker shaped like a turntable, specially one with a built-in battery which can be recharged using the USB port. David Guetta will be proud. [Audio Cubes via Random Good Stuff]

Read More »

Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. This is Teac's LP-R500. Ugh. Sorry, I'll try pulling myself together: it's a modern version of what my grandad used to call a "radiogramme," cramming in an FM radio, a CD player, cassette player and record deck into one sleek ancient, massive, clunky box along with an amp and speakers. Admittedly it does let you record your vinyl and tapes to CD. But... ugh. Yours for an ugly $US700. [Akihabaranews via Dvice]

Read More »

Portable speakers for the iPod are a dime a dozen, but these limited edition "Headphonies" are a little more eye-catching than other generic models. The set includes 5 figures created by several artists (including Frank Kozik), and 2 blank versions that you can decorate yourself. Naturally, you don't expect to get a booming sound with speakers this small, but those who have heard it claim that the sound is "surprisingly good." Each vinyl toy speaker will sold in 500 to 1000 limited quantities starting on November 30th. Fortunately, Headphonies are fairly inexpensive collector's items at only $US30 apiece. [Headphonies via SpankyStokes via Ubergizmo]

Read More »

Ian Shepherd, the same Mastering Engineer that claimed Metallica's latest album sounds better on Guitar Hero III, has recently come out and said that even the vinyl version sounds better than the CD. Keep in mind that the heavily distorted tracks on the album are the result of an editing process that sacrifices dynamic range for an increase in volume. This philosophy on mastering CDs is based largely on a self-induced paranoia that sales will decline if the album isn't loud enough. Some have even blamed the popularity of the iPod and its lo-fi earbuds for contributing to this problem.

Read More »

If you're a fan of retro gadget styling, you've probably come across the work of Italian company Brionvega once or twice. One of Brionvega's most classic designs was the Radiogonografo RR126 from 1965, a versatile piece with folding speakers, a radio, an amplifier, a phonograph and a friendly little robot face. The RR126 is almost impossible to find nowadays and would cost you a fortune--but the company's coming out with an "updated" version called the RR226.

Read More »

Did you think that records would stand idly by while MP3s took over the music industry? Sure, they turned a blind eye to 8-track and cassettes. Then CDs got a pass, too. But those were physical mediums, brothers-from-another-mothers. And if compact discs don't have the cojones to stand up to the digital music revolution, vinyl will just have to come back from the dead and start kicking some 1s and 0s butt.

Read More »

If you're looking for a sign that we live in a digital world that cares not for the physical manifestations of our analogue past, you need only look at Paul Mawhinney's record collection. At over 3 million records, it's the largest in the world. He's trying to sell it due to his advancing age and health problems. Unfortunately, as he puts it, "no one gives a damn."

Read More »

So, here's the thing. My stereo components have been in boxes gathering dust ever since I became a fully fledged member of the iPosse. Ditto for my CDs, cherished cassette tapes and even a few essential vinyl record. Since Jesus and I are relocating to London, and I've ripped everything I really listen to, you might say it's a no-brainer to throw it all out. But it's not that easy to do, is it?

Read More »

Despite having crates and crates of vinyl, I am too lazy (and too strapped for space) to shell out for a USB turntable. Another reason is that most of them look like shite. But this one, the Vestax Guber CM-02, is gorgeous. Delishy-wishy. It totally poops on last week's non-usb, acrylic home-made versions (sorry Mike) and, oh, I've got a warm feeling this Friday morning and am going to think about that weekend I'll spend converting all my old 12" into files when I buy this. DJ Deals has it for IS$499, but our buds over the pond at Gizmodo Japan say it's on for US$233. [Gizmodo Japan through Google Translate]

Read More »

Either Sony's trying to tell us that vinyl will never die, or that vinyl is finally dead. After years of quietly selling regular old turntables, Sony is now offering what some niche brands already sell: a USB-connected turntable for converting records to MP3s. We don't have a lot of detail on the PS-LX300USB, except for the fact that it comes with Sound Forge Audio Studio and will cost US$150, placing it performance-wise somewhere between the $100 LX250 and $150 LX350 non-USB players. I don't know—it almost makes more sense for Sony to have gone whole hog like Teac, and built an all-in-one vinyl-to-CD machine.

Read More »