ARE Audio Light Roast Speakers

Jared Rachwalski

ARE Audio consists of two East Coast Canadian childhood friends who have created interesting speakers with a twist. They currently produce two models, the bookshelf Light Roasts and a floor stander called the Grinder. These guys do more than just build speakers; they also customize the speakers to your taste.

Bookshelf Speakers

ButtKicker BK-Kit-4 Wireless Tactile Transducer

John E. Johnson, Jr.

ButtKicker has been making tactile transducers (shakers) for several years now. These are devices that make your chair, couch, or floor vibrate when low frequency material is playing. They were always very powerful, and in fact, more intense than many consumers wanted. You could always just turn down the volume, but then, you were paying for high power shaking that you were not using. So, ButtKicker decided to produce a shaker that is smaller, with less maximum shaking potential, and include a smaller amplifier. The BK-KIT-4 is the result.


Shakers

Denon AH-D7000 Headphones and Headroom Ultra Desktop Headphone Amplifier

Chris Groppi

My first "high end" system consisted of Sennheiser HD-580 headphones, an original HeadRoom headphone amplifier, an Audio Alchemy DAC in the Box, and a Sony Discman with an optical digital out. I was a college student at the time, and there was no way of having a real, properly set up hifi system in my dorm room. It was clear to me at the time, listening to both my system and uber high end Hifi in shops, that my little headphone setup blew away many high dollar loudspeaker based systems.

Headphone and Earphone Reviews

A Collection of New Vinyl Releases – April, 2009

Jason Crawford
Janelle Monae doesn't lack for ambition. That much is for certain after just a cursory listen to her debut E.P. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite." Monae has some heavy hitters in her corner, and they bring a lot to the production side of the recording. It's Monae's voice, however, that carries the day on this concept record. It gives the listener the impression that she can handle any style of vocal delivery that the job calls for, and many of those styles are accounted for during this brief first offering.
Vinyl Music ReviewsVinyl Reviews

Dynaudio X16 Bookshelf Speakers

Tyler Stripko

The Excite is Danish manufacturer Dynaudio's second least expensive speaker line, comprised of five different models: two towers, two bookshelves, and one center channel. The X16 is the larger of the two bookshelf speakers, with a 1" hand-coated silk dome tweeter and a single 6.5" mid/woofer configured in a classic two-way ported design.

Bookshelf Speakers

ZVOX Z-Base 550 Surround Sound Solution (Sound Bar)

Jim Clements

ZVOX is an e-tailer based in New England. They currently manufacture and market seven different models of sound bars. Their products are available on-line direct from the manufacturer. All purchases carry a 30-day no-risk guarantee.The low profile Z-Base 550 is one of their products. It is designed to support a stand-mounted flat panel display. Will a compact 20-pound single box surround system prove worthy of recommendation?

Soundbars