Philips GoGear Opus MP3 player

Does this deliver a superior sound experience?

If Philips are guilty of one thing, it's overlooking a decent product name. That trend seems to be changing, which is a good thing considering the GoGear Opus could also be known as the SA1OP08K. So what we have here is the latest 8GB version of their GoGear MP3 player with video.

The Opus bears more than a passing resemblance to the previous generation of pocketable music and video players from the company. The front is dominated by the screen with controls sitting across to the right. The controls are kept basic, with a power/play button sitting in the centre of a four-way navigator, accompanied by "Options" and "Back".

The Opus itself is slim, measuring 107 x 57 x 11, which means that it's about the size of a mobile phone, if not a little larger. The black and silver design is attractive and it feels well constructed: the plastics feel ok and it is free from creaks as you grip it. At 95g it feels weighty enough in the hand to feel like a quality product.

We like the brushed back of the Opus as it keeps it free from fingerprints. Around the sides you'll also find a volume control and a "Hold" slider which is strangely located on the bottom alongside the Mini-USB and 3.5mm sockets.

But the real interest is in the 2.8-inch 320 x 240-pixel LCD display on the front. It isn't the highest resolution, or the latest OLED technology, and we'd like something a little sharper. Colours are vibrant, but it struggles against some of the sharp mobile phone screens we have seen recently.

Power on and the Opus always seems to need to "update", something we found previously with Philips' players. The menus are clear but basic and break down the main functions (music, video, pictures, radio, recordings) and then giving you access to a folder view and settings.

One thing we like about the menus is that they'll pickup a background image from the cover art or video thumbnail, so it is fleshed out a little better than a straight texted-based menu, but doesn't have the wow-factor that you'll find elsewhere.

Navigation and control through the menus is easy, although one minor niggle is the length of time it takes to get from power on to listening to music. Not only do you have to wait for that update/startup cycle, but you then need to click through the levels of menu before music starts, because the play button doubles as the ok button – you can't power on and press play like you can on an iPod.

The bundled headphones themselves are actually very good and capable, which is a positive point over some of the leading MP3 players out there. You get a choice of three different sized rubbers. Find the right fit and you'll find the performance is impressive: good rich bass that is characteristic of Philips headphones, which is great for pop and dance music, but can be a little heavy for voice or classical music.

Philips are pushing their FullSound technology in the Opus, as they have in other players in the past. We've seen a number of devices featuring FullSound and generally it is a good system, enlivening music somewhat. We found FullSound to be preferable over the other EQ presets and the best setting for general listening.


Format support on the audio front is reasonable with MP3, WMA, AA and FLAC, but a little restrictive on the video front, only supporting AVI and WMV, but you will be able to download BBC iPlayer content and sideload it. The bundled software will convert other common formats for you, but in this world where simplicity rules, we'd rather see more support in the player itself to save uses the time spend in the conversion process.

If you are a Mac user you'll not benefit from this software (although you could easy download a free video convertor) and then simply use the drag and drop approach to load-up content.

The GoGear Opus also comes with a 30-day free introduction to Napster To Go and is AudibleReady. An FM radio and voice recorder are also present.

Battery life is pretty good at 30 hours of music and 6 hours of video, although you don't get a charger in the box, although the Mini-USB connection will work with many last-generation phone chargers. A short USB cable is supplied, as is a cover to stop your player getting all scratched up.

Gear4 CDB-50 Portable iPod/CD Speaker System Review

Call it a next-gen ghetto blaster or a boom-box for the iPod generation, there's no question that Gear4's latest iPod speaker system looks like a revival of the sort of tape-based, mobile music system you would have found in teenage bedrooms throughout the 1980s - including mine! Of course, the glossy, piano-black finish is a little more classy than the old, dark-grey plastic favoured at the time, and the sweeping lines and graceful curves are a long way from the straight lines and peculiar ribbed areas adopted by the likes of Sony, Sanyo and (if you were really unlucky) Alba, but you can definitely see where the inspiration for the CDB-50 must have come from.

I sort of like the retro styling. My better half said it looked like a handbag, then asked if it came in a duck-egg blue, which (I'm guessing) means it might have some cross-gender appeal. Whatever you think, at least it's not yet another indistinguishable iPod speaker dock.

Nor are the CDB-50's retro leanings confined to its design. Remember CDs? You know, the round shiny things you slot onto your PC so that you can listen to them in Windows Media Player/Winamp/iTunes/Songbird or transcode them across to your favourite MP3 player? Well, the CDB-50 can play them too. Still listen to honest-to-goodness analogue FM radio? The CDB-50 will play that too, and there are no fancy pants digital presets, just a good, old-fashioned tuning dial. You can even ditch the mains cable and power the CDB-50 from eight - yes eight! - of those whacking great C-size batteries. Frankly, Gear4's latest seems to have one foot in the present, and one foot firmly in the past. For some of us, that's no bad thing.

The unit is fairly compact, at around 40 cm wide, 22 cm tall and 11cm deep, but heavier than you might think at just under 2.2Kg without batteries installed. Build quality is actually pretty good considering the price, and while I don't think the finish will last long in the wild without scratching, the CDB-50 isn't the sort of thing you'd be terrified about taking into the garden or (heaven forbid) the local park.

In terms of controls, Gear4 has kept things reasonably simple. You'll find a four-way input selector switch and a volume dial on the left side, the radio tuner and band selector on the right, and controls that double up for your iPod and the built-in CD player on the front, above a basic LCD status screen. On the top there's just the CD eject button, a pull-up antenna and a bass boost control.

It seems to me that the CDB-50 has been designed not to frighten those who might have had a portable CD player in the past and are now moving on to the iPod equivalent. If you used one of those, you can certainly use one of these. A tiny remote control is also provided, which allows more control over iPod menu navigation than the very basic onboard controls. However, it also feels fairly cheap and rather nasty and might as well have "please lose behind the nearest sofa cushion" written on the back.

Your iPod sits in a cradle between the two sets of speakers at the front, and three adaptors are provided to give support for iPods ranging from the iPod classic and iPod video to the third and fourth gen nano and the first and second gen touch (the iPhone isn't listed in the compatible devices). For those of you who aren't members of the Apple faithful, an auxiliary 3.5mm jack is hidden behind a flap at the back though - to be perfectly honest - I doubt you'd buy the CDB-50 if you didn't have an iPod to go in it.

Despite descriptions I've seen of the CD drive as slot-loading, your old discs clamp onto a more old-fashioned sprung spindle that hides beneath a locking flap on the back. As well as the basic transport controls (play, skip, etc) you can program tracks or select random play. Woohoo! "Is this really how we used to do things?" you might ask, but if you still actively listen to CDs you'll find these things comforting, and the only mild disappointment is that the CD player will only play straight audio CDs, not any MP3 compilations you might have knocking around.
Whether you're using your old CDs or your newer MP3s, there's one other way in which the CDB-50 reminds me of my old eighties boombox; it doesn't actually sound all that great.

Don't get me wrong - the sound is good enough for background listening at reasonable volumes, but if you want Hi-Fi sound from a compact box, the CDB-50 is no miracle worker.

At low volumes the sound is okay, but everything seems boxed in around the mid-range, with no sparkle at the top end, and very little in the way of bass. Here's where that bass boost button actually comes in handy, pushing the bottom end up so that you can hear, say, the bassline in Rilo Kiley's Under the Blacklight. All the same, it's a dull, muddy kind of bass, and not the sort of thing that makes you want to play Massive Attack or DJ Shadow. Vocals and acoustic guitars seem to stand up better, as a blast of Don't Let it Bring you Down from Neil Young's Live at Massey Hall proved, but throw anything heavy, complex or dynamically rich at the CDB-50, and it really does struggle to cope.

At higher volumes things improve slightly, and you're actually better off switching out the bass boost if you want a crisp sound. Tracks from Bat for Lashes' Two Suns album begin to come alive, and slick, pop productions from Take That or Justin Timberlake develop a little punch. Nonetheless, there's always that slightly plastic, boxed-in quality to the sound. The bass doesn't really cut through. The treble never shimmers or reveals much detail.

Listen to Aimee Mann's You Do from the Magnolia soundtrack and the vocals come through rich and clear, but the details in Jon Brion's idiosyncratic production are buried. Rockier tracks from Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Mastodon are all mid-range mess with no dynamics, and you can forget about classical; the CDB-50 just doesn't have the subtlety or definition to cope. In general, if something sounds good on the average car stereo, then it's probably going to sound good on the Gear4 CDB-50. If it's the sort of thing you'd rather listen to on headphones or on your stereo back home, then it will probably just about sound okay.

This isn't a disaster, for the simple reason that at £70 I don't actually expect an iPod Speaker dock to sound incredible, and just about okay might do for a spot of kitchen listening when I'm doing the washing up. All the same, were I spending my own money I'd stretch my budget a little further to something like the Klipsch iGroove SXT or Gear 4's own BassStation. It might not have the portability or the cool retro styling, but give me sound over image any time.

Devotec Unveils First Solar Powered Bluetooth Speaker

If the name 'Devotec' is familiar that's because it has established a solid rep as a manufacturer of solar chargers for, well... just about everything! This however is clearly the next step in its evolution.

The 'Solar Sound' capitalises on all the company's solar experience to create the first solar powered wireless Bluetooth speaker. So how practical is it?

In short: very. The speaker is fitted with a 150mA solar panel which at full charge can last up to eight hours on medium volume or four hours at full volume while recharging just involves leaving it in any form of light. Recharging takes between 12 and 24 hours for the solar panel or just four when hooked up to the mains.

n terms of compatibility the Bluetooth standard means it will work with virtually any Bluetooth equipped handset or MP3 player and since it has A2DP bass response will be improved if the connecting device sports the same. Audio can be controlled either directly from your device or using the touch button controls. Furthermore, if Bluetooth doesn't appeal a 3.5mm headphone jack will come to the rescue. Finally, making the Solar Panel even more flexible is the inclusion of an integrated mic which means it can be used as a hands free car kit when driving.

As for sound quality, given the Solar Sound is designed to be very portable (165 x 55 x 55m and 260g) it won't be shaking any walls but a pair of 2W speakers should be plenty enough for some peaceful garden listening or audiobook enjoyment.

If all this sounds rather tempting then the price shouldn't put you off at £59.99 and it's available from the company's site from today. Let's hear it for the sun!

Link:
Solar Sound Product Page

Shure SE115 earphones review

Great earphones that balance price and quality

The earphone market can seem like a bit of a minefield for anyone who doesn't know exactly what they're looking for. And with the sub-£100 section of the market literally bristling with different options, it can be hard to work out what to buy.

After all – everyone knows that the tacky little white earbuds that come with iPods are unrivalled in their awfulness. But how do you know that any new ones are going to be any better?

Well, as a rule of thumb, the earphone market is a perfect example of that old adage: you get what you pay for - the more you spend, the better the earphones will be.

How much should you spend?
So the only real problem is: how much should you spend, and will you really notice the difference between these Shure SE115's and their much more expensive brothers and sisters?

We're pleased to report that for the recommended retail price of £99, the SE115 earphones offer a pitch-perfect balance between price and performance. We're even more pleased to tell you that on most online retailers you can pick these up now for less than £70.

It may seem like a lot to spend on earphones, but you will absolutely notice the difference between these buds and their cheaper challengers, both lower down in the Shure range and from rival manufacturers.

At the same time, unless you're a particularly picky audiophile with super-sonic hearing, you're unlikely to pick up any noticeable differences between these and its much more expensive rivals.

The top of the range Shure earphones fly well above the £300 mark, which is completely unnecessary for anyone using earphones with compressed audio files – especially in these money crunchy times.

So ok, we've established that the Shure SE115's sit at the right place in the market. The problem is that there are plenty other very similar products that offer similar performance at the same price. See products from the likes of Sennheiser, Philips and new kids on the block, Atomic Floyd.

Healthy competition
Shure has a lot of competition then, and so the SE115 need a bit of cutting edge awesomeness if they're to make some kind of dent in the market. Do they have this? The answer is a bit of yes, and a bit of no.

They're certainly very well put together, and the dynamic drivers inside the buds offer a powerful, rich and smooth sound that put those bundled iPod earphones to shame in dramatic fashion.

However, while they sound fantastic – and make no mistake about it they really do sound great – they're certainly not streets ahead of rival manufacturers.

And when you bear in mind that many products in the same price sector offer extras such as built in microphone for answering phone calls, it's hard to absolutely justify buying the Shure SE115's over, say, the Atomic Floyd HiDefDrums or a pair of Sennheisers.

You also need to consider comfort. The noise isolation offered by these and other Shure earphones, is possibly the best on the market. But they can also be a somewhat traumatic experience for your ears.

If you don't like stuffing fairly hefty padded ear buds in your ear canal, the default buds are not for you. However, if you don't mind that kind of thing, you'll find yourself immersed in sound in a way that cheaper earphones simply can't manage.

Luckily, the earphones come with five sets of replacement buds, some are made of the patented dense foam that mould themselves to your ears, and others are silicon rubber which don't offer the same level of noise isolation but they're easier on small, sensitive ears.

Available in four colours, the Shure SE115s do offer fantastic audio performance for the price. And for £99 we would have recommended you be wary before buying them - to make sure they were right for you. But for around £66 and falling, these are a steal.

Sennheiser PXC 350 headphones

Jargon is an inevitable by-product when describing a technology, but manufacturers of audio equipment really seem to excel at making things sound complicated. Take the Sennheiser PXC 350 headphones, for example, they have adaptive baffle damping, which works in combination with the patented Duofol diaphragms. This combination prevents unwanted partial oscillation. Not only that, but Sennheiser's NoiseGuard actively compensates noise, based on the physics principle of sound and counter-sound.

So, what does all this mean? Well the PXC 350 are a set of noise cancelling headphones from one of the world's foremost audio experts, Sennheiser. Available for around £150 this is a pricey set of cans for the casual observer at least. The NoiseGuard technology was originally developed for pilots and plane cockpits. It works by using tiny microphones to listen to the ambient noise and then creating a signal that is identical but inverted 180 degrees to cancel the external noise out. All this is powered by two AAA batteries.

The active noise cancelling part of the PXC350 isn't the only way they get rid of background noise. The ear cups are designed to cover your ears completely, meaning that even without the active technology, external noise is kept to a minimum.

Other than the noise cancelling features the PXC 350 come with a case and adaptors for airline use and also have a 2-year warranty. There's an inline volume control and sensible wire length too. In addition the ear pads can be replaced as can the cable, so these are built to last. The headphones are designed to be travel friendly and although they are large, they fold away neatly as the ear cups twist and lay flat.

Audio quality is the be all and end all of headphones and we tested the PXC 350 with a range of audio and through a selection of output devices. It's always great when a product lives up to your hopes and the Sennheisers certainly do. No matter what type audio we were listening to the PXC 350 were fantastic. Loud heavy music was detailed and, as required, deafening in a good way. Classical was light and breezy chat was clear. In short these are really good headphones.

The headphones work with or without power so there's no need to worry if the batteries go flat. The audio quality was better with the power on but not so much that you'd be disappointed.

Voyager Pro headset offers 'unparalleled sound quality'

Plantronics' new Bluetooth headset

Plantronics has announced the launch of its latest Bluetooth headset, the Voyager Pro.

An update of the Voyager 510, the Pro puts the onus on audio clarity with its claims that it offers "unparalleled sound quality".

"Voyager PRO delivers unmatched inbound audio quality to ensure every word is heard on both sides of a conversation," explains the release.

"It features a custom speaker that delivers full-spectrum audio so conversations are richer and more vibrant."

Breaks new ground

Technology built into the headset includes AudioIQ digital signal processing (DSP), which helps with wind cancellation and delivers crisp sounds from whoever is nattering to you on the other end of the phone line.

"Voyager PRO breaks new ground in Bluetooth headsets, and consumers will be delighted by the total experience," insists Renee Niemi, Vice President and General Manager of the Plantronics Mobile and Entertainment Division.

Find out for yourself by getting yourself down the shops, where the Voyager Pro is available now for £79.99

Traxdata USB Player review

Is Traxdata's USB Player an easy way to access you digital media?

Once the sole preserve of computers, multimedia playback is now a common feature in everything from receivers to games consoles.

Even TVs have it built in these days, but if you don't have one of those and cannot plug your computer into your existing set perhaps, then you can use an adapter like the USB Player.

About the size of the average portable HDD and clad in shiny black to complement most TVs, the Player plays back media from USB-connected sticks and NTFS/FAT 32 formatted hard discs.

A blue operating light adorns the front but the rear is where you plug your USB device. But there's only one port and it's too close to the HDMI, making it impossible for the Player to accommodate chunkier flash drives. You also get component and combined composite/phono outputs (leads are provided, plus a Scart adapter) and a coaxial digital audio output and the device is powered by a 5V adapter.

A projector-style remote does the job well enough but could do with a few more distinct buttons.

The software is relatively basic – you can view files as a list (folders are supported) or as thumbnails and boost the menu resolution to 1080i.

The Player handles most popular formats including DivX, XviD, MP4, VCD, MPEG-2, DVD image files (menus included), most subtitle file types, MP3, WAV and JPEGs. There's no HD playback but video files can be outputted as interlaced, progressive or upscaled via component or HDMI to 720p or 1080i.

You can fast-forward and rewind them at up to 16x normal speed, slow them down to x1/8 or skip to a desired point by entering the required time.

Add to this playlists and the ability to create JPEG slideshows accompanied by your own music.

Playback performance compared favourably with other devices such as our Xbox 360, with decent sound and image quality via HDMI and component and predictably softer images via composite. But upscaling XviD files with resolutions in the 640 x 480 range via HDMI to 1080i delivered only incremental discernible improvements when seen on our 42in Panasonic plasma.

Build issues aside, the Traxdata is a neat plug-and-play solution for bringing multimedia to your TV.

Vuzix iWear AV310 review

Will Vuzix's personal display be the last word in how we watch our movies, or will the novelty soon wear off?

To put it in a nutshell, iWear AV310 Widescreen is a wearable video display with twin 428 x 240 widescreen LCDs. Worn like normal glasses, it gives you an extra-entertaining home cinema experience.

Audio is handled by a couple of dangling earbuds, and it's powered by a standard AA battery, which is useful if you run out of juice half way through.

It's primarily designed for use with mobile video devices (connectors for iPod/iPhones and Nokia handsets are included), but with a little effort, you can connect it to most things that offer a video output. You might have to buy an adaptor or two, though.

In a head-to-head fight with the Carl Zeiss Cinemizer, they fought each other to a bloody draw. The Cinemizer offered better picture clarity and a richer, more vibrant image than the iWear, which were a little grainy and washed out in comparison.

Yet the iWear scores higher on audio, a widescreen aspect ratio option and better isolation, assuming you invest in an optional Light Shield. This is a rubber mask that fits over the iWear's screen and does a fair job of blocking out the outside world, but it costs £13 extra. iWear wins out on price, being more than £100 cheaper, even after you've forked out for the Light Shield.



PERSONAL SPACE:

Vuzix's iWear can completely isolate you from the outside world

iWear AV310 Widescreen is capable of displaying 3D video. We doubt you'd get the chance to use this feature often, and in our tests it proved abysmal in 3D, even with Vuzix's own demo movie.

Vuzix iWear AV310 Widescreen is certainly fun and definitely more comfortable than watching a two-hour movie on a handheld video screen.

Yet comparisons with competitors aside, it's not cheap at £180. Before investing in one, ask yourself if it's something you'll use often enough to justify the price. As it stands though, the iWear is well made and great for long journeys.

iPod saves girl from lightning strike

Praise be to Apple. An iPod is being credited as saving a girl's life in a tidy bit of tabloid reporting from The London Paper.


14-year-old Sophie Frost from Essex escaped with just minor burns and singed hair after her iPod's headphones apparently diverted the "deadly blast" away from her body. Her iPod is now described as "frazzled".

The story goes that Sophie was hiding under a tree with her boyfriend during a storm when "the 300,000-volt blast struck, knocking her unconscious".

"I don't remember a thing about what happened, but from what everyone tells me it's a miracle I'm still here", Sophie said.

"Everybody's said the iPod must have diverted the lightning away from my body, which probably saved my life. I've got a few burns, but it's all healing OK".

Sophie's mum, said: "The doctors say her iPod saved her. Her nan only bought it a few days ago. Luckily, she wasn't actually wearing the headphones. If she had been, she might not be here today".

Trends PA-10 Tube Headphone Amplifier Review

If you're serious about headphone audio, and serious about using a PC or PMP as your source, then a separate headphone amplifier should only be second to a decent set of cans on your shopping list. It's not that you can't get a great sound direct from an MP3 player or sound card - with a decent sound card or one of the better players from Cowon, Samsung or Sony you definitely can.

It's more that, with a headphone amplifier handling the output you can expect a richer sound, a stronger presence, a clearer soundstage and enough power to drive even the most discriminating over-the-ear ‘phones. You might think your Grados sound great straight from the output of your notebook, but until you've heard them through a dedicated amp, you haven't really heard them sing.



Unfortunately, headphone amplifiers tend to be expensive and - like any slightly niche device - prohibitively so. Luckily, there are some good value propositions. A few weeks ago we looked at the iBasso D2, a cool, portable headphone amp/USB DAC which could take music to a new dimension without costing the earth.

Today we're looking at the Trends PA-10, a desktop headphone amplifier from Hong Kong which is already making waves in the PC audiophile community, and deservedly so. Final UK pricing has yet to be announced, but you can pick up a PA-10m for around $225, which works out at approximately 128 of our currently weak and wussy British pounds.

This might not sound much of a bargain, but the thing about the PA-10 is that it's a hybrid tube headphone amplifier. These normally sell for anywhere upwards of £300, so £128 is really pretty cheap.

The PA-10 is designed to be used solo as a headphone amp, or as a compact pre-amp to be used in combination with Trend's TA-10 power amp and the speakers of your choice to make a neat, inexpensive micro system. The design is fairly simple, with a nice solid aluminium case featuring a 3.5mm headphone socket and volume knob at the front, plus two stereo phono inputs, a set of stereo phono outputs and an input selector switch at the back. To keep size and costs down the power supply is an external wall-wart, and there are no gold plated sockets or anything fancy like that.

The tube used in the pre-amp stage is a Chinese-made 6N11, but the amplifier will work with several alternatives, and it's possible to buy an SE version with a Russian 6H23n for a ‘thicker, warmer bass'. The tube actually protrudes from the top of the case, enabling you to enjoy its lovely, rosy glow when you have the lights off. Note that if you do want to replace the tube with something different, you may have to fiddle with potentiometers inside the box to recalibrate the amplifier. That's not a problem if you're a dedicated tinkerer - and many of us at TR are just that - but it might be if you prefer things to just work.



If I'd have any complaints about the general design and build quality, they would be these. First, it's a little too easy to knock the tube out of place accidentally, which probably isn't good for its life expectancy. Second, the case gets really, seriously hot in use, which might be good if you want something to warm your coffee cup, but not if you just want to leave the PA-10 sitting on your desk.

Finally, you'll inevitably need a 3.5mm to dual phono cable or an adaptor to use it with your PC, your MP3 player or an iPod line-out dock. Fitting a 3.5mm input wouldn't have added much expense, and would have made this unnecessary. Still, at least you get two sets of input to switch between. Some people have also complained about a noisy volume control, but I can't say it's been a problem for me.

To create its output, the PA-10 uses a combination of tube pre-amplification and solid-state, MOSFET power amplification. The idea is, as always with hybrid amplification, for the tubes to provide rich, warm tone while the MOSFETs concentrate on turning that into a strong, clean signal. The approach doesn't work every single time, but when it does you usually get a great result.

And so is the case here. The sound the PA-10 puts out is perfectly lovable, with a warm, creamy tone, a strong bass response and a clear top-end. At first it's actually a bit brash when it comes to treble; not enough to create a wearying noise, but enough to make the sound a little too bright for some tastes.

However, after a few hours that treble starts to round off nicely, and the PA-10 is just pure pleasure to listen to, putting in a strong performance with dance, electronica, classical , indie, folk and even country but especially - and maybe this is the tubes - old-school, classic rock.



I tried it out with four sets of headphones: the Grado SR125is, Sennheiser's HD595s, a pair of BeyerDynamic DT770 Pros and my cheap and cheerful AKG K141 Mark IIs. The results with all sets was fantastic, but especially so with the HD595s, where the added warmth and low-end richness compensated for what few weaknesses there are in the Sennheiser's controlled, well-balanced sound.

The PA-10 gets scarily loud before you even hit half volume, so there's no problem driving the high impedance DT770 Pros, and my only worry was that, with bass-heavy tracks like Ladyhawke's From Dusk ‘til Dawn, the bass was actually a bit too pronounced and boomy, to the detriment of the rest of the mix.

With the Sennheisers or the Grados hooked up, however, and some tasty tracks emanating from my iPod using a line-out dock, there were plenty of treats to be had. The PA-10 does great things with intimate, acoustic music, and tracks from k.d. Lang and Alison Krauss revealed gorgeous, rich vocals and a mass of instrumental detail.

The PA-10 is slightly less at home with the harder edges of electronic music, but Natasha Khan's vocals and piano in Bat for Lashes' Moon for Moon sounded incredible. There's also enough detail, definition and control for classical, as spins through Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending and Arvo Part's Summa for Strings confirmed. Most of all, though, the PA-10 is a rock monster. Deep, from Brendan O'Brian's revitalising new mix of Pearl Jam's Ten sounds huge and ferocious, with its huge Wah-Wah heavy riffs, rolling fills and bellowed vocals. The bass line in Smashing Pumpkin's Ava Adore just sounds epic.

I couldn't resist A/B comparisons with the iBasso D2, even if the two products address slightly different needs. Feeding FLAC files from PC using a Soundblaster X-Fi PCI card for the PA-10 and the USB DAC on the iBasso, it's clear that the PA-10 wins out on tone and sheer, raunchy power, but the iBasso offers a tighter bass, a cleaner mid-range and a more balanced sound overall.



Listening to Talk Talk's Eden and The Kings of Leon's Notion, both amps excel, but the iBasso reveals that bit more detail. If I had to choose one over the other, I really don't know which way I'd go. The D2 is the more versatile product, even if it is more expensive. All the same, it's hard to resist the PA-10's old-school charms.


If all you want is a desktop headphone amp, however, then the price/performance ratio on the PA-10 is hard to beat. You really need an iPod with a line-out dock or a PC with a decent internal or external sound card to get the best out of it, not to mention a decent set of headphones, but if those things are in place you'll get an awful lot of enjoyment out. It's not perfect, and there are signs of the budget showing through, but it's a deeply lovable bit of bargain-chasing audiophile kit.

Apple iPod shuffle (Third Gen) Review

Author : Stuart Andrews
Published: 7th Jun 2009
Manufacturer: Apple
Price £51.30: (Exc VAT)
as reviewed £59.00: (Inc VAT)


Okay. Hands up. We know we're a bit late on this one, but we've only just been able to get hold of the, ahem, brand new (ish) iPod shuffle. We're at least 99 per cent sure that the delay is a case of limited product samples and nothing to do with our slightly negative initial impressions.

All we can say is that we've definitely come to the shuffle with a completely open mind. After all, we rather liked the last one, and while it has been outclassed by a number of rival devices in terms of sound quality, usability and value, it's still one of the finest micro MP3 players on the market.



In some key respects, the 3G shuffle makes an even better first impression. I've seen an awful lot of players in the last few months, but the Apple's latest has serious ‘wow' factor, and it's all down to a killer combination of size and style. I knew the shuffle was small, but I didn't expect it to be this tiny. Take it from me, reading that it's around 4.5cm long, 1.7cm wide and 5mm thick is one thing, but seeing this thing in the metal is something else.

It's hard to imagine how Apple packed the processing and output circuitry in there, let alone the flash memory and a Lithium Polymer battery. With nothing on the smooth, aluminium body bar a spring clip and a three-way slider switch it's also probably the most minimalist electronic device of any type I've ever encountered and one that looks - in my opinion - ridiculously cool.

The ‘gun metal' version I have here resembles nothing so much as 2001's monolith shrunk to ant size. Maybe that's appropriate, because it feels like a rock-solid, indestructible, inscrutable piece of alien tech.



Of course, there's a price to pay for all that studied minimalism; there's no room for a screen, or indeed any playback controls on the shuffle itself. The three way slider mounted on the top next to the headphone output (which still doubles as the USB connector) simply switches between off and Shuffle and Play in Order modes, and the only other feature on the unit is a small LED indicator for battery status.

Controls are, instead, mounted on the earphones, on the cable below the right earpiece. As with the remote built into Apple's In Ear Headphones, we effectively get three buttons; volume up, volume down, and a multi-function effort. Here's where the shuffle gets slightly clever. Click this button once and it pauses or plays. Double-click it and it goes forward one track. Triple-click it, and you skip one track backwards.



All well and good, but that's not really a lot of control, is it? Well, Apple has come up with a smarter alternative to the screen this time: speech. Click and hold the button and a robotic voice (male or female synced with a Mac or PC respectively) announces the name of the current track and artist. Better still, this is the first shuffle to support playlists. Click and hold the button longer and you get the name of the current playlist, before the shuffle starts cycling through any playlists you've transferred to the device. Hear the one you want? Click again and you're away. It's simple, but it works, and it's a more sophisticated AUI (Audio User Interface) than that on the Sony W202 walkman, with its bizarre "zappin' in" exclamations.

I understand that MacOS users get a more human voice, but the one Windows users get is perfectly usable. In fact, bar the odd bit of peculiar pronunciation, the only weird foible I found was that, when announcing classical pieces by Wagner, the shuffle would suddenly switch to a strange, Germanic male accent. Still, I guess you might call it appropriate.

In short, while the disadvantage of no screen hasn't been entirely cancelled out, it's a lot easier to live with on the new shuffle than it was with the old. That said things still aren't entirely peach in shuffle land. As Gordon pointed out in his original news story, the implementation of the controls on the earphones themselves rather than an adaptor cable is a real problem, for the simple reason that it restricts what headphones you can use with the device. Prefer Shure, Sennheiser or Klipsch IEMs to the standard Apple models? Sorry. You're out of luck.

To be fair, third-party ‘phones are expected from Klipsch and Scosche in the near future, and the latter manufacturer has also announced a stand-alone remote-control/adaptor. For now, though, you're stuck with a choice of the bundled buds or Apple's In-Ear Headphones.


Let's be clear: the sound through the bundled buds is no worse than the sound you'll get through most MP3 players with the bundled earphones. In fact, I've heard an awful lot worse in the last few months from Far Eastern competitors. The sound lacks warmth and bass and errs towards the over-bright/tinny side of the audio spectrum, but your ears will not fall off through listening and your music won't sound utterly ghastly. The worst I can say is that the things will not stay in your ears when exercising, and for a shuffle that's quite a big deal.

Plug in the In Ear Headphones and it becomes obvious that the new Shuffle is - like the last Shuffle - a thoroughly decent little player. The output is clear at the top end, beefy at the bottom end, and strong in-between. Listening to the spectacularly hit-and-miss Timbaland/Chris Cornell collaboration, Scream, I hear a strong grasp of dynamics, punchy beats and bass notes and enough definition to do justice to the maestro's trademark, razor-sharp production.

I've heard Massive Attack's Safe from Harm sound warmer and more powerful at the bottom end, but again that crisp sound helps bring it to life. The Shuffle feels at home with quieter acoustic tracks like Prayers from Scott Matthews' excellent debut album, Passing Stranger, though the slightly thin mid-range doesn't suit Mastodon's epically heavy Divinations quite so well. The frustrating thing is that I think it could do great things with another set of headphones, but at the moment there's no way of telling. You can plug in another set, but with no easy way of altering something as fundamental as the volume, using them is impractical.

I suspect there's also one other trade-off for the small size: battery capacity. Ten hours is adequate, but 50 per cent less than you'd get from the Sansa Clip, Sony's NWZ-B133 or Samsung's YP-U4, and about half of what you'd get from the Creative Zen Stone.

Above all else, there's no doubt that you're paying - literally - a high price for the new shuffle's stripped-back styling. £60 for 4GB is no longer great value in a market where less than £50 will buy you an 8GB Sansa Clip, while a 4GB Samsung YP-U4 can be had for less than £45. Factor in the fact that, should you buy a Clip or U4, a pair of decent budget headphones could be had for £30 to £40, while Apple's In Ear Headphones will cost you an additional £50, and things look even worse.

Despite all this, it's almost impossible not to throw some love the Shuffle's way. It's gorgeous to look at, easy to take everywhere, reasonable to listen to with the more expensive ‘phones, and - bar one detail - the most usable Shuffle yet. It's just a shame that that this one detail - the fact that you can't use it with most third-party ‘phones - has so much negative impact on its value. If you want a stylish micro MP3 player and you can live with the bundled buds, buy away. Otherwise, the previous generation shuffle is still very attractive and widely available. If sound and value for money matter more, however, then the good old Clip just makes more sense.

Monster Beats Tour

Pros

Up-front delivery makes music exciting. Well made and finished

Cons

Not the most tonally accurate. Bulky compared to some

Between taking his time to perfect a beat, Dr Dre spends working hours with Monster’s audio engineers. The fruits of their labours are, so far, two pairs of heasdphones: the excellent Beats By Dre over-ear noise-cancellers and, now, the Beats Tour in-ear sound isolators.

His aim is to bring the quality of studio sound to everyday listening. A fine aim from one so famous for his immaculate hip-hop production values – can the Beats Tours deliver?

Big, bad beats
It’s clear from the off that the Beats Tours are no shrinking violets. Compare them to the diminutive Klipsch Image X5 or Ultimate Ears 700 and they’re something of a brute, with their metallic slab backs emblazoned with a red ‘b’, ball-like mid-section and sound-isolating ear plug.

This impression is redoubled by the red, tangle-proof, elastic band-like cable. It does exactly what it says on the tin, preventing annoying cable tangles. It also feels remarkably tough, and the metal-clad 3.5mm jack should stay put, too.

Select the correct fitting from the four ear plug sizes available and the outside world is immediately shut out. Despite their proportions the buds are light and comfortable in the ear, and depending on the depth of your lugs, don’t stick out much.

Brash delivery
When you’ve got the seal right you can get a good idea of what Dre’s studio sounds like. It’s a brash, exciting delivery with bags of energy that makes music invigorating and dramatic. With beat-heavy music they really rock.

Midrange is well resolved but treble is a little ragged compared with the best. This raw quality may appeal, just as the punchiness may. The trouble is, it’s not necessarily the most honest mix.

Hi-fi is supposed to aim for accuracy and the Beats Tours don’t trouble themselves too much with that stuffy old notion. As a result they’re not particularly suited to subtle classical or acoustic music.
They never sound poor, it’s simply that rivals such as the Klipsch Image X5s are more even-handed while maintaining most of the excitement.

Nevertheless, fans of hip-hop, dance and bassy rock should check them out. If you crave fun over fact, the Beats Tours will not disappoint.

Chumby

Your best internet buddy?

Best described as a large hacky-sack with a screen on the front, the Chumby is part of a new wave of connected internet buddies. We don't even know what to call it. Sporting a 3.5-inch screen on the front, it doesn't try to be serious like the Joggler - even though they have equally silly names - but is a lot of fun.

The screen provides touch interaction with the Chumby to play the games, play videos, flick through photos and so on, whilst a button under the soft leather top accesses the main menu and what there are of settings. One of the important settings here allows you to dive in and connect to your network.

The Chumby only connects via Wi-Fi which is great for many homes, but might not be so good for those who want to throw it into their office network for a bit of distraction.

Part of the activation process involves heading online and registering your Chumby through their website. This isn't really a standalone device as the website is your access to all the available apps - and there are over 1000 on there and more being added all the time. Once activated, however, your Chumby is preloaded with a number of apps to get you started.

There is a default set of apps for UK owners, so it was nice to find that it was already picking up train times and the state of the London Underground. Of course you can add and remove as you please so you can make Chumby exactly what you want it to be.

Basically the Chumby will sit there and cycle through the apps it has on offer, giving you 30 seconds (or so) on each one. You can change the interval of each app, or you can choose to pin one so it stays on that app – great for waking up and checking the trains running from your local station. Did I not mention that? Yes, it will head off to National Rail's live departure boards to pick up real-time info on your station - fantastic for commuters.

We customised it by adding in some technology news feeds, some fun games and other miscellany and the Chumby proved to be the ultimate distraction. A small dog licking the screen proved a hit with the wife, as did the bubble wrap popping game. And who could resist a quick photo gallery of rabbits? Everyone say ahh.

It's the sheer randomness of Chumby that makes it so appealing. Sure, the novelty will wear off, but there is plenty of variety to give it a long lease of life.

But aside from the distraction and novelty items, Chumby has a more useful side. We've mentioned the London Underground and train times - of course you have weather in there as well - but you can hook up to things like Google Calendar and your Picasa or Flickr photos.

Google Calendar is a view only offering and a but rough and ready, so you don't get the sort of polished, comprehensive, offering that you do via the O2 Joggler, but it was synchronised with iCal on the Mac and on the BlackBerry, which let's face it, is the way that connected devices should work.

Around the back of the Chumby you'll find two USB ports. These will let you plug in a USB memory stick or even an iPod that will then let the Chumby run off and find music to play (MP3, M4A, AIFF, WAV). It's a neat solution as you can charge your iPod and playback music (with the iPod nano at least), but it is worth checking compatibility with your model before you fork out. The Chumby also has a list of internet radio stations so you can get some music.

The onboard speakers are better than you might expect and there is a 3.5mm headphone jack as well. There is a power button on the back to switch it off, with startup taking about 30 seconds. There is also a motion sensor built-in to control various apps and games.

So it's all pretty much perfect? Well, not entirely. The touch is pretty good, but at times it can get a little fiddly, especially when plugging in your Wi-Fi password or selecting tracks. You do get used to it, but it isn't as crisp an experience as you'd get from the latest mobile phone.

The style also won't be for some either: Chumby will look out of place in your minimalist loft apartment but he'll fit right into your chilled pad. In reality you could do it all on your mobile phone or PC if you're being really miserable about it.

(Click to enlarge)

Cabasse Eole 2 review

Price at launch	£1,200.00
Min Frequency Response	170
Driver Configuration	1 x 2-way coaxial driver 19mm soft drome
Max Frequency Response (Hz)	22000
Weight (kg)	1.68
Dimensions	165 x 165 x 165
Max Output Power	490
Impedance (Ohm)	8

For some time, the humble EOLE was French brand Cabasse's sole weapon in the competitive multi-channel speaker market. It came with an ambitious price tag – even before the collapse of sterling – and had medium-scale audio ambitions.

But things change. The second-generation EOLE 2 system reviewed here replaces the original (which had no numerical suffix) and remains reassuringly expensive but adds some smart refinements.

The original internal aluminium frame has been replaced by steel, eliminating the need for a bucking magnet to stop magnetic flux leaking from the enclosures. It also means more internal volume, which translates to a greater low-frequency output, and better apparent integration with the sub.

The biggest change is to the way the satellite speakers couple to their cup-like supports, using rings of powerful rare-earth magnets attached to the bases and a matching magnetic structure inside the spheres. This innovative design makes for a surprisingly secure join without it needing to be bolted together.

It allows individual speakers to be adjusted in position by simply twisting and rotating them to any angle (the previous model offered only limited adjustment). The speakers look almost the same irrespective of their orientation: this allows a slightly asymmetrical layout in the room without the system looking out of place, which is officially decidedly cool.

Bit of a chameleon

But there is more flexibility built into this system than is first apparent. With this test array, shelf supports were supplied as standard, but so too were two tall floor-standing supports, which provide cable management via the tubular support columns.

There are no hard edges to the speaker, but the dumb bell-like weight distribution means they can be knocked over, so they may not mix well with small children. Other supports available include flush ceiling mounts, and buyers can opt for black or white finishes.

The two generations of the EOLE family have one key point in common. They are both close relatives of larger, more costly Cabasse designs. They share a similar aesthetic and use broadly the same technology to achieve their ends.

The archetypal Cabasse model, familiar to audiophiles worldwide, is the flagship La Sphere, which shares some features with the EOLE satellites. They both use spherical enclosures with drive units mounted coaxially – and in the case of the senior model some extravagantly designed stands.

The main difference is one of scale. La Sphere is based on a monstrous sphere some 28 inches in diameter, which is home to four coaxially-mounted drive units. The EOLE 2 satellite is just six inches in diameter, and houses only two coaxially-mounted drivers, a 4in midrange driver and a 29mm soft dome tweeter.

The thinking is that a spherical enclosure allows the speakers to operate as a point source, with all frequencies appearing to come from the same coordinates. Some commentators have also pointed out that the internal shape eliminates internal resonances, but this is just plain wrong, as the spherical cavity has an infinite number of identical diameters.

But the internal regularity has allowed the designers rare freedom to address the problem. Within their power and bandwidth limits, the two speakers do much the same job, and the family resemblance means they do it in much the same way.

For the EOLE 2 system, bass comes from a compact free-standing active subwoofer, the Santorin 21, which has an 8.25in bass driver and a 250W amplifier. It can be accessed at line or speaker level, with the usual control over crossover frequency, level and phase.

Beguiling to behold

First and foremost, the Cabasse system is a knockout, both visually, and in the way it has been put together. Everything about it screams 'engineering'; rival systems may offer a similar style, but I'd be prepared to argue that they lack substance in comparison. Here, all the aesthetic decisions appear to be reasoned, and the result is quirky, if not downright idiosyncratic.

The unusual technology and build inevitably reflects on how the system performs, but for the most part this is a positive. It sounds surprisingly grown up, with a quite muscular midrange where many compact system tend to sound weedy.

With its added depth and subwoofer warmth, a large-scale picture results. Imagery is focused and remains so even if you sit well off axis, a function of the spherical enclosures. This makes the system particularly appropriate for family-wide movie sessions, while speech is unusually clear and articulate, which makes the system great for melodramas as well as talky blockbusters like The Spirit.

The system is also very good in stereo mode. A recent BBC Classical Music magazine cover disc of Mahler and Brahms' songs gripped as a performance and caused the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. All without any excess presence or treble content.

In fact, the higher frequencies are perceptibly slightly gruff, with some loss of smoothness, perhaps a function of the large diameter tweeter dome. Yet, with a lifetime of experience of listening to music of this kind, I can say without fear of contradiction that this level of performance is very difficult to pull off at any price level.

Power handling isn't quite as spectacular as the maker's figures imply: play special-effects laden soundtracks like Wanted with the volume control set injudiciously, and the sound will clog up; the subwoofer in particular is limited by the small size of the drive unit cones, despite its 250W amplifier. But at moderate volume levels bass is agile. It can pack a jab, even if it won't knock you over at six paces.

The secret's out

The Cabasse range of speakers is still a bit of a secret in the UK, so I was surprised and delighted by how well this particular system performs. This is down to good, solid engineering, but above all, due to a design team that knows how sounds, well, sound.

I don't think it's the most polished or sweetest system in its class, but it is fundamentally articulate and musical, qualities that are much more important. It also has the elusive Wife Acceptance Factor in spades. This beautiful looking sub/sat system really can deliver the AV goods.

Bluetrek Duo Stereo Bluetooth Headset Review

Thinking of buying a Bluetooth headset but can't decide between a standard mono one or a snazzier stereo version so you can also listen to music from your phone? Well, thanks to this clever headset from Bluetrek you no longer have to make that decision.

As its name suggests the Bluetooth Duo can be used either as a standalone mono in-ear headset or can be quickly converted into a pair of wireless stereo headphones complete with built-in support for SRS WoW HD pseudo surround sound. So the question is whether it's a jack of all trades or a master of none?

The Duo comes as two totally distinct parts. The first part looks pretty much like any run-of-the-mill mono headset. It's short and stubby with rounded edges on both sides and comes supplied with four different ear gels of differing sizes. However, unlike many other headsets, none of the gels supplied here are designed so you can use the headset without an ear hook. Perhaps this is because the Duo is ever so slightly fatter and heavier than most headsets. It certainly needed the extra support of the ear hook to hold it stable on my ear. There are two of these supplied in the box (large and small), and as they clip around the earpiece they can be mounted on either side so lefties will have no problems.

The Duo isn't exactly laden down with controls. In fact there are only two buttons. The first is the volume rocker switch which takes the form of think chrome strip and is mounted on the top edge of the headset. The second is the small multifunction call handling button that sits toward the back of the outer face of the Duo. The multifunction button also has an integrated multicoloured LED to let you know when it's charging, in paring mode or needs to be topped up with juice.

On the rear of the headset you'll find a microUSB port. On most headsets this is used purely for charging, but that's not the case with the Duo. Here it also doubles as a kind of expansion port because this is where you plug the Duo's stereo headphones.

The headphones are actually supplied in two parts. The first part is an adaptor that attaches to the microUSB port, with the stereo headphones then plugging into this via a standard 3.5mm jack. As this adaptor also houses the hands-free microphone it means you can really use whatever headphones you like with the Duo. However, the supplied headphones are specially designed so the headphone cable forms a neck loop. The result is that when they're attached to the headset it hangs around your neck like a dog tag. Or that's the theory at least; instead it tends to hang at an awkward angle as the earpiece on the back stops it from lying flat on your chest. Because of this the look of the whole setup isn't perhaps as elegant as it could be.

As you would expect, pairing the headset with your phone is a piece of cake. All you've got to do is press and hold the multifunction call button for seven seconds until the headset's LED starts to blink blue and red. It's then simply a matter of doing a search for the Duo on your mobile and entering the standard '0000' Bluetooth passcode.

Once connected, the call controls are pretty straightforward. Tapping once answers or ends a call, and if you're on a call and hear the call waiting alert you can press and hold the button for three seconds to connect to the new caller. The headset also has a neat voice alert feature where it will speak to you to let you know if pairing failed, it needs a recharge or if the headset is disconnected from your phone as well as various other alerts.

When used as a standard headset, call quality is pretty good. Callers sound loud and distinct through the mono earpiece while the mic delivers clean audio for the most part. However, callers did note that the mic tended to pick up a fair degree of background sounds in noisier environments, which isn't really all that surprising as the headset doesn't include any noise cancelling technology.

Our course, the sound quality from the stereo headphones is just as important and on this front the Duo scores pretty highly. The phones use sound isolating in-ear buds which help to block out a lot of background noise - handy on tube journeys in London. The ear buds produce a decent amount of bass and have a pretty solid mid-range, plus the highs tend to sparkle nicely. However, when you push the volume to higher levels a touch of distortion does tend to creep in.


Unfortunately the integrated SRS Wow HD sound enhancement technology wasn't up to much cop. The pop, jazz and classic settings tended to boost the mid-range so much that the sound was very tinny and unappealing, while the Trubass function didn't really add any more bass, but instead simply created a bit of extra stereo width. Overall, we found it was a much better idea to simply leave the SRS off, which was a tad disappointing.

Battery life wasn't wonderful either. It takes around three hours to fully charge the Duo via the supplied wall charger and once it's fully topped up with juice, Bluetrek says it's good for around six hours of talk time or around four hours of music streaming. During our test period we got around five hours of talk time from it and around thee and a half hours of music streaming.

Radiopaq custom tuned earphones

Pick 'n mix earphones

Radiopaq doesn't believe in the "one size fits all mentality" and that's apparently why they've gone out of their way to create four different versions of their latest in-ear headphones.

Realising that different types of music requires different kinds of reproduction, Radiopaq has used "Intelligent Audio technology" to manage the high and low-end frequencies that are typically lost when a track is compressed to MP3.

The end result is four different sets of headphones that are optimized to reproduce rock, pop, jazz and classical music in a compressed format. Both the earphone drivers and the internal earphone case profiles have been engineered to achieve the best possible sound for each genre.

This leaves you with an important decision to make. What kind of music are you really into? Hard rock, soft jazz or epic classical pieces? Maybe you're just one of those lads with a secret massive collection of Celine Dion and Madonna... Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Radiopaq promises a big, warm sound but tightly controlled bass for the rock headphones, better rhythm and pace if you go with the jazz headphones and better reproduction of all the nuances with the classical headphones. If you go the pop route, you can look forward to a "dynamic, sharp listening experience with strong vocals and a great beat."

It really comes down to how your personal preferences in how your eardrums gets pounded. We definitely did notice variations in how the four headphones performed with different tracks but it didn't amount to a mind-blowing world difference. In the end we always reverted back to the rock headphones with its big, warm sound because that's simply how we like our music, no matter what genre we're listening to.

Radiopaq does admit that you can listen to other types of music on the custom tuned headphones, using the analogy that it's like owning a car - "a 4x4 can still drive around the town, and a super-min can still get you around the country lanes." If you're really into customizing your headphones to get the best possible sound experience, you should go with Sleek Audio's SA6 headphones but they do come with a £180 price tag.

In the end all four headphones did an excellent job of making our MP3s sound the best they possibly can. We certainly prefer the Radiopaq custom-tuned headphones to Apple's latest in-ear pods. Why? Because of a much better well-balanced and pleasant sound image with a high level of detail. No matter which version you end up with, you get great clarity and warmth, although the rock models seemed to provide a nice bassy sound for contemporary music and the jazz models fared best with soft, acoustic tracks.

New Vuzix VR Glasses To Be Unveiled at CES

The biggest feature of the new Vuzix virtual reality glasses has nothing to do with a new technology.

Mostly, it comes from the fact that the company finally hired a designer aware of current aesthetic tastes. The older models of the VR system looked like props straight from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and they exposed the poor saps brave enough to try them in public far too easily.

The new design is interesting enough that any cool-kid Bono wannabe could reach for them, while keeping it fairly basic.

The Wrap 920AV will have some pretty good tech inside as well. It will have an improved variation of virtual reality combined with augmented reality, whereby an object or video feed will appear in space. Basically, it opens up certain video away from a block panel display into one that will give the appearance of interactivity.

While it sounds a bit confusing, Vuzix promises the optics are much improved and that you will actually feel like you're watching a real screen. Previous versions suffered from a narrow frame, resulting in a POV that didn't live up to its goal of immersive-style entertainment.

According to a Vuzix rep, the glasses will be able to connect to any type of portable media player and will be unveiled for the first time during next week's CES 2009.

WeSC Bongo Art Marok Headphones

Fashion headphones aren't a new phenomena, a number of companies have been targeting this growing market over the last few years by combining outlandish designs with teenager (let's be honest, they're the real target market) friendly prices. Probably the most famous for exclusively targeting this market, though, is Skull Candy. It produces a range of headphones of all shapes, sizes, and designs ranging from sub £20 to around £45 (it does also do some wireless ones that retail for about £65). However, there's now a relative newcomer, at least here in the UK, which is looking to grab itself a slice of this lucrative pie.

Hailing from Sweden (as Skull Candy also does), the founders of WeSC are a self-proclaimed mad-hat bunch (they'd have to be to call their company 'We Are The Superlative Conspiracy') of ex-skateboarders and snowboarders who wanted to create some products that would appeal to the type of people that they themselves would hang out with. It started with clothes and various skater culture accessories and has now branched out into headphones as well.

Its range of 'phones is aimed a little higher than the likes of Skull Candy with prices starting at around £35 and breaking through the £100 barrier at the top end. Today I'm looking at a middling pair from the Bongo Art range, which cost about £60.



The particular pair I've got was designed by Thomas ‘ Marok ' Marecki, the art Director and founder of pop culture magazine Lodown. Now I'm sure a few of you will be instantly horrified by the garish design as, in truth, was most of the office when they saw these. However, there are plenty of designs to choose from if these don't take you fancy, including a plain black one. Personally I think that defeats the object of buying a pair of headphones like this, though. They're wacky, and that's a good thing sometimes.

They're quite well built with solid chunky metal headband and earcup brackets and reasonably resilient plastics used throughout. The padding on the earcups, though, is not the deepest or most luxurious and is plastic coated rather than leather. Also, the headband is not padded at all, but that's not something I've ever seen as a problem - it's always my ears that start hurting before my head.

The earcups pivot up and down freely on their brackets but the only adjustment of the headphones, per se, is by means of pulling the cup-holding bracket through the white mounting point on the headband. This means they can be made to fit most head sizes but the lack of rotational adjustment means the 'phones can't fit to the angle of your ears. With the fairly strongly sprung headband and slightly miserly padding on the cups, this can make wearing these headphones for more than an hour a little painful.

The firm hold does, however, make these headphones very secure, especially compared to some on-ear designs we've seen and, along with the closed back design, this provides a degree of noise-isolation. Obviously they don't compare to active noise-cancelling headphones or noise-isolating canalphones but they're better than completely open-backed designs.

An initial 50cm length of cable runs down from the left earpiece and a further 105cm extension is also provided. No adapters or converters are bundled in the box but considering that headphones such as these will most likely find use with MP3 players (rather than aeroplane entertainment systems or Hi-Fi's), the standard stereo 3.5mm jack plug is fine - it's even 1st gen iPhone compatible.

All told, then, there are a few compromises on the comfort front but as an overall package they seem reasonable, assuming the sound quality can hold up to scrutiny, which for the most part it does. Certainly these don't compete with true audiophile headphones and at sixty pounds they are coming up against a lot of competition from the low price products from high-end manufacturers like Grado (the iGrado's use very similar drivers and are much more comfortable), Sennheiser, Shure, and AKG, to name but a few. However, they do actually hold there own at this price point.

For a start, bass response is plentiful, especially if you crank up the volume - and these headphones do get loud! It's not a forced bass level, either. It sounds natural and never comes at the expensive of the rest of the music. Indeed the overall sound is pleasantly even with mids and highs equally well balanced along with the bass. Actual clarity at the top end isn't spectacular, which makes music sound a little flat, especially acoustic, jazz, and classical stuff but for £60 we can find little reason to complain about. Certainly if all you want is something with which to blast your punk/rock/dance "choons" out with while careering down a snowy slope at breakneck speeds then these should be right up your street.