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Posts Tagged ‘Audio Hardware’

Second-generation Blue Microphones Mikey announced, uses free app

Filed under: Accessories, Audio, Hardware, iPod Family, iPhone, iPod touch

The audio wizards at Blue Microphones have wowed Mac and iPod fans with their Snowball, Snowflake, and Mikey microphones. Now, just before the start of CES 2010, Blue has announced the US$99.99 second generation Mikey Portable Recorder for iPod and iPhone.

While the new Mikey hasn’t yet achieved iPhone certification, it promises to be a powerful professional recording solution for iPhone owners when it arrives in the spring. Mikey still features two Blue mic capsules for pro-quality stereo recording, but now has improved acoustic circuitry for better recordings of loud events such as concerts.

The new Mikey also has a 3.5mm line input for those times that you want to plug in a sound source like a guitar or mixer. There’s also a USB pass-through connection for charging and syncing. A newly designed case makes Mikey usable with most iPhone cases, and the mic can be adjusted to seven fixed positions within a 230-degree range for optimum positioning. But wait, there’s more! Blue is also throwing in a soft carrying pouch for Mikey, along with a headphone extension cable for playback monitoring with the iPod touch and nano.

Blue has also put a high-fidelity field recording app for iPhone and iPod touch into the App Store. Blue FiRe [Free, iTunes Link] has been out for a few months and is optimized for the second generation Mikey. The combination of the high-quality mic and free software produces a complete mobile recording experience.

Expect to see the new Mikey at Apple Stores, Guitar Center, and Amazon.com this spring.

[via Engadget]

TUAWSecond-generation Blue Microphones Mikey announced, uses free app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MusicNAO offers unique dock for iPhone and iPod touch

Filed under: Audio, Hardware, Bluetooth, iPhone, iPod touch, Music

Canadian company Cignias has announced an interesting product in the home audio/iPhone category. It’s called the MusicNAO and it allows you to wirelessly control a docked iPod with an iPhone or iPod touch. It also lets you play music wirelessly to the dock from an iPhone or iPod touch. The music streams using the stereo Bluetooth capability of your iPhone or second generation iPod touch.

The base unit, which is a bit reminiscent of the Bose product, has 40 watts of output power, contains equalization circuitry, and uses 4″ speakers. You can skip music, select music, and control the volume remotely. If you have an iPod plugged in, you can view and select playlists, artists and genres from your iPhone or iPod touch.

The apps for your iPhone or iPod touch are available free from the iTunes app store [iTunes link]. The control connections are through Wi-Fi, while the music streams through Bluetooth.

The unit also has an auxiliary input for plugging in another audio source. Hey, anyone still have cassettes?

The MusicNAO is shipping December 1, with an introductory price of U.S. $249.00 until November 30, then it’s $299.00. The prices are the same in Canada. I haven’t heard the device, so I can’t give testimony to the audio quality.

I do think the MusicNAO is a unique twist on portable music integration with Apple products. The system also supports Blackberry cellphones that have a stereo streaming feature.

TUAWMusicNAO offers unique dock for iPhone and iPod touch originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sonos adds a portable music player with room filling sound

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Audio, Hardware, Multimedia, Music

Sonos, best known for wireless music systems that link to your iTunes library and internet services like Pandora, Rhapsody and Napster, is offering a one piece, 5 speaker system that can be placed in any room. It’s called the Zone Player S5 and it’s US $399 direct from Sonos or dealers around the country.

Sonos shipped me a review system to try for 30 days, and I thought the sound was great. I already had a mutli-room Sonos system so adding the new portable player was just a matter of plugging it into AC power and pressing two buttons on the S5.

If you don’t already have a Sonos system, you have to plug your unit into a router to connect to your music library and the internet. If that doesn’t work in your home layout, you can buy what Sonos calls a Zone Bridge (US $99) that plugs into your router and lets the S5 make a wireless connection. Once that basic pairing is made, you can add as many other Sonos music systems as you like, all connecting over a wireless mesh network.

The system sounds quite good, given the limits of the small desktop-friendly size (8.5 x 14.4 x 4.8 inches). There are 5 speakers, two tweeters, two 3″ mid-range drivers, and one 3.5″ woofer all driven by individual amplifiers. The woofer is a ducted port design and the rear port serves double duty as a carrying handle.

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TUAWSonos adds a portable music player with room filling sound originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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