Speakers

2nd Event – While CES has a much wider array of Apple-centric products/solutions than this year's Macworld/iWorld, the event was still an opportunity for the fans to see what all of the iTalk was about and to renew old acquaintances.

If you spent a few days in SinCity for Macworld I (CES) to see the star-studded array of Apple-centric hardware, software, semi-ware; it sorta' took your breath away.

Then you go to San Francisco to see Macworld II to see a lot of the same only with a dramatically smaller venue.

At Macworld I, there were thousands of booths and hundreds of thousands of people jamming in booths, standing in cab lines and hoping for a dinner reservation.

At Macworld II, there were hundreds of booths, thousands of people checking out stuff with credit cards in hand, hailing cabs, eating at charming out-of-the-way restaurants.

The biggest news at the event wasn't the stuff on the floor but:

• Apple's blow-out results for the quarter in sales/profits
• Apple's huge cache of money (nearly $100B) sitting in offshore accounts
• Apple passing HP in PC sales
• The assertions that Apple didn't care about the working conditions for employees at their suppliers (fortunately, Cook subsequently and vehemently said wasn't true)

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LAS VEGAS (CES BOOTH #14200), Jan. 10, 2012 – Building on its heritage as an innovator in home audio entertainment, Sony today debuted its SS-AR2 Loudspeaker, furthering the line established last year with the introduction of its award winning and critically acclaimed predecessor, the SS-AR1.

"Sony has been committed to high resolution music since its inception," noted Charles Speidel, vice president of Sony Electronics Home Audio Video business, "The R-series of loudspeakers are designed to recreate music as faithfully as possible, delivering an unparalleled listening experience for those devotees who truly care about music."

Signature sound starts with source materials

The key to the R-series’ superb sound reproduction is the precise control of the inevitable vibrations created by sound waves. Created through exhaustive processes testing countless samples and configurations, the AR1 and AR2 loudspeakers feature a final front cabinet baffle laminated to a thickness of 50 mm and 40 mm respectively from hand-selected maple cultivated from Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, whose cold climate produces maple of a tight grain, contributing markedly to the R’s beautiful sound. The front baffle couples with Nordic birch, another cold climate wood with an extremely tight grain, to project the most ideal sound reverberation properties.Read more

January 2012 — At CES 2012, HARMAN's JBL Synthesis announced the introduction of its S4700 loudspeaker, a three-way floorstanding model that combines a host of newly developed, professional-grade driver technologies with an elegant appearance that combines classic JBL design elements with distinctive contemporary styling.

The S4700 incorporates technologies directly derived from the world-renowned Project Everest DD66000 and Project K2 S9900 loudspeakers to deliver extraordinary fidelity and musical realism. It is ideal for use as the foundation of an ultimate-performance stereo music system or as an L,C,R loudspeaker in a JBL Synthesis® multichannel home theater installation.

"Our new S4700 continues the JBL heritage of delivering the essence of the musical performance with exceptional dynamic authority, along with a natural tonal balance and clarity and spatial definition that conveys every sonic nuance of the original recording," said Jim Garrett, Senior Manager, Marketing HARMAN Luxury Audio Group. "We designed the JBL S4700 to satisfy the most passionate audiophiles, music lovers and home cinema enthusiasts."Read more

January 9, 2012 – HARMAN's Revel today announced the introduction of its Performa3 loudspeakers, a complete range of home theater and music loudspeakers that incorporates significant engineering enhancements to the original Performa Series to deliver extraordinary music and movie soundtrack reproduction.

Complementing their audiophile-caliber performance, Revel Performa3 loudspeakers are stunning in appearance, with a choice of high-gloss real wood and automotive-grade painted finishes.

The 10 models in the Performa3 line include the following:

• F308 3-way floorstanding tower (1-inch tweeter, 5.25-inch midrange, three 8-inch woofers; SRP: $6,000/pr)
• F208 3-way floorstanding tower (1-inch tweeter, 5.25-inch midrange, dual 8-inch woofers; SRP: 4,500/pr)
• F206 3-way floorstanding tower (1-inch tweeter, 5.25-inch midrange, dual 6.5-inch woofers; SRP: 3,000/pr)
• M106 2-way bookshelf monitor (1-inch tweeter, 6.5-inch woofer; SRP: $1,700/pr)
• M105 2-way bookshelf monitor (1-inch tweeter, 5.25-inch woofer; SRP: $1,200/pr)
• C208 3-way center channel (1-inch tweeter, 4-inch midrange, dual 8-inch woofers; SRP: $1,700/ea)
• C205 2-way center channel (1-inch tweeter, dual 5.25-inch woofers; SRP: $1,000/ea)
• S206 2-way surround speaker (dual 1-inch tweeters, dual 6.5-inch woofers; SRP: 1,800/pr)
• B112 powered subwoofer (12-inch woofer, built-in 1000-watt amplifier; SRP: $2,500/ea)
• B110 powered subwoofer (10-inch woofer, built-in 500-watt amplifier; SRP: $1,700/ea)

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by Steve Guttenberg

American speaker manufacturer Magnepan has just launched a program to reach potential customers who would like to test out their speakers, but don't live near enough to a store to hear them in person.

The program, "Maggie Dealer-Direct," relies on dealer expertise to advise customers, but Magnepan ships directly to the customer for a 30-day home trial (in the U.S. only). You might say Magnepan will be acting as the dealer's shipping department.

Some might wonder why Magnepan doesn't just eliminate the dealers and sell speakers factory direct, but they value the depth of knowledge dealers bring to the buying experience. High-end audio, when it's at its best, is all about getting the details right, and dealer know how can be a huge asset for helping customers achieve optimum sound quality. As a manufacturer Magnepan doesn't have the time to provide that level of customer service. Read more