For $147.72, audiophiles have another excuse to spend an exuberant amount of money on a “cryogenically-treated, gold-plated” doodad. And the vendor is 100% serious about their “audio grade” label, even going as far as trademarking the term.

But hey, it’s sooo worth it for the perfect sonic experience. Or so the product commenters will have you believe. Apparently “behind acoustic treatment, AC power is the second most under-invested aspect of home theater.” Well, I’ll be. You people will spend money on anything won’t you?

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If you’re a double amputee, congratulations, you get a free pass. No fetch playing for you. But if you’re a pet owner lucky enough to own two or even one functioning arm their is absolutely no reason to own this Dog Ball Fetch Machine unless you’re extremely lazy or if you want to offer your dog constant, albeit tedious, entertainment.

Long after you become tired, the fetching machine will keep your dog busy, catapulting tennis balls between 15 and 30 feet, based on an interval you set. As long as your dog knows how to dump the ball back into the machine, the fun can continue indefinitely, or at least until your dog collapses from exhaustion.

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If you’re still listening to cassette tapes, we might have some news for you. That music technology has been dead for like, a decade now. Hell, CDs aren’t even relevant anymore.

Let me be even more blunt. If cassettes are already being used as ironic business card designs, than I think it’s safe to say they are past their prime. But hey, if cassettes still float your boat, all the power to ya, brotha’. At least the price is right.

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The Egyptians built pyramids for a reason. Number one, the pharaohs forced them to at whip point. Two, they look fucking awesome. It seems the designer of this Pyramid HTPC casemod got his hands on a few Egyptian slaves. I wonder how much they go for these days.

Inspired by the pyramids featured in Stargate, the HTPC includes an Intel T7200 Core 2 Duo processor, Mini-Itx Crommel LV-677 motherboard, 2GB of DDR2 Ram and a 160GB hard drive, plus a Gforce 9400GT and LCD display. Pretty much enough to keep you entertained.

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I’m Mixmaster GEARhead and I’m here to say, I use the microSAMPLER ev-ery-day. Not really, but I would if I could afford it! Specifically designed for taking your show on the road, the microSampler is a compact and portable sampling keyboard. And it’s made by Korg, so it’s gotta be good.

Grab samples from an in-line, the built-in gooseneck mic or even through the included iPhone / iPod dock. Samples can be attached to every key on the keyboard with helpful LEDs illuminating to show the sample’s status. But compact goodness doesn’t come cheap. 500 buckaroos and this bad boy can accompany you to your nephew’s bar mitzvah or at whatever event you’re planning to perform.

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Who hasn’t fantasized about being a wizard? Harry Potter might have to constantly worry about the dark lord Voldemort leering over his shoulder, but my wizardly concerns are much more pedestrian, such as figuring out how to change the channel with my penis magic wand.

Thanks to the Kymera Magic Wand Universal Remote, there is no need to go to Hogwarts School of Wizardry, not even for a semester. Accelerometer technology allows this you to utilize 13 different gesture controls to navigate through your TV. The wands will ship on October 1st and you can grab your own for around $84.

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After years of building up their name in the recording industry, AKG released a slew of consumer headphones, ready for us in the States to dabble with. I’ve had the opportunity to play around with both the K 340 and K 450 models, both portable, though in-canal and foldable respectively. After a week or so of listening to these phones it became clear that AKG is just as serious about their consumer headphones as they are about their professional grade equipment.

K 340

The K 340 In-Canal phones ($115.95), right off the bat, first impression, sounded pretty treble-heavy. Every crack and pop of a sub par MP3 became a disturbance, a distraction from the current tune. But the more and more I listened, the high treble seemed to melt away as the device became broken in. During my final listen, the K 340  became an entirely different pair of phones, even becoming bass heavy at times, though typically, well-rounded.

To AKG’s supreme credit, what I didn’t notice might be more important than what I did notice. In-canal headphones are often uncomfortable to the point of inwearability. Right from the get go I almost forgot that I had buds in my ears at all. Not over-taxing on the eardrum like most bud style phones, the K 340’s felt natural, the only reminder of them being being the pristine sounds seemingly emanating from within my head, coursing from the center, out.

I’d recommend the K 340’s for both casual listening and athletic activity. The device’s excellent in-line volume slider makes volume control a breeze, and actually sort of fun. Perfect for biking or working out at the gym. Since they don’t block out every nuance of background noise, they are perfect for mountain biking, as you’ll always hear approaching bears and mountain lions.

K 450

The K 450 over the ear headphones ($189.95) succeeded in being both above-average and underwhelming at the same time, if that makes any sense. While every level from pretty low-lows to the screechy highs sounded decent, none of the levels sound spectacular.

The phones themselves are very comfortable with a generous application of padding. But the sound is the true winner here. Even if none of the levels particularly stand out the 450’s were extremely listenable, rivaling that of my current noise canceling over-the-ear Bose pair. And the design is certainly better than the Bose.

The 450’s 3D Axis folding mechanism is the star of the show. Most foldable headphones feel like they are about to crack under the slightest touch. Not the 450s, which feel rather durable and solid despite their very light, convenient and compact design. They’re the kind of phones you can through in a backpack and not really worry about them cracking in half, while still providing some decent sound.

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All in all, AKG has done a wonderful job with their newer consumer headphones. You can tell they have experience pleasing a tough crowd as their headphone’s offer a sweet mix between ultra-comfortable and clear sound. If you’re looking for a ultra-portable pair of phones, either one of these would do, though the K 340s are much better for the athlete, while the K 450s are sublime for just chilling out in front of the stereo.

The Arkham Asylum Batman video game is on its way to the market, but isn’t here quite yet. If the anticipation is too much to bare, and your Batman Robe just isn’t cutting it, here is a way to at least have some sort of contact with the game before its official release.

The Batman Arkham Asylum Poker Set, much like the Joker Poker Set was for The Dark Knight, is an awesome piece of advertising merch that is actually completely usable by the buyer. Complete with its own own metal carrying case, the set features two different decks of cards as well as Arkham-themed chips. The poker set will set you back around $200.

Link [via] (Thanks Roland!)

True audiophiles love everything about the art of music and the process of listening to it. They love to advertise their insane sound prowess, rather it be with snobby and ultra complex non sequiturs or t-shirts advertising their love for sound.

These Jack Plug Necklaces, available in 24-karat gold plating, would surely transmit some awesome audio, if they were made to do so. Instead, they are there just to show people how much you love the sound of a great song on a system which they could only dream of owning.

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Always more of a Star Wars guy than a Trekkie, I still couldn’t help but shit myself just a tad when I saw this awesome Star Trek Enterprise Record Player concept. Had no one really thought about this before? Was there not a similar creation already in existence? It seems so clear!

Inspired by the USS Enterprise starfleet from the Star Trek TV series and featured on the Star Trek Model Gallery, the Enterprise Record Player could be the ultimate in geeky vinyl gear. Would it be scandalous to listen to my Star Wars Dub record on here?

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