Grain Audio. Solid Walnut Wood Meets Technology For Sound Design.

Two ex-Altec Lansing guys, an architect/furniture designer and a liquor industry operational expert combined their tastes and talents to launch Grain Audio. A company that creates beautifully executed audio products, each with has an integral wooden component to it. Solid, not veneered, the design has a positive impact on sound quality and unique grain structure, turning each piece of equipment into a one-of-a-kind design object.



With four different products in their collection thus far, they have successfully created substantial products that look as good as they sound.

The Packable Wireless System (PWS):


The Packable Wireless System from Grain Audio sets itself apart from the competition in both sound and design. The FSC certified walnut enclosure, combined with Waves MaxxAudio suite ensures studio quality sound out of a super portable speaker. Eight hours of battery life allows you to rock without having to worry about charging.



Technical Specs:
• WxDxH- 7" x 2 3/8" x 3 1/8" (180mm x 60mm x 80mm)
• AAC Support
• BT 3.0+A2DP with APT-X technology
• Grammy Award Winning MAXXAUDIO sound processing
• 2 x 2” proprietary loudspeakers
• Proprietary passive radiator
• Rechargeable LioN battery with 8 hours playtime
• Patent pending thru-bolted, braced panel construction
• 1 5V AC adapter (included)
• 1 36” USB cable (included)
• 1 60” 3.5MM cable (included)
• 1 carry pouch (included)

Price: $249 USD

The Over Ear Headphones:


Each pair of OEHP's feature grain matched, FSC certified solid walnut enclosures that is paired with their proprietary driver which features a Neodymium magnet and a CCAW voice coil. This means no fake bass boost, no weird mid-range, just pure, natural sound.

The OEHP was designed to highlight the natural beauty of its solid wood earcups. The inline mic is streamlined and intuitive to use. There are no unnecessary flourishes or extraneous details.



Technical features:
• Ear cups made of FSC Certified Walnut with hand-applied oil finish
• 2x40mm proprietary loudspeakers featuring Neodymium magnets and a CCAW voice coil
• Inline mic and remote
• TPE jacketed cable
• 3.5mm jack and ¼” adapter

Price: $199 USD

In Ear Headphones:


Each pair of IEHP's feature solid wood, grain matched enclosures that are fitted with their proprietary driver that features a Neodymium magnet and a CCAW voice coil. The silicone strain relief protects the wood housing and is comfortable on the ear and to the touch. The inline mic is simple and intuitive to use. There are no unnecessary flourishes or extraneous details.



Technical Features:
• Housings constructed of FSC Certified Walnut with hand-applied oil finish
• 2x8mm proprietary loudspeakers featuring Neodymium magnets and a CCAW voice coil
• Inline mic and remote
• TPE jacketed cable
• 3.5mm jack

Price: $99 USD

Passive Bookshelf System (PBS):


From the sound board to the speaker, this Bluetooth (TM) wireless speaker leverages the Grammy Winning Waves MaxxAudio® suite found in many famous mixing boards in the PWS to deliver the music as it was intended to sound. No games or artificial enhancements, just the sweet sounds as they were meant to be heard. We also include both Apt-X and AAC to ensure the highest quality audio standards.



Technical Features:
• Set of 2 Speakers included in package
• WxDxH - 12" x 8 1/8" x 7 1/2" (305mm x 205mm x 190 mm)
• 100watts RMS power handling
• 5.25” midbass woofer featuring Neodymium magnets and CCAW voice coils
• Bass reflex enclosure
• Rubber feet for table top mounting
• Mounting holes for wall mount

Price: $649 USD

Video:


They strive to be as environmentally friendly as possible, using recycled and sustainable materials wherever they can while offsetting where they cannot. They will also contribute a percentage of each sale to music and community related charities to help ensure future generations carry on our passion for music.

The folks behind Grain Audio:

Mitch Wenger, Marketing
Mitch has worked for a number of years in the audio industry as well as high-level engagements with major global brands for both digital marketing and ecommerce. More importantly, he spent most of his youth in concert halls and at music festivals around the country and now dances with his wife and kids whenever he can.

David Burke, Acoustics
An Audio Engineer with over 10 years of experience and ears of gold. When not tuning systems and creating audio nirvana, he's brewing something in the shop to keep us on our toes.

Chris Weir, Design
You name it, Chris has designed it. Trained in architecture and furniture design Chris brings a unique eye to the speaker world and enables us to do something unlike that which has ever been seen. Plus, he loves Iron Maiden, so there's that.

Kevin, Operations
Secret weapon. Kevin worked for several wine, beer and spirits companies in a major operational capacity. So if you're wondering why he's the secret weapon, you should come visit our offices, happy hour starts early.

Eric Wenger, Business Operations and IT
EWang as he's affectionately known is the glue that keeps it all together here at Grain. In addition to handling our business operations, he's also a top-notch web and IT guy. Plus, if you need a recommendation on a Widespread Panic show to listen to, or bar to go to in New Orleans, he's your man.



grainaudio.com

The Timbre Speaker by Casey Lin

21 year old Casey Lin is working on her Bachelor of Design Innovation at the Victoria University of Wellington. With a Bachelor of Architectural Studies already under her belt, the New Zealand based Chinese designer is primarily focused on product design, with a special interest in furniture, jewellery, lighting and household electronics. One of her most recent projects is the Timbre Speaker, an unusual design I wanted to share with you.




Timbre Speaker trims the essence of a speaker down to the very bare minimum, allowing the inherent qualities of the materials to become the centerpiece of the design. All superfluous detail is stripped away, leaving only the necessary audio and power ports at the rear, and combined power and volume dial.



Wood and glass were selected for their favourable acoustic qualities which enhances the audio experience of the user. The Black American Walnut wood adds a warmth to the tone, while the addition of the glass vessels bring a more reverberant characteristic to the music.




Surface transducers are mounted on the interior of the wooden box, vibrating the surface and turning the box into a speaker. The glass vessels act as physical equalizers, where the vibrations transfer through the wood into the glass and changes the timbre of the sound. The wooden box can act as a standalone speaker, or alternatively, vessels of other material, size or shape can be placed on the speaker to change the sound according to the users taste.



Timbre Speaker has an elegant, yet playful feel to it, users are encouraged to experiment with different objects and placements to find the timbre they enjoy the most.


above: Designer Casey Lin
all images, video and description courtesy of Casey Lin.

designby-cl.com

Beck's Beer Unveils Their 2013 Limited Edition Art Labeled Bottles

After the runaway success of last yearʼs Beckʼs Art Labels project, Beckʼs Beer is upping the tempo even more by bringing together six of todayʼs most exciting artists, each tasked with giving their individual spin on the iconic Beckʼs bottle. Selected by Beckʼs, each artist was chosen on account of their groundbreaking, multi-disciplinary approach to art and music.



Beck’s Beer commissioned Heist for the second year running to create a short film for their 2013 Art Label series featuring the work of William Hundley, TM Sisters, The Date Farmers, Marc Ecko, Willis Earl Beal, and Kid Cudi (more about each artist at the end of the post).



The film takes you on a journey with the six artists, chronicling their creative process and the inspiration that led them to their final art labels, to be printed on 13.2 million bottles worldwide. In addition to producing the film, Heist shot the editorial photography for the 2013 Beck’s Art Label advertising campaign with each artist and their limited edition art label.



Heist collaborated with the featured artists to create one film telling the story of the project. This cinematic documentary explores the inspiration behind their selected artworks and captures elements of their creative practice in breathtaking 5K cinematography. Heist traveled to the sun bleached desert of the Coachella Valley, the expansive pastures of the Texas countryside, the warm waters of Miami Beach, and filmed in our own backyard in New York City to capture the 2013 lineup at work.



From William Hundleyʼs Umberto, a dynamic label that invokes a sense of wonder through a futurist photograph, to Willis Earl Bealʼs black and white sketch Nobody Knows, epitomizing his ethos of “Weʼre each nothing. Weʼre all everything”, Beckʼs gives artists an extraordinary canvas to broadcast their creative vision

Date Farmers:

Kid Cudi:

Marc Ecko:

TM Sisters:

Wiliam Earl Beal:

William Hundley:


To give you an insiderʼs look into each artistʼs journey, Beckʼs chronicled their creative process and the inspiration that led them to their final Art Label design. Watch the reveal of Beckʼs Art Labels 2013 with Kid Cudi, Marc Eckō, Willis Earl Beal, The Date Farmers, TM Sisters, and William Hundley.

MARC ECKō:

WILLIS EARL BEAL:

THE DATE FARMERS:

TM SISTERS:

WILLIAM HUNDLEY:


About the Artists

•Kid Cudi is a Grammy-Award winning, gold-selling musician and actor. Cudi is a leader of the urban alternative movement. His hit single “Day ‘n’ Nite” laid the groundwork for his major album debut.

•Marc Eckō is an American fashion designer, entrepreneur and artist who believes creativity is more about the journey than the destination. His art label features a photograph of an original sculpture that illustrates his process: Unlock, un-label.

•Willis Earl Beal is a musician, songwriter and visual artist who has lived a colorful life, filled with outsider art and a demand to be heard. His art label embodies his music: Understanding how an individual doesn’t represent the whole.

•TM Sisters are a Miami sibling duo who works in digital video performance, collages, VJing, fashion pieces and video games. Their techno, topical aesthetic shines through in an art label that depicts an epic pose of a flying woman shooting beams from her hands.

•William Hundley is an emerging photographer and artist with an original style that captures surreal imagery through simple means. His art label features a dynamic photo that invokes a sense of wonder and encourages questions.

•Date Farmers are an artist team that echoes Mexican-American heritage rooted in California pop culture. Their paintings, collages and sculptures – often featuring the dog – highlight duty and responsibility, keeping as close as they can to the truth.

Dedicated to supporting the best artistic talent, Beckʼs will showcase their artworks on 13.2 million labels, creating the worldʼs largest stage for artists. The bottles will be available at various liquor retailers.

images, info and videos courtesy of Protein, Becks and Heist.

Get Amped, The Marshall Fridge Is Here. And Yep, It Goes To Eleven.

Here's a fridge music lovers can get amped about. Made to look like an authentic Marshall Amp, this rockin' mini refrigerator uses actual Marshall Amp parts including logos, fret cloth, and a brass-finished faceplate. It has a freezer, brass rivets, white piping, bears Jim Marshall's signature and control knobs that actually go up to 11 (If you don't know that reference, shame on you!)


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Even the box is cool:


Specs:



$399, two year warranty
Buy it here

One Step Beyond Beer. Gladness Lager-like Ale From Madness.

The beer from bands trend continues with a new brew from the chart-topping Ska band Madness. The beer, described as "A lager that's an ale" was brewed in conjunction with Growler Brewery (formerly Nethergate) in Essex.



Gladness is 4.2% alcohol and a combination between an ale and a lager- or as the band's publicity calls is “A lager that’s an ale – that’s totally mad.” It is brewed using local Maris Otter malt, a traditional ale variety, and Tettnang and Saaz hops, which are usually associated with European-style lagers. The blonde beer is said to be highly refreshing with a lovely subtle hop flavour and aroma, reminiscent of a pilsner.



above: Paul Gower, left, head brewer at Nethergate's Growler Brewery, Madness frontman Suggs, center, and keyboard player Mike 'Monsieur Barso' Barson celebrate the launch of the band's official beer, Gladness

Named after a line in their well-known song "Madness", the beverage will be stocked at 800 venues, owned by Nicholson's Pubs, across the U.K. for the next three months.

Buy Madness Music