audio cubes

A great place to shop for headphones

AC Gears sells a wide variety of headphones and gadgets in Greenwich Village in NYC. It's not a huge space, but half of the store is devoted to in-ear and full-size headphones, and I recently spoke with founder Kohn Liu to learn more about his business. The brands and model lineup change from time to time, but right now he has around 50 headphones on display. Many are in the affordable range, but there's also a decent selection of high-end brands as well. AC Gears has most Grado models on display, including the top-of-the-line PS 1000. They also … Read more

Take a load off on an MP3 ottoman

After seeing so many chairs and sofas that play music, we didn't think that there were many other ways to pipe MP3s through upholstered furniture in the living room. Then we saw it: the musical ottoman.

Actually, it's called the "Audio Cube," according to Chip Chick. Just slip your MP3 player in a pouch on the side, plug it in, and kick back--literally. Our only quibble is the choice of upholstery, which, other than black, isn't exactly understated (French pink, polka dots, etc.). Hardly the kind of patterns one would find in "Salon du Emo.&… Read more