New Signal Process introduces BreakOut Stereo and Stomp for the most serious of iOS musicians

If your iPad or iPhone is set to play a starring role at your next, sold-out concert, you may want to check out two new, iOS-friendly interfaces from New Signal Process. Pictured above is NSP's BreakOut Stomp -- a die cast aluminum-encased pedal that promises to transmit guitar signals to and from your iDevice, without any unwanted distortions or detection interference. All you have to do is slide the stompbox into your pedal board, hook it up to your iPhone's headphone jack and fire up your favorite recording or mixing apps. Whereas the stomp was designed with guitarists in mind, the recently unveiled BreakOut Stereo is geared more toward the DJ demographic. The device offers essentially the same iOS-interfacing capabilities of its pedal-based counterpart, serving as a portable conduit between an iPad and an amp or tabletop unit. Boasting two mono output jacks, this little guy can also be used with guitars, mics or mixing boards and is durable enough to survive the rough and tumble of your next world tour. As far as prices go, the BreakOut Stomp is selling for $155, whereas the Stereo will set you back $135. Groove past the break to see an image of the latter, or hit the source link to find out how to order one.

Cool Hunting

New Signal Process

MF Doom Sneaker Speakers are perfect for the supervillain rapper who has everything (video)

Back in March, Nash Money showed off a pair of Nike Air Force 1s that he had turned into desktop speakers -- pretty rad, but hardly flashy enough for a supervillain / rapper. The professional sneaker customizer has significantly stepped up his game after being commissioned by Sneaker Freaker Magazine, creating two pairs of speakers from some giant suede Pumas. Nash consulted MF Doom for the project, and the masked emcee offered up suggestions like "sci-fi and laser guns," "modern architecture and geometry," and "mad exclamation marks." The finished Sneaker Speaker Doomsday Edition (how timely is that?) Models have mic inputs and red, green, and blue lights with eight effects, like speed control and a dim function. They've got plenty of power and can can only be fired up by someone with the key -- in this case Doom and the magazine, both of whom walked away with a pair. That is, as much as someone with high-end speaker components in their shoes can walk away with anything. Click the source link for more pics or check a "making of" video after the break.

Sneaker Freaker Magazine

UCube speakers run off USB, are coming to an Amtrak quiet car near you

You can use these USB-powered UltraLink UCube speakers on a bus, on the beach, or on the table at your favorite McDonald's, but please -- for the love of god -- don't. Remember: with great convenience comes great responsibility, and if these speakers are as impressive as the dramatic marketing video below implies, disruption of the peace is about to know no bounds. At $150 per pair, these sleek sound machines aren't cheap, but each speaker is able to pump out 15 watts of peak power -- you won't be filling a large room with crisp, distortion-free sound, but they're probably loud enough to play your tunes or flicks for a group of friends, or to annoy strangers in a park. UltraLink claims that the speakers use DSP-controlled power supplies to "store energy during quiet passages," allowing the 3.25 inch cubes to reach their 15 watt peak output with 170-degree listening angles. We haven't had a chance to go hands on, but if these speakers sound half as good as they look, we may have a better solution for playing music in the CES trailer next year.

UFi

Asius' ADEL earbud balloon promises to take some pressure off your poor eardrums

Listener fatigue: it's a condition that affects just about everyone who owns a pair of earbuds and one that myriad manufacturers have tried to mitigate with various configurations. According to researchers at Asius Technologies, though, the discomfort you experience after extended periods of earphone listening isn't caused by faulty design or excessively high volumes, but by "acoustic reflex." Every time you blast music through earbuds, your ear muscles strain to reduce sound waves by about 50 decibels, encouraging many audiophiles to crank up the volume to even higher, eardrum-rattling levels. To counteract this, Asius has developed something known as the Ambrose Diaphonic Ear Lens (ADEL) -- an inflatable polymer balloon that attaches to the ends of earbuds. According to Asius' Samuel Gido, the inflated ADEL effectively acts as a "second eardrum," absorbing sound and redirecting it away from the ear's most sensitive regions. No word yet on when ADEL may be available for commercial use, but head past the break for a video explanation of the technology, along with the full presser.

Gizmag