We knew that Cisco would be invading the home audio space in ‘09, but we didn’t know it’d be so quickly (and under the Linksys name). Here at CES, the outfit has unveiled the admittedly complex Wireless Home Audio system, which utilizes Ethernet / 802.11n / DLNA in order to stream audio over multiple zones throughout the home. The kit is actually comprised of some very specific components, so let’s not waste any time, eh? There’s the Conductor DMC350 Wireless-N Digital Music Center, Director DMC250 Wireless-N Music Player with Integrated Amplifier, Player DMP100 Wireless-N Music Extender, Stereo Speaker Kit DSPK50, DMWR1000 Wireless-N Touchscreen Remote, iPod docking station and the DMRIR500 IR Remote. For details on the specific kits, which should go on sale this quarter for $300 and way up, give the read link a peek.

Filed under: CES, Home Entertainment, Wireless

Linksys by Cisco Wireless Home Audio system unveiled originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

Not content with just 160GB in the NV-M3 music server? Never fear, as NuVo Technologies has a capacious new version that packs a full half-terabyte of space and an even more astounding price tag. The June-bound NV-M3-500 handles WAV, WMA and those ghastly compressed MP3 files, and its ability to sync to a home computer means that it won’t take issue with playing back DRM-laden tracks, either. On the unit itself, you’ll find a polycarbonate, capacitive touch front panel interface with an OLED display and a smattering of ports ’round back, but we still can’t understand how NuVo landed on $2,999 as a suitable price for this thing. Nevertheless, the full release is posted after the jump for those interested.

Continue reading NuVo Technologies takes NV-M3 music server to 500GB

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

Being that music lovers everywhere are scrambling to find bona fide replacements to their suddenly antiquated compact disc players, it follows logic for Olive Media to give us one more option besides the OPUS Nº5. The OPUS Nº4 is a high-end digital music server which features between 320GB and 1TB of internal storage space, an integrated CD burner, 4.3-inch 480 x 272 touchscreen, gigabit Ethernet / 802.11g WiFi, a USB 2.0 port, a slew of audio outputs and native support for WAV, FLAC and MP3 files. As for the iPod-friendly MELODY Nº2 companion, it enables various rooms of the home to access tunes stored on the OPUS Nº4 as well as songs on any networked Mac, PC or NAS drive. If you couldn’t guess, both units are aimed squarely at the affluent sect, which probably explains the $1,499 to $1,799 (OPUS Nº4) / $599 (MELODY Nº2) price tags. Check the gallery on Engadget HD.

[Via Macworld]

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

High-end speaker manufacturer Thiel is showing off THIELnet, its new IP-based audio distribution system developed in conjunction with Bicom. It’s a system indeed, with multiple parts to mix and match: the distribution processor (dB1), speakers (SCS4D) and subwoofer (SSD1) are all IP-addressable, there’s an IP adapter (dS1) for bringing third party speakers to the, um party and there’s PC-based software (Streamer) to tie into your library. Maximum capacity for the setup is eight zones, each with eight speakers, and synchronization is done between zones to get rid of nasty echo effects. Good stuff, but we think what really sets this approach apart is that Thiel has kept everything digital right up to the speaker cones; each speaker has its own digital crossover and 250-watt amplifier. The outfit expects to be spreading this IP / crossover / amplifier module across its lineup, but it’s kicking things off with the SCS4D. Pricing is still unannounced, but expect a high-end style ticket befitting the Thiel sound quality and name.

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