After my post earlier this week about transmitting Mac audio, readers contacted me about extending this solution. Although they liked the idea of direct audio while working out on a treadmill or exercise bike, several stated that they also wanted to watch from the sofa once the spouse or the kid go to sleep. The idea was the same: audio transmission to an iPhone or iPod touch. The source was different. They wanted to watch live cable TV or their TiVo. And for the punchline, their media center Mac lacks a tuner. Was there a similar quiet Mac-based solution that would let them transmit the TV audio from these non-Mac sources?

If your Mac has a microphone jack, internal or even through an external USB solution, the answer is yes. You can easily connect your TV audio to your Mac just like you would connect it to a pair of speakers. Run a cable between a spare audio output (modern TVs usually offer more than one, if not, you can use a splitter) to the microphone jack on the Macintosh. On my low-end TV, this means an RCA stereo cable that feeds to a standard stereo minijack plug.

Setting up the Mac host is simple. Instead of feeding audio via Soundflower, as described in the earlier post, choose your microphone audio input in the Skype settings. Start a call to your iPhone or iPod touch, switch the TV source (usually via a "Source" button that picks which signal to watch, such as Composite 1, Component 2, etc.) to your normal cable or TiVo input. Set the external speaker volume to zero. The signal arrives at the Mac microphone independently of those speakers.

You may find that the audio out signal tends to be on the low side. Many TV speakers provide their own amplification. If this is a problem for you, you can hook in an inline amplifier. (I use an old Radio Shack 277-1008C.) Alternatively, you can boost the audio via a third party program like Rogue Amoeba's Audio Hijack Pro.

This solution takes a few more cables, components, and connections than the Mac Audio-to-iPhone through Skype set-up discussed in the earlier post. But if you have the cables on-hand already, it offers an inexpensive solution compared to many other wireless TV headsets on the market right now.

I happened to catch this interesting hack on core77 and tried it for myself. You take four business cards, cut them up to interlock, leaving enough space for your earbuds to nestle inside, pop it open a bit and voila -- instant speaker cones for the tiny music makers. My MacBook Pro's headphone port recently became stuck in the line-out mode (the Cylon light is glowing and yes, I've tried to slide the little switch), and until I can get it to a shop I'm using these as my "speakers." Obviously the primary use would be for iPods, or anything without a built-in speaker.

Does it work? Hey, it's better than nothing. But don't expect to hear much if the noise in your area is anything north of murmur. The decibel boost is negligible, and the amplification is somewhat directional. It works well if you have an ample belly to rest the speakers upon when lying on the couch, as I do. A neat exercise in creative thought, all the same. If anyone can figure out the exact pattern the designer used, post a link in the comments.

I snapped some pics of me trying to replicate the design. I wound up altering it a bit, although my final speaker cone locks the headphones in quite firmly and can stand up in a variety of ways. It is narrower than the original, which doesn't help amplification. Check the gallery for details. Oh, and be sure to check out the neat iPhone earbud winder made from paper.

Plenty of folks are probably getting iPhone gift cards this season, and for anyone who wants to make their iPhone the hit of the party (later, once you've actually purchased and activated the thing) here's a lineup for you: some speakers (which fit just about every iPod ever made plus the iPhone), a stylus to keep grubby fingers of your precious, and a case.

I tested the JBL speakers and the stylus. The JBL speakers provide an astonishing amount of sound in such a small package. We turned it up as far as felt safe, and the kids had their fingers in their ears. Plus, at either loud or soft volume the audio was always very clear, not muddled with bass or too tinny on the high end (this was from the iPhone with no EQ).

The Pogo stylus does what it says: provides a poking stick for the iPhone's surface that works. It's a stick, and it pokes -- that's about as good a recommendation as you'll get from a stylus. The thing was just a short piece of aluminum too, so there's no heft at all. If you're used to a Mont Blanc in your hand you may be disappointed, I guess.

Thanks to Dr. Bott for the JBL On Stage 200iD Speakers, iSkin Revo2 iPhone 3G case (in red and black) and a Pogo iPhone stylus.

• Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
• To enter leave a comment telling us what music you would play on some really loud speakers.
• The comment must be left before December 31, 11:59PM Eastern Time.
• You may enter only once.
• One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
• Prize: JBL On Stage 200iD Speakers ($149.95), iSkin Revo2 iPhone 3G case ($39.99), Pogo iPhone stylus ($19.95)
• Click Here for complete Official Rules.

When we first wrote about the promising Livespeakr, the creator was still looking for a manufacturing partner. According to the Livespeakr website, pre-orders for the ultra-portable speaker system are now being accepted.

Just to refresh our memories, the Livespeaker is a speaker cradle that holds the iPhone/iPod. The speakers are protected against RF (radio frequency) noise, so you can enjoy pristine audio without the cell signal getting in the way. The speakers will expand, rotate, and contract to fit movie/Cover Flow viewing angles, and will fit in your pocket. The speakers are powered by rechargeable batteries, or AC adapter.

You can find more information about the speakers on the Livespeakr website. On the store page, you can pre-order the speakers for $99.99US in either black or white. The price is discounted by $30US for the first 2,000 orders. Pricing will return to $129.99US after the 2,000 orders have been placed. Availability is expected around January 26, 2009.

I love the iPhone, save for one thing. It sits on my desk every night, right near my computer, and the speakers I've got hooked up to it. And every 15 minutes, when the iPhone checks email for me, I get that buzzing -- the sound of radio interference flying across my speaker wires. And almost every night, I have to jump out of bed angrily just to shut off the speakers and stop the buzzing. Little did I know, all I've ever needed was an empty can of Red Bull.

Yes, someone has fashioned a "shield" out of an emptied and carved up Red Bull can, and supposedly it works like a charm -- just fashion it around the dock that came with the iPhone, use a little doublestick tape to make sure it stays on there (and I would maybe put some around the edges, too, so you don't slice your fingers open every time you pull the iPhone off the dock), and no more buzzing sound.

The maker does wonder if it would affect the actual signal of the iPhone at all, but it hasn't so far. If you've got a Red Bull can around to cut up and are driven as nuts as I am by that buzzing noise, here's your makeshift solution. The other option is to buy speakers that don't buzz, of course, but this seems a lot cheaper.

This is fun. iPod Building Block speakers from Perpetual Kid snap into your iPod's connector port and resemble a certain brand of construction blocks that we all know.

Available in five colors, the tiny speakers pull power from your iPod (they won't work with iPhones, unfortunately) and look cool doing it. Our only complaint is that there isn't a model designed to sit flush on an old-school iPod nano. Don't expect theatre-quality sound, of course, but they should spark some conversation. They're $24.95US each and shipping now.

They're certainly unique, but they don't quite crack our list of top five weird iPod accessories

1. The nano thong. It's what you think it is.
2. iBuzz. As far as we know, the first iPod-powered sex toy.
3. Combo iPod dock/toilet paper dispenser. Because someone's never heard of magazines.
4. iPod boxer shorts. At that point, just turn on the radio.
5. The KNG iPod DJ dock. I can't explain it in words; You have to look.

[Via Engadget]

This was going to happen eventually. Altec Lansing has produced the first fully iPhone-compatible speaker docking system. The descriptively named t612 features 60 Watts of power RMS (120 Watts Peak), and connects to your iPhone's dock port.

There are four speakers, enhanced bass, a wireless remote and, best of all, it's immune to that annoying GSM interference noise while the iPhone is docked and not in Airplane Mode.

All this convenience comes at a price -- $199.95US, to be exact. At the time of this posting, no shipping information was available.

It looks like sometime in April, for a mere €249 ($335), you can recharge your U2 special edition (or, if you like, standard) iPod in a color-coordinated dock with bendable speakers that watch every move you make.

I can't decide if the Dragon I iPod dock looks like a post-modernist flower arrangment or a deranged alien with color-coordinated eyestalks. None of my googling turned up any vendors actually selling this baby--presales or actual product. So if you see one of these in the wild, let us know.

Update: Nik Fletcher snapped pics of the dock at September's Apple Expo Paris and shares them here and here.

Did the Lifepop Stereo Pet Carrier really "steal the spotlight" at the Oscars? Unless you believe those wacky PR dudes (and who would?), probably not but it's a pretty cool iPod-compatible accessory. You can use it to carry around your pooch as he or she rocks out to your music, or whimpers in abject misery while listening to your Barry Manilow collection.

It's basically a soft padded bad with built-in speakers and a mini-plug you can hook into your iPod. There's a fully zippered ventilated top so Fido will be able to breathe while groovin'. You might want to put away a few bucks to pay the pet therapist if there's a serious mismatch between your musical tastes and your dog's.

Feeling like something's missing from the digital age of music, with our lists of albums and artists in iTunes and tiny deck-of-cards sized iPods that fit our entire music collections in our pockets? The I-Deck might just be the fusion of old and new school for you. The album art you see is actually a touch screen that allows you to browse your library, right down to flicking the screen to skip a song, and spinning it to fast-forward - all while giving your music's album art the face time (and space) it deserves.

We received tips of this at the cool hunter, but there aren't any details on this being an actual product for sale; they simply end their post with "contact us if you require designer's contact details", so we have no idea if the I-Deck will appear in Apple Stores and Targets near you.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in

The new iPod Hi-Fi looks really cool, but who has $350US sitting around doing nothing? Why now whip up your own solution from the parts you probably have sitting around your house right now?

That's what Phillip over at Make:Blog did. Buy hacking an iPod speaker unit together with an old pair of Apple Pro speakers, a modified iPod dock and a nano, he's made himself a working, though slightly unattractive, iPod speaker system. Nicely done. Here is a Flickr set for your viewing pleasure.

When I think of battery powered speakers for the iPod I usually picture a white plastic molded dock-type accessory, but apparently there is a market for cuddlier options. One such example is Brookstone's iPillow Portable MP3 Speakers (pictured here with a Creative MP3 player but compatible via mini jack with any MP3 player). This device takes six D batteries which probably means it can pump quite some volume in that huggable housing. Be careful not to use the iPillow in an iPillow fight because the mesh pocket doesn't offer much padding for that iPod of yours!

The iPillow is only available in silver (but frankly in the picture here it looks blue to me).

[via Popgadget] [*squishiness is not a real word]

A commenter known only as "David" on my post about the new MiniStore in iTunes noticed a great new feature that I'm surprised wasn't somehow worked into yesterday's keynote: multiple speaker streaming. iTunes can now stream music to multiple AirPort Expresses, and even keep playing the music on the originating computer.

Users have been clamoring for this ability since the day the AirPort Express hit store shelves, it finally shows up in a .0.2 iTunes update - and not a single peep about it? I guess not every new feature, option and button can claim a coveted keynote mention, but it's good to see you TUAW readers are on your toes when we're neck-deep in news ourselves.

If you thought those $600 speakers for your iPod were expensive, you ain't seen nothing yet. Hammacher Schlemmer has released the Studio-Quality Triode-Tube iPod Speakers at a mere $3999.95. No, that's not a typo, they want you to spend four thousand dollars on a speaker set for your iPod.

Okay, take a minute and breathe. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. Better?

Now, at least for the $4000 you get a nice device. From the product description:

"...the system consists of an aluminum-encased amplifier housing four powerful Class-A tubes which glow gently as they generate warm, low-octave sound that is virtually distortion-free, considered by audiophiles to be the most pleasing to the human ear. The tube amplifier smoothes over distortions found in modern digital recordings while helping to compensate and minimize the quality loss inherent in compressed audio such as MP3s."

So it's not like it's a $100 "antique" chair marked up to $5000 and being sold in some Upper East Side furniture store. There's some real tech involved.

If there's one thing I've learned living in NYC (and consulting for the rich and famous), it's that some people will buy anything if it's marked up high enough and perceived as a "luxury" item. I have to believe that this falls clearly in that category.

I am not an audiophile by any means. My iMac is hooked up to some JBL creature speakers which sound just fine to me. However, if you are an audiophile and a do it yourselfer (another group I do not count myself amongst) then has MacMod got the project for you!

With the help of some tools and some raw materials you can create your own HiFi computer speakers and be the envy of computer geeks the world around, or at least have an excuse to use use the word 'tweeter' more than is normally socially acceptable.