Altec Lansing is giving itself a face lift today, unveiling a fresh logo and some interesting new products. One of these is the new Expressionist BASS desktop speaker system, priced around $130.

The Expressionist BASS system is what is called the industry’s first 2.2 desktop speaker system. Altec Lansing deems it such because the speaker housings host dual down-firing, radiating subwoofers built into each base. These 4-inch long throw subwoofers radiate sound off hard surfaces and reflect audio in a 360-degree field. They are teamed as well with two 1½” (40mm) drivers for mid- and high- frequencies.

It’s still a concept, but the latest Sphere Sound System rocks it’s name. Obviously aliens are designing gadgets on this planet. The entire music system is round, not just the speakers. It is copletely and utterly spherical. Even those backwards tin hat wearing believers that the Earth is flat can not deny the roundness of this thing. Plus every piece is designed with maximum function in mind.

The subwoofer has the largest speaker and the speaker cone is flanked by two tri-channel speakers, which can be used as a 2.1 surround-sound system. The holes on the sides of the speakers are not ears, but allow deeper vibrating sounds out, which helps to generate ultra deep bass. Every sound is emphasized in the spheres. When using the unit, the main function buttons and the drive glow green. When it’s off, the power button glows red. The LCD screen also glows as the system plays music. Not only is it super functional, but just look at the decorative statement it makes.

One look and you can tell that this vehicle is all sound. It would probably drive down your street one early morning and break every window so that when you woke up, window replacement companies would be on the move and busy all week. That’s not what it was designed for however. It’s the creation of Dutch artist Olaf Mooij, who prefers his sound loud and on the outside of his car rather then inside.

The DJ Mobile is designed to be used as a mobile PA system. It houses two turn-tables and as you can see, a rear full of speakers. Find a party, park this monster, then operate it from a DJ platform while you stand through the sunroof. All I can say is, anything driving behind the DJ mobile best not tailgate as it could surely make you deaf.

Harmon-Kardon offers the latest in the speakers that look like ice trend. At last Superman has many speaker options to choose from, for his Fortress of Solitude. Wonder Woman is pretty happy too, because these match her invisible plane.

I like the angles on these. They look vaguely alien. Harmon Kardon unveiled the GLA-55 see-through speakers at IFA 2008. They offer a 100-watt bi-amplified digital amplifier coupled with DSP equalization along with proprietary tech like the Atlas AL drivers and woofers and a CMMD tweeter, plus optimization for digital sound. They sport touch sensitive controls and they do stand out. They should be available in autumn 2008 worldwide. No word on pricing.

You want outdoors audio to compliment your peaceful garden but you don’t want something pumping out sound which looks like your dad’s subwoofer. Polk Audio thinks it has an answer to your prayers with its new Atrium outdoor speaker system, consisting of the Atrium Sat 30 satellite speaker and Atrium Sub 10 subwoofer, priced at around $180 and $330, respectively.

The Atrium Sat 30, according to Polk, looks like an outdoor light fixture in shape and style. It can be mounted in a variety of spaces, looking like it was made to fit into your garden. The Sat 10 subwoofer, meanwhile, resembles something like that of a plant stand or pedestal table. Both reportedly “are constructed from sealed, weatherproof designs,” meaning you should be able to enjoy them even in the pouring rain.

This simple and rugged speaker known as the Hive Audio System looks like it’s popping out of the ground and doing a bad Darth Vader impersonation. The Hive was specially designed for outdoor environments and comes with a sound tube that prevents the elements from damaging its precious innards, while amplifying sound.

The base gives it added stability, and since it’s wireless, the speaker can be linked to other units to form a “hive”. You know, these guys pride themselves on being the Borg of sound. Cool as the idea is, it’s just a concept. No word on when it may become something more.

Speakers that look like ice aren’t just for the desktop in Superman’s Fortress Of Solitude somewhere in the arctic. They’ll look good on your desk too. And they are extremely portable and said to be the smallest performance stereo USB speakers you can get for your desktop and notebook.

They only have a 1 watt per channel rating, but hey, they’ll look good on your desk. Like icy bling. They’ll probably make you feel cool on a hot day just looking at them. They’re powered via USB, and acoustically engineered to direct sound waves towards an adjacent chamber for $39.99.

You don’t want to leave this bike sitting unattended on the sidewalk. Anyway, it’s not like you can secure this thing with a standard lock chain. You’d need a lot of chain. Clearly, this bike was built by a man who loves sound and wants to pedal down the street like the ultimate speaker pimp, tipping his hat at people, acting like the booming bass doesn’t phase him, while his leg muscles burn from moving these mammoth speakers. Ain’t nothin but a G thing yo. G as in geek. Word.

See, a group of Trinidadian teenagers in Queens are customizing their BMX bikes. They all have one of these speaker bikes. I would imagine that it’s great exercise. Nicholas Randall and Joe Stevens made a movie about it it called Made In Queens. Check it out below.

Elecom has some new wooden speakers that are fairly clean looking and cheap. Which I guess is appropriate, since they look like everyone’s cheap prefab entertainment centers etc. They Measure 80mm × 110mm × 130mm and weigh just 1.15Kgs. The new MS-130 amplifier speakers also have an output of 3 W × 2ch with a frequency of 20 Hz to 20kHz. Some other features are a stereo mini input, microphone input and output for headphones. The Elecom MS-130 should be available in Japan later this month for the price of $45.

If Donkey Kong were created today instead of hundreds of years ago, this is what Donkey Kong would throw at Mario. Since it’s a speaker, the Donkey Kong theme music could play right from the barrel as Mario jumps over it. But never mind the weird connections that my brain associates with certain gadgets.

This beer barrel thing is a portable speaker for your phone or laptop. For some reason. Very portable and a great accessory to bring with you when you travel, since it will fit in your suitcase easily. You can get it for $14.00 from Brando. If any Princess-napping apes are reading this, buy these and throw them at Mario. Because I’d really like to see that.

Summer will be over before you know it, so enjoy your pool by cranking out the tunes in these Tikitoonz Tiki speakers. They’ll add a touch of tropical paradise to your pool area, while sitting sternly in judgment over all.

They’re based on Polynesian carvings and feature 80 watts per channel and they’re also weather-resistant. Just do not anger the Tiki Gods. Remember what happened to the Brady Bunch in Hawaii. This pair of speakers will cost you $149.95, but you’ll be partying in style and rocking the Luau as you listen to Tiny Bubbles for the millionth time.

Boston Acoustics recently unveiled its new Vista flagship line of loudspeakers. Four models make up the mix, ranging in price from around $400 upwards to $1,700.

Introduced in this new line up are a floorstanding loudspeaker, center channel, bookshelf and subwoofer. All look to be well made, feature laden products which should be fully available by the end of the summer. You can get full details after the jump.

Trying to romance your lady? Forget about roses and wine. She already knows you’re a geek so use some gadgets while you romance her.

It’s a tough call as to whether or not she will find these wine shaped usb speakers romantic or not. Who knows how a woman thinks. But just imagine a candle light dinner with this pair of wine glass speakers on the table and some soft music. They feature 2.1 channel subwoofers and who knows you might get lucky. Just be careful that you don’t pour wine in them. $21.99.

Creative has contributed two different types of products - speakers and headphones -to Dell’s “Designed for Dell” program to match accessories from select manufacturers with Dell computers. These two products are the Inspire T10 speakers and EP-610 headphones, priced at around $40 and $24, respectively.

The Inspire T10 speakers are available in a variety of colors to pair with Dell computers. Key features on these include individual tweeters, bass enhancement, magnetic shielding and separate controls for volume and bass. A headphone connection is included as well.

Jamo recently released a slightly cheaper (we assume) version of a flagship tower speaker. This particular model is called the R 907.

Jamo is a brand of Klipsch and concentrates on mostly making speakers. This particular speaker features dipolar engineering and electrodynamic speakers to deliver what is described as “the impression of a larger room.” In this environment the audio comes out from both sides of the speaker.