Skip to main content

From punk to polished, Bruns Acoustics’ new Timbre speakers are gorgeous

By Ryan Waniata May 12, 2014 12:00 PM

There’s an ocean of wireless speakers out there, with a myriad of design choices sufficient enough to make your head spin. But if you’re looking for something a little different in both style and performance, you’ll want to take a good look at a gorgeous new speaker from the folks down under at Bruns Acoustics, called the Timbre.

Built from timber salvaged in the Australian wild, the Timbre couples modern convenience and old school design for a distinctive new take on the wireless genre. Each of the Timbre Classic speakers are hand-carved from a grain-matched piece of lumber, fixed with billet machined alloy fittings and stainless steel hardware, and topped with a hand-dyed strip of Australian leather.

Recommended Videos

If a punk rock amplifier stirs your senses more than a pristinely finished wooden cabinet, Bruns Acoustics also offers its Timbre Relic series, which includes rusted hardware, chipped paint, and aged parts designed to bring the “mojo of an instrument that’s been gigged for years.”

Just as intriguing as the Timbre’s design is what’s at the heart of the beast. Each speaker is loaded with premium components, and powered by a house-built BA1 analog amplifier, designed to bring a warm, earthy buzz to the digital feed from your mobile device. The amp pushes 75 watts of power to two 3-inch drivers and a 3.5 inch subwoofer. The Timbre can connect to your sound source via Bluetooth, or a 3.5mm hardwired connection.

As for size, each Timbre is around 14-inches wide, 5-inches deep, and 8-inches tall, and can weigh a hefty 11-15 lbs, depending on the wood. But the little box is a heavyweight in more ways than one: the price tag is around $835. Not exactly a budget buy. Still, if this little box sounds nearly as good as it looks, it could be worth the dough. You can get a Timbre for yourself on Bruns Acoustic’s website now to find out.

Ryan Waniata is a multi-year veteran of the digital media industry, a lover of all things tech, audio, and TV, and a… Read Full Bio

Elevate your elegance: Choosing your first cigar

Face, Head, Person

Earlier this year, I was strolling the streets of New York and ended up sitting in the Carnegie Club with an Old Fashioned in one hand and a cigar in the other while My Way by Frank Sinatra played from a speaker flanking leather-bound books behind the couch I had been using as my perch. It was my first cigar, but it led to a slight obsession that recently found me on the back deck of a lodge in Kenya, staring at Mount Kilimanjaro and smoking a stick while giraffes meandered by. Admittedly, there has been no intention in my budding hobby; I am aimlessly choosing the cigars that look good (the ones that look like those smoked by Arnold or Stallone in the movies, obviously). But I have decided to approach these in a new way, with a little help from my friends over at La Aurora, who graciously decided to navigate my ignorance with some info compiled by Brand Manager John Gaglio, with input from Master Blender Manuel Ynoa, CEO Ed McKenna, and Brand Manager Elvis Batista.

What to look for in your first cigar

FIFA’s Gianni Infantino Is Uglifying the Beautiful Game With $20 Billion Plot — But the Global Soccer Community’s Punching Back

People, Person, Crowd

For the better part of two decades, perhaps even more, corruption has allegedly run rampant within FIFA. Sepp Blatter, in particular, became the face of alleged extortion schemes, and he operated with impunity while at the helm of the organization for 17 years, from 1998 until his forced resignation in 2015 amid an FBI corruption probe. He’s banned for life from all football-related FIFA activities. If you’re new to the organization’s alleged deep connection to corruption, Netflix offers a brilliant 2022 documentary, FIFA Uncovered. In that documentary, Gianni Infantino appears in his previous capacity as Secretary General of UEFA (2009-2016) and later as the newly elected FIFA president, who vowed to root out corruption and hand the beautiful game back to the people where it belongs.

That, as it turns out, was all wishful thinking.

Escobar Cigars, Co-Owned by Nas, Drops Four-Profile Robusto House Blend Collection

Blade, Knife, Weapon

Imagine that, Nas is getting closer to ruling the cigar world. The legendary rapper’s Escobar Cigars, which he co-owns, is making waves with the launch of a new four-profile House Blend collection. The launch is in partnership with Cigar Chief, one of North America’s largest premium cigar retailers.

The Manual has not yet had the chance to do a taste review (a pack is on the way), but Escobar Cigars says the four-profile House Blend collection (Maduro, Premium Blend Connecticut, Habano, and Connecticut Robusto) “has its own distinct wrapper, filler, and strength profile,” and that “all four are rolled in 5 x 52 Robusto format using classic Cubano entubado construction.”