Maybe for you, but for those audiophiles who can afford high-end equipment (and are probably not listening to compressed MP3 files on their iPod) comes the likes of the Harman Kardon GLA-55 speakers.

They’re not carved from ice (because they’d melt, duh) but they’re exquisitely formed from clear glass.

My audiophilia isn’t advanced enough to explain the tech involved in these speakers, but I can tell it’s cutting edge. Here’s the lowdown as explained in the press release:

The GLA-55 features many proprietary technologies to provide the highest quality sound possible; including:

• Atlas AL and CMMD Transducers – The CMMD drivers provide accurate high frequencies, but are capable of low-frequency extension to four octaves; the Atlas AL drivers are capable of nearly 2,5 cm peak-to-peak travel for tight, accurate bass reproduction. Their pairing provides a full, rich frequency response, from the lowest bass to highest highs.
• Slipstream Port Design – The GLA-55 port minimizes boundary layer separation, providing high-output bass with low distortion.
• COE (Computer-Optimized Equalization) – The system equalization is computer-optimized to provide a rich, complete soundstage over a wide range of listening positions.
• OCT (Optimized Compression Topology) – The GLA-55 system utilizes a proprietary compression technology to ensure clean, accurate sound at high output levels.
• The Harman Kardon GLA-55 system is compatible with desktop computers (all platforms), laptops and MP3 and portable media players. In clear with chrome accents.

So, basically, they look great, sound great, and work with pretty much everything.

Price? £750 ($1,250 equivalent)

Harman Kardon

These are glass speakers with white and blue LEDs, and they can even be supplied with some stands that also have lights built in.

Trouble is, they cost close to $1,000 and yet they only offer 10W of output per channel, which is pretty pathetic.

They might look great, but as far as I’m concerned speakers have to perform. I’d rather have boring speakers that pump than underperforming fancy ones.

Nice try Kenwood but give me something I actually want to play my music through.

(Via Akihabara News)