@Mike Cern: Uh, it is NOT totally ridiculous and you would not be "better off" with a mini and external sound card. These specs don't come from an Audigy:
110dB SNR and 24bit/192kHz -- yeah, that exceeds CD sound quality. The software also ties back neatly to Onkyo's own "e-onkyo music" 24bit/96kHz download service.
If you did buy a mini ($600 only 60 GB Harddrive- my 80 gig powerbook is full now) you would have to buy an audiophile DAC (Benchmark DAC1 - $1000). That is $1600 and you don't get access to the 24bit/96kHz download service--- only 128 kbit compressed (mp4) from a 16bit/44.1kHz download service (iTunes). Even if you have high resolution discs, iTunes doesn't support them, so you would have to find ANOTHER piece of software to handle them.
Microsoft is soooo creative. Instead of seperating all the windows out so you can see them clearly, they stacked them up so you can only see the corner of each window. Ahhh, progress.
I have personally listened to amplifiers that make this amount of power pushing full range (down to 40 Hz), floor standing speakers that will blow you away. 20 watts is ample when you sit close to the speaker and have efficent drivers. Oh, and the 20 watt amp I was listening to cost $3000.
The power rating is easily understood when you look closely at the music signal. The higher power level is only need for short bursts of complex passages or deep bass tones. If you were to examine a home stereo rated at 100W per channel or higher, you would find that 95% of the listening only requires 10 or less Watts.
I suspect that if you open this box up, you will find some relatively large capacitors (or even a couple of lithium batteries) that provide the power need for these short bursts. They simply re-charge during the less consuming passages.
Nice work Yamaha. These would be perfect for a laptop while traveling. Where do I sign up?
"What's the best gaming laptop for under 1,500 bucks? I had my eye on the P7805u (Gateway), but it seems Best Buy has run out for the time being. Also, as a secondary question, I like the specs on brands such as iBUYPOWER and CyberPower and the like, but are they reliable? I'm a little worried about buying labels that aren't huge like Dell, Gateway, etc. Thanks!"
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