Celebrating the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2012 release is something the folks at Guinness take very seriously. That’s why they asked British Engineering student Ben Allen and his engineering pals to bring their gigantic record-holder to the main event in London where people would then be able to use it to play big games. Not nearly as big as the controller suggests, of course, as a screen to match this controller would have to be at least Jumbo-Tron sized to match up.

The same is true of the person using the controller – they’d have to be over 150 feet tall to match this 12-foot monster. This controller cost the guys who made is somewhere around $6,000 in parts and labor and they’re never, ever looking back. At 265 pounds in total and much too large for one person to carry, we’d hope they’re invested in keeping it around. Otherwise it’d be one strange day at the garbage dump! Check out some additional records and factoids in this video presented by Guinness World Records as well.

[via HotHardware]

This project has no future plans to become a mass-made or distributed product, but in that the video you’re seeing is made so well what you’ll not possibly miss the point, it’s made wonderful from start to finish. As the tree’s years rings are analyzed for their strength, says the creator, so too are they analyzed for their thickness and rate of growth, and turned into a song that describes it all. Have a peek a the manifesto for this project here:

A tree’s year rings are analysed for their strength, thickness and rate of growth. This data serves as basis for a generative process that outputs piano music. It is mapped to a scale which is again defined by the overall appearance of the wood (ranging from dark to light and from strong texture to light texture). The foundation for the music is certainly found in the defined ruleset of programming and hardware setup, but the data acquired from every tree interprets this ruleset very differently.

This project is made up of a modified turntable, a camera, acrylic glass, vvvv (a multipurpose programmable toolkit), veneer, and of course a computer. The whole thing rings in at 90x50x50 cm and again, there is only one. The artist worked with or would otherwise like to thank Land Salzburg, Schmiede, Pro-ject Audio, Karla Spiluttini, Ivo Francx, vvvv, and Rohol. Get your tissues out, lovers of nature, this is going to get messy for your eyeballs.

[via Traubeck]

Note here that these prices are not being bumped by the cash it takes to purchase one of these games, as each of the last few entries in the game history have all cost $60 a unit. What’s more, there’s another record on the line with the same two contenders: the five day video game sales record is on the line, and Call of Duty can’t lose! Are you amongst those millions of purchasers of the game?

Or is it foolish to ask since everyone who has the game is undoubtedly still playing it right this very moment?

Meanwhile we’ve got at least one of our writers with quite the controversial set of opinions on the game and its release, Don Reisinger. If you don’t know about Don, he can be rather heavy on the knowing of everything and the not caring if you don’t like it, if you know what I mean – have a peek at his article Modern Warfare 3 is what’s wrong with the Game Business. Don’t get too broiled up if you feel different!

That said, we know of a few other people that’ve been bubbling as of late because of this game and the service that surrounds it – first of all, Elite Service has been having errors in both login and loading, users freaking out in hoards. None so insane as one Lomorin Sar though, a man who upon finding his pre-order was not shipped to Best Buy properly promptly threatened employees with threats of murder and the entire store with the notion of a bomb!

It’s only a game!

Or is it?

[via LA Times]

A company that makes custom trucks just for extreme environments called Arctic Trucks has landed a world record using its vehicles for traveling from Antarctica to the South Pole in record time. The journey covered 2308km from a station known as Novo to the South Pole. The record was set in December 2010 when two trucks made the journey in 108 hours, or 4.5 days.

The trucks used were based on the Toyota Hilux platform and traveled at an average speed of 21.4km/h and used 2.2km/liter of fuel. The trip to the pole was certified by record keepers at Guinness World Records. The return trip was even faster, but unofficial at 3.5 days and averaging 27.5km/h. The trucks used have a 3.0L turbo diesel under the hood.

The vehicle has fully customized styling, and is designed by Jack White. It should be pretty hip.
You can get a view of the truck in Third Man’s video here:

The LPs are in yellow, magenta, and cyan colors just like the ink inside your printer. When you overlap the three records you end up with the CMYK color model and it’s really cool. Apparently, the records have been out for a while now, I guess we are too lame to know about cool vinyl here in the states.

The music is some sort of electronic hip hop, which leaves me thinking of those bad European dance tunes used in some of the movies I have seen. Check out the associated video from James Blake below.

Via Laughing Squid

We know that most of you have ditched the record player for bigger, smaller things, but sometimes it’s a good thing to remember the old days. And, while this vinyl may not have the same look as most vinyl releases of yesteryear, we can certainly say it’s eye-catching. Rockstar calls it “blazing red,” and we’d say that’s a pretty safe name for the color.

The vinyl record is available right now, courtesy of the Rockstar Warehouse. And if you can’t wait to get your hands on it, you’ll have to drop $15 to make it yours. Of course, the album features all of the songs from the title, so there won’t be one track you’re missing. Hopefully.

[via Joystiq]

Furze decided on the 125cc gas engine from a motorcycle, and retrofitted it onto the scooter. And, as usually happens, after someone accomplishes one goal, they move right onto the next one. Furze is no different, as he’s said that his next step is to take the scooter to a drag strip and test its speed there. He is aiming for 70mph. The folks at the Guinness Book of World Records has told Furze that if he manages to reach a speed of 62mph, he’d be happily accepted into the record book. We’re sure that we’ll be hearing about Furze again in the near future — let’s hope he starts wearing a helmet, going at those speeds on a standard scooter. And if it ends up not working out for him, he could always take his scooter underwater.

[via GizmoWatch]

This device makes it easy. The turntable itself is powered by belt-drive and has a straight tone arm. It also has a RCA and USB output, making it easy to transfer your records to your computer. It works with both PCs and Macs and allows you to create MP3s or CD-appropriate files for later listening.

Software comes with the device that allows you to remove those annoying pops and clicks. DJs can get enjoyment out of this USB turntable as well. You can get the Stanton T.55 USB Turntable now for $199.

The SuperPi 32m test was conducted on the DFI Lanparty UT X58 motherboard and A-DATAs’ DDR3-2133X v2.0 2GBx3 triple-channel kit. Pushing 2237 MHz at latency settings of 8-7-7-21, folks at A-DATA were able to achieve an unprecedented result timed at 6min 40sec 360ms.

The A-DATA XPG DDR3-2133X v2.0 tripled channel kit memory comes with a heavy set of Aluminum heatspreaders and an active dual-fan cooling system to maximize RAM heat’s dissipation. Its distinctive design was previously recognized with the prestigious Taiwan Excellent 2009 Award. Pricing information and product availability were not announced.

Taipei, Taiwan – Jan. 22nd, 2009 – A-DATA® Technology Co., Ltd., a worldwide leading manufacturer in high performance memory products, announced today that its XPG™ DDR3 memory modules have broke a new world record on SuperPi 32m. The record was set by utilizing the DFI Lanparty UT X58 motherboard and XPG X Series v2.0 memory, the DDR3-2133X v2.0 2GBx3 triple-channel kit.

The SuperPi 32m record of 6min 40sec 360ms was achieved at a speed of 2237 MHz and latency settings of 8-7-7-21 using DDR3-2133X v2.0 2GBx3 triple-channel kit.

The XPG DDR3-2133X v2.0 is engineered with heavy Aluminum heatspreaders and active dual-fan to keep the RAMs operate in low temperature environment. Through the combination of the cooling methodology, the XPG DDR3-2133X v2.0 is able to maximize its OC performance. Moreover, it was awarded with the prestigious Taiwan Excellent 2009 Award for its distinctive design.

A-DATA X Series memory represents the ultimate overclocking performance. It was developed to unleash the hidden power of CPU and motherboard by using A-DATA’s latest overclocking IC sorting technology. A-DATA XPG modules are guaranteed to satisfy the needs of PC enthusiasts and overclockers for high-performance, compatibility, and stability on memory modules.

With the U22 you can record two separate channels at the same time. This model has two analog combi-jack mic/line inputs, two TRS balanced line outputs, a Hi-Z instrument input, a ¼” high-power headphone output, and MIDI I/O. The I·ONIX Series are meticulously crafted from the highest quality components to ensure superior recordings that live up to Lexicon’s standards of performance.

Superior recording are ensured across a wide dynamic range by driving a high-voltage supply o the preamps. Each model delivers a different level of recording capability.  The U42S records four analog and two digital channels simultaneously while the U82S can record eight analog and two digital channels. No details on pricing or availability were given.

The I∙ONIX Desktop Recording Interfaces all include:

• USB 2.0 connection to the DAW, up to 480Mbps

• 44.1 to 96 kHz sample rates, 24-bit resolution

• Two, Four, or Eight analog ¼” and XLR combi-jack mic/line inputs

• Two analog TRS (Stereo Main) outputs

• dbx high-voltage, ultra-low noise mic preamps on all analog inputs

• 48V phantom power for each input pair

• Input signal metering via 8 LED’s per channel

• Signal mixing and stereo bus signal metering

• Up to two 1/4” high output headphone connections

• Up to two Hi-Z instrument inputs

• Zero latency Direct/Playback monitoring

• Low latency ASIO drivers

• Pantheon II VST/AU reverb plug-in

• Steinberg Cubase LE4 and Toontrack EZdrummer Lite software packages

• Supports Windows® and Mac® platforms

The recording is automated with engine activity, including date stamp, time and stored directly to SD memory card. The mirror also has a built in 2.5” LCD screen to provide instant playback of recorded audio video footage. The cost is $449 from brickhousesecurity.com. Here’s the footage of Brickhouse’s mirror recorder in action.

[autoblog via brickhousesecurity]

The lagoon took five years, with an estimated cost of nearly £1billion ($1.96 Billion USD) to build and £2million ($3.91 Million USD) in annual maintenance that uses a computerized suction and filtration system to circulate the fresh seawater. Don’t tell your date to meet at the San Alfonso pool, you might get lost or worst… drown.

[via dailymail.co.uk]

The Crosley Songwriter CD Burner is just the device you need to do so. It lets you transfer your vinyl records into CDs in minutes. The best part is that it’s also a three-speed record player so you can still play your records from time to time. It has the capabilities to let you transfer cassettes into CDs as well incase your musical collection doesn’t date back that far.

You can buy it for $400, which is a bit pricey. If you’re looking for something a little cheaper you could always go with the USB Turntable. It’s essentially the same and only $150. But there’s no cassette player and next to the Crosley Songwriter it’s just plain ugly.

Celebrate your vinyls with the Crosley Songwriter CD Burner [via Born Rich]

The best part comes in its more discreet feature of being able to hook it up to your PC via USB and use the included software suite to rip your records to a digital format. Then you can put it on CD or add it to your favorite digital media player.

The record player with software will cost you a mere $149.95, which isn’t bad considering the last time I went shopping for a record player, new, sans USB and ripping capabilities I was looking at prices pretty close to that. So, if you have a bunch of records that you want to rip to a digital format, but our other options have been too pricey for you, check this one out.

Crosley Keepsake USB Turntable [via redferret]