Extreme Games - The G Tour

Mike and I were stuck in the back of the pack trying to catch up, which was difficult with the traffic and the rain (Wusses-RC). Not to mention the fact that I had to endure Mike's endless ramble on how European cars are better than Japanese ones.

About mid-tour, the drizzle stopped and I was able to hang out the window to snap off some photos, which was more difficult than it may sound-especially with Mike deliberately shifting lanes back and forth in an attempt to dislodge my legs from the seat. But I was undaunted. And after two hours of driving and snapping, we arrived at the State Capitol parking lot without any major incident (if you don't count my severely wet forehead) and with smiles on all of our faces.

The G-Tour was more fun than I could have ever imagined. Even with the rain.

Boston
Bostonacoustics.com
Boston Acoustics
Does Everything Loud
Boston Acoustics, an agency renowned for very high quality speakers, was one of the major sponsors and hosts for the G-Tour. With a little downtime on Friday (actually it wasn't downtime, we were slacking), Kevin Berlandi of Boston Acoustics was kind enough to guide us through a tour of their Peabody facility. It became readily apparent that Boston Acoustics is no ordinary speaker manufacturer. The majority of the speaker building process occurs in this single building, and we were able to witness how the process worked. The second floor of the facility locates an extensive design facility that utilizes CAD computers to conceive and execute designs entirely on the computers. Also located on the second floor are little sound-insulated rooms where engineers try and configure different audio setups to test different combinations of Boston Acoustics products. Further down that hall is a lab where one could assemble just about any conceivable combination of speakers with walls lined with different-sized magnets. Boston Acoustics relies on computers, and their investment in technologies to evaluate and refine their products and designs is extensive. The quality controls are geared to provide the enthusiast with a speaker set that is maximized and matched for output efficiency to provide the greatest service life and enjoyment.

One of the coolest rooms on the tour was downstairs: we had to don ear plugs upon entering. Located in a concrete-brick bunker at the edge of the facility is a room that sounds as though it has a large electric motor or a small jet engine running in it. The thick walls even vibrate a bit. Upon entering this reinforced bunker, through two sets of doors, one realizes what the origin of the noise is. This room subjects speaker components to high power levels until they experience failures. The sound is a deafening level of static, and there are all these speakers on benches screaming as loudly as they can, just waiting for the reaper to claim their souls. The tour culminated with a visit to the fabled theater room. Kevin led us to a room that featured purple mood lighting, a big screen T.V., and a home theater system featuring Boston Acoustics speakers. We were thinking, what a cool home theater this would be for the swank, swinging bachelor pad of our dreams. The two Scotchgarded velour couches were a nice touch. The tour, however, was not over, and the home theater room was merely some sort of a warm-up for the mother of all theater rooms. The theater room was larger than some medium-sized theaters in cineplexes I'd been to. We were treated to a clip of Air Force One. Needless to say, the sound in that product showcase theater was better than any movie experience I recall having. Now if I could have just lain my hands on some popcorn, and Jujyfruits, I might have been able to rediscover my purpose in my life.-MD