Noreasters and record setting blizzards aside, it’s spring, which means cookouts. Which means beer.

Take a few minutes to learn a couple things by watching this video. Learning doesn’t have to hurt, gentlemen.

Via Men’s Health

At this point, it’s beyond cliche to note that we are an iPod culture. These little things are big, big business. You might be interested to know that iPod accessories alone are worth almost One Billeeyon Dollars per year. Then again you might not be interested in that. But that’s a whole lotta cheese, for sure.

Roth Audio dives into this fray with its Music Cocoon MC4, the little beauty that you see pictured above. I’m not sure whether those are bottles of fairy dust or molasses, but this thing looks the business.

The Music Cocoon has been designed for use with the lovely Apple iPod (hence the fairly obvious dock on the top of the amplifier), any portable audio device (that’s why there is a 3.5mm socket on the back of the amplifier), any device which outputs audio to a 3.5mm jack (e.g. a laptop), or a CD player (that’ll be why there is a pair of RCA sockets on the back as well).

When using uncompressed files, this amplifier has the ability to allow you to hear things in the music which you have not heard before. It will bring back the excitement of listening for the first time to that new album from your favourite artist, the same anticipation, but, with a curiously smooth and refined playback which you will not have experienced before. Yes. It is that good.

For those of you that simply must have the latest gear, this one’s an eye-catcher. The US distributor for Roth Audio systems such as this one is American Music & Sound. Pretty affordable actually, at $780.