Core77

2010 NYIGF Faves: AIAIAI's Tracks headphones

By Rain Noe - August 16, 2010

in Object Culture

AIAIAI's beautiful Tracks, by Kilo Design, are based on the classic Walkman headphones. A single piece of bent metal holds the ear cups, which slide up or down for size adjustability. You can even pop the ear cups off altogether for on-the-go storage. And in keeping with AIAIAI'e emphasis on sound, the demo unit we tried out sounded freaking fantastic.

AIAIAI was conceived in the A House, an old Copenhagen industrial building that became a seminal nest of creativity around 2005. We hosted a club at the top of the building, and initiated the influx of a collective, consisting of more than 200 young creative minds, many of whom we still work closely with today. This environment didn't just shape some of the biggest and most influential Danish artists, musicians and designers. It also shaped AIAIAI's collective vision, which still hasn't changed: We aim to create headphones and other consumer electronic related products that have a clear connection to the creative world, and thus make a heartfelt, different and genuine statement.

SOUND

We emphasize an open development process, meaning that we team up with the best possible sound engineers and musicians. C4 Studio, Tartelet Records and Jon Schumann to name just a few. With the help of these skilled partners, we're able to adjust physical shapes, sizes and driver settings, in order to achieve high quality products with a full spectrum sound - from a deep smooth bass to crisp, detailed high notes. At AIAIAI, we develop our products with a thoroughness that not only tests our products but also, on occasion, our own patience" we won't quit before we're completely satisfied.

DESIGN

We work closely with our design partners and we always focus on creating a distinctive and detailed look. Moreover, we take all elements into consideration, in order to end up with a meticulous design. The final result should always be an easily recognizable and unique aesthetic that's quintessentially AIAIAI, We insist on being surprising in every move we make. We want to make products and happenings that engage people; something they feel the need to touch, stare at, interact with and enjoy.

EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

Apart from making headphones, we continuously involve ourselves in various cultural activities, We do this because it's fun, but also because it pays to keep your finger on the pulse of the city. To remember your roots; to sense where you are; to adjust where you're going, We've taken part in music festivals, mix tapes, label partnerships, underground launches, odd sponsorships, art exhibitions and a lot of other fun stuff Please check out aiaiai.dk/blog for info on the latest activities.

o

Favorite This
Q
3

Comment

Comments

Craighton

14 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Never had any durability problems with the Tracks or the Pipes headphones I use daily. Perhaps you're rocking too hard.
!Report as spam
Frank

14 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Like Paul i love the desing of these headphones - and actually also the sounds quality, which i think is really impressive. Unfortuantely, my first pair also broke only after a short while but i must say i had a great experince with their customer service and got a replacement pair and an explaination that there had been some initial problems with the durability of the Tracks but that had been improved - i am on my 6th month with the replacement pair now so either i have been lucky or they actually improved things. In the end i am a happy owner of my Tracks now....
!Report as spam
Paul

14 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I've had 2 headphones from AIAIAI including the Tracks above and as much as I love the design/comfort/sound. I'm completely dissapointed with their performance in terms of durability. On both occasions the headphone jack broke within a few months... The first started malfunctioning after a short in the wiring (Swirl 2.0 earphones) then the Tracks jack bent after my phone fell out of the pocket - this has happened with many other headphones and the jack always came out intact.

After multiple tries to reach someone at AIAIAI I gave on them and ever purchasing from them again... Just my 2c.
!Report as spam