The Best in Gear, From Vollebak’s Mars Hoodie to a Thorens Turntable

The Big Idea: Wearables Get Buzzy

Wearable technology dates back to the abacus rings of 17th-century China, early precursors to the modern digital iteration, the calculator watch, released by Pulsar in 1975. In 2009 the introduction of the Fitbit tracker ushered in an era of wearable machines—ones that could not only calculate but measure as well. In the intervening years, a host of competitors hit the market, from Whoop to Oura Ring to Apple Watch, and while the designs, interfaces, related apps, and target users differ slightly between each—some are more fitness-focused, others prioritize wellness or productivity—each remixes the same basic functionality: recording biometric data such as heart rate, blood-oxygen levels, sleep patterns, electrodermal activity, steps taken, UV exposure, and the like. Which is to say, all of these devices can provide concrete data related to how you’re feeling at any given moment, but none of them can actually do anything about it.

Enter the next generation of wearables, devices that can not only monitor your state of body and mind but also intervene. The Apollo, from Apollo Neuro, tracks everything your smartwatch does (and is roughly the same size) and also emits a range of audio-vibrational frequencies specially tuned to your central nervous system to help you calm down, wake up, recover from a workout, fall asleep, and more. It’s the only scientifically validated consumer wellness wearable on the market—its inventor, Dave Rabin, M.D., Ph.D., is both a neuroscientist and a board-certified psychiatrist—and was born out of research on treatment-resistant-trauma therapy. The effect feels similar to a cat purring on your chest.

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Rabin describes the Apollo, and the others like it that are sure to follow, as “third-generation wearables” and notes how the screenless gadget (control comes via the app) is the rare piece of technology that can actually reduce stress. “Second-gen wearables give you all this really granular detail,” he tells Robb Report, “but if you’re not a doctor and can’t interpret the data, it can be more stressful than not having that information in the first place.” What really excites Rabin, though, is how the already cutting-edge technology is about to radically leapfrog again, thanks to artificial intelligence. “My wife would wake up every night at 3 a.m., so we trained Apollo to track her sleep quality and identify when she started to stir. We then leveraged predictive A.I. to anticipate when she was about to come awake—at which point the Apollo kicked in with a gentle wave that rocked her back to sleep, preventing the wake-up before it happened. And it totally worked! It was a problem she had for years, and we solved it.”

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Game: Christofle Duel des Thés

Given that the contemporary hallmark embossed on Christofle’s fine silverware is a knight, a luxe chess set from the 194-year-old French tableware company—the first game it has ever produced—feels apropos. Duel des Thés is a clever nod to brand history, elegantly rendered in fossilized oak, vermeil, and mirror-polished sterling silver by Christofle’s Haute Orfèvrerie workshop.

The name translates to “duel of teas,” which is precisely what transpires from the opening gambit, pitting the house’s famous Art Nouveau and Art Deco tea sets against one another by replacing key pieces with teapots, creamers, cups, and sugar bowls. Artisans make each component—plus all the molds and other tools used to produce them—by hand at the brand’s factory in Normandy. The boards are assembled by Jean-Brieuc Chevalier, a cabinetmaker from Angers, who inlays the wood with reflective sterling-silver squares. Truly, a game beautiful enough to let everyone feel like a winner. $250,000

Streaming Loudspeaker: Dutch & Dutch 8C

Plug AC and ethernet cables into these powered streaming loudspeakers from Rotterdam-based Dutch & Dutch, commandeer an iPhone or iPad, and you have a room filled with music—reproduced without excuses to audiophiles. This beautifully built stand-mounted loudspeaker packs a wallop, delivering a full-range frequency response from 30 Hz to 20 kHz. Inside the finely finished solid-oak cabinet is a complement of four drivers: two eight-inch, high-excursion subwoofers, an eight-inch midrange, and a one-inch alloy dome tweeter, respectively powered by built-in 500 W, 250 W, and 250 W Class D amplifiers. Also on board are high-end streaming, DACs, and DSP (Digital Signal Processing), which fine-tunes frequency anomalies caused by the room, allowing the speaker to be placed very close to a rear wall—a plus wherever space is at a premium. While ideal for near-field listening or as studio monitors, these small speakers can fill larger rooms with gusto. $14,950 per pair

Kit: Vollebak Mars Hoodie

High-tech, future-focused Vollebak makes a range of head-scratchingly clever gear, from an Apocalypse Jacket that’s fireproof to 2,370 degrees Fahrenheit, includes nearly two dozen pockets, and can convert into a sleeping bag, to its Full Metal Jacket, made largely of antimicrobial copper and developed for mass interplanetary travel. (Known to kill both bacteria and viruses, the element could help stop the spread of disease in the closed environment of a spaceship.) Given all the brainpower and problem-solving that goes into its gear, the brand’s most surprising attribute might be its utter wearability.

And no item is more plushly beckoning than the double-layered, 3-D-knitted Mars Hoodie, made by a machine designed to build bedding. The sculptural and ultrasoft sweatshirt has the pleasing density of a memory-foam mattress, the heft of an antianxiety blanket (it weighs in at over two and a half pounds), and a textured fabric that resembles the heavily cratered surface of the Red Planet. It’s even embedded with antimicrobial silver microparticles, just in case you feel like taking a quick jaunt into space (which, remember, is an actual tourist destination now). $795

Loudspeaker: Sonus Faber Stradivari G2

Sonus Faber’s original Stradivari from the early 2000s established a high-water mark for sonic accuracy in a loudspeaker whose drop-dead gorgeous cabinetmaking reflected the DNA of an Italian company from the same region as famous luthiers Stradivarius and Guarneri. The G2 takes a leap forward with its even more natural presentation of detail, tone, and timbre from top to bottom. Notable is the cabinet shape, much wider than it is deep and responsible for this speaker’s organic, natural, and full-bodied sound. A pair of 10-inch woofers go down to 25 Hz, while the six-inch Neodymium magnet midrange transducer handles the crucial midrange—from 220 Hz to 2,200 Hz, this driver is the speaker’s heart and soul, aided by a one-inch soft-dome tweeter. Although relatively sensitive at 92 dB, a high-current amplifier with at least 100 watts will go a long way toward making the Stradivari G2 sing. $50,000 per pair

Headphones: Meze Elite Tungsten

From Romania, the $3,000 Meze Empyrean II garnered our praise as a headphone with electrostatic-like transparency and the low-end of a big dynamic-driver. The secret of these open-back headphones’ accurate sound is a proprietary planar driver developed in collaboration with Ukrainian acoustics firm Rinaro Isodynamics; the Isodynamic Hybrid Array transducer emulates the shape of the human ear, with a frequency response extending from a subterranean 8 Hz to a unheard-of 112,000 Hz. (We mean that literally—it’s beyond the range of human hearing.) The natural, fatigue-free sonic presentation can keep a listener enthralled for hours. We ended our review of the Empyrean II asking, “How much better can headphones get?” The Meze Elite Tungsten presents a subtle and refined answer, with a tungsten frame featuring the durable, stonelike texture of Cerakote—a reminder that rare materials and fine craftsmanship are the purview of high-end audio as much as of watchmaking or coachbuilding. An extra helping of midrange finesse nudges the Elite into flagship-headphone territory. $4,000

Vinyl Playback: Thorens TD 124 DD 140th Anniversary (with Ortofon SPU 140th Anniversary Cartridge)

Some designs simply can’t be improved upon: Park most new supercars next to a 58-year-old Lamborghini Miura and chances are the old-timer will command more attention than the upstart. Consider this Thorens turntable to be the best of both worlds. The TD 124 DD revisits a timeless product on the event of its 140th Anniversary Edition, adding a copper platter and other refinements (both mechanical and aesthetic) while delivering performance that eclipses most new turntables. It looks nearly identical to the original TD 124 made from 1957 to 1967 (good news) while differing by using a direct-drive motor rather than idler-drive to rotate the platter (also good news). Its tonearm, appearing identical but much improved, uses a special 140th anniversary Ortofon SPU moving-coil cartridge with silver wire that brings overflowing life, with force and impact, to LP playback. $12,999 (cartridge sold separately)

Integrated Amplifier: Dan D’Agostino Momentum MxV

Among the most ambitious audio products of the year is D’Agostino’s Momentum MxV Integrated Amplifier, which combines a line-stage preamp, stereo amp, and optional phono stage and streaming DAC in a single-chassis unit whose monumental appearance is as remarkable as its performance. Just add speakers, and maybe a turntable, to build a stereo system that will satisfy any (reasonable) audiophile. Compared to the best separates, integrated amps are typically a significant compromise—short on power, sonic finesse, or both. In fairness, most are also 10 to 20 times less expensive than the Momentum, whose combination of massive power supplies and overengineered amplification delivers 250 wpc at 8 ohms, using audio circuitry nearly indistinguishable from the Momentum Series separates. Whether used to stream digital sources or as the nucleus of a vinyl rig, this integrated amp makes a compelling argument that, price notwithstanding, less is truly more. $80,000, including phono stage and streaming DAC

Home Projector: Leica Cine 1

Projector technology has progressed leaps and bounds since the faded, fuzzy images of old, but the depth and clarity provided by Leica’s ultra-short-throw Cine 1 is still remarkable to behold. An ultrabright, RGB laser-lighting system and Leica Summicron lens are housed in a sleek aluminum case (the remote is made of the same material) with softly rounded edges and an expansive wraparound grille—all the better to enjoy the remarkably robust built-in sound system, which boasts a pair of 2 x 25W speakers, thumping bass, impressive dynamic range, and Dolby Atmos support.

Thoughtful touches include adjustable legs and a motorized dust cover, but the picture, naturally, steals the show. With a native resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels (4K is supported via DLP XPR technology), staggering contrast ratio, and a claimed peak brightness of 3,000 lumens, the laser lighting provides a huge range of colors, including rich, deep blacks, and remains equally crisp at the edges of the image. Leica actually produces two separate machines for the U.S. market, one for use with screens of exactly 100 inches and another for 120-inch displays. Both come with three HDMI inputs (including one with soundbar support) that receive all the main dynamic range formats, including Dolby Vision. $8,995 (100-inch screen) $9,495 (120-inch screen)

Artisanal Audio Component: Songer S2 Loudspeakers

Ken Songer is a former software engineer who has devoted the past 10-plus years to developing two very special loudspeakers, the S1 (see the 2024 Robb Report Audio Awards) and the larger S2. The transducers are powered by extremely potent field-coil magnets, each weighing nearly 30 pounds, and Songer hand-builds the cones for each from Japanese paper. The result is music reproduced with lightning-fast transients, transparency, and timbral accuracy. Remarkably, this full-range driver covers a span of 20 kHz down to 30 Hz, and the S2 employs an additional 15-inch bass driver to supplement frequencies below 130 Hz to 30 Hz. Weighing 150 pounds, the 47-inch-tall open-baffle cabinet is constructed in a choice of hardwoods, and both drivers are embellished with jewellike brass and aluminum details. With 93 dB efficiency, the S2 is a perfect match with low-power tube amps. An overall tour de force of technology and obsessive craftsmanship. $55,000 per pair

Wearable: Apollo Neuro Apollo

The current crop of wearables—Whoop, Oura Ring, Apple Watch, and the like—are shockingly good at tracking biometric data, everything from daily steps to blood-oxygen levels to heart-rate variability. Which is nice if you know how to parse the numbers, but wouldn’t it be better if those devices could actually do something to help regulate your physical and emotional states?

That’s precisely why Dave Rabin, M.D., Ph.D., invented the Apollo, a wearable that uses a range of vibrational frequencies to help you relax, perk up, de-stress, recover from a workout, fall asleep, etc. Born from neuroscience research at the University of Pittsburgh (Rabin is a neuroscientist as well as a board-certified psychiatrist) and backed by clinical research, the screenless device pairs with a slick and intuitive app, which creates a customized 24-hour schedule to provide energy when you need it and calm when you don’t; with use over time, your central nervous system adapts, leading to improved sleep, cardiovascular metrics, stress management, and more. It sounds like science fiction, but we’re happy (and amazed) to report that it actually works. $350