LATEST ADDITIONS

In his first e-mail to "Fine Tunes," Rafael Teodoro (RBT@wolfenet.com) addressed a subject that Mark Gdovin, that faithful frequenter of the Stereophile soapbox, had already brought up. Mark had gone so far as to give readers sage advice from his brother, a materials engineer, regarding the dangers of applying Armor All to speaker cones and surrounds.

<B>WILCO: <I>Yankee Hotel Foxtrot</I></B><BR> Nonesuch 79669-2 (CD). 2002. Wilco, prods.; Jim O'Rourke, mix. AAD? TT: 51:51<BR> Performance <B>****</B><BR> Sonics <B>****</B>

I once got a fortune cookie that read, "Ask and ye shall receive. This includes trouble." A few years back, shopping for speakers, I inquired about reviewing the B&W Nautilus 802, but it was too soon after Wes Phillips had reviewed the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/207/">Nautilus 801</A> for <I>Stereophile</I>. So, other auditioning and reviewing (and buying) other speakers, I asked again, and again was met with deferral. Recently, out of the blue, B&W offered the Nautilus 802&mdash;then, in the next breath, asked if I'd rather have the Signature 800s.

It's the grain elevators that break the monotony of driving across the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandle. As you pass one, another one appears on the horizon. Thus you know you're making progress, despite the fact that the landscape remains unchanged.

Here's a question we last asked about a year ago: With the proliferation of high-resolution sound cards and other computer audio peripherals over the last couple of years, have you begun using your computer to play music?

Some ultra-high-end two-channel specialists may still be singing the blues, but others in the electronics retailing business are humming happier tunes.

Companies that thrive do so by adapting to a changing market. Sony is revamping its manufacturing and marketing plans in an attempt to become both more efficient and more responsive to consumer needs.