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Radio will finally go digital in 2001. Among the oldest analog media, radio will be the last to make the transition, but it should make much faster headway in the market than digital television has. Satellite digital radio broadcasters <A HREF="http://www.xmradio.com/">XM Satellite Radio Holdings, Inc</A>. and <A HREF="http://www.siriusradio.com/">Sirius Satellite Radio, Inc</A>. are both on schedule to go live in the coming year, aided by partnerships with automakers to make digital receivers available as options in new cars. A strong automotive aftermarket for digital radio receivers is expected, with some industry insiders predicting that the first models will retail at approximately $100 apiece. Both XM and Sirius will offer multiple channels of music, news, comedy, sports, and talk show entertainment&mdash;all for about $10 per month per subscriber.

As almost all audiophiles have discovered, headphone cables just don't reach far enough. You want to lie on the sofa for a late night listen, but you find out the cable is about two feet short. You can rearrange your room, buy a cable extender&mdash;or go wireless. That's what <A HREF="http://www.gradolabs.com/">Grado</A&gt; is inviting you to do with the FreeSystems Grado Digital Headphone System.

The Revel Ultima Studios came to me by chance. I'd wanted to review Revel's high-value Performa F-30&mdash;see my <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/244/">May 2000 report</A>&mdash;but the Studio was offered instead. By the time a pair of Studios had arrived, however, the F-30s were also on their way, and the Studios were put on the back burner. Because of the mix-up, I thought the Studios would be freebies&mdash;just listen for a while and send 'em back. I am now obliged to do the honest thing and fess up in public: Many months have passed and the Studios are still here.

<B>Little Feat: <I>Hotcakes & Outtakes: 30 Years of Little Feat</I></B><BR> Warner Archives/Rhino R2 79912 (4 CDs). 1970-2000. Russ Titelman, Ted Templeman, Lowell George, Van Dyke Parks, Erik Jacobsen, George Massenburg, Bill Payne, Paul Barr&#232;re, Bill Wray, Ed Cherney, Frank Zappa, Michael O'Bryant, Richard Moore, orig. prods.; Gary Peterson, Bill Payne, Paul Barr&#232;re, reissue prods.; Bill Inglot, reissue sound. AAD. TT: 5:13:48<BR> Performance <B>*****</B><BR> Sonics <B>****</B>

Did you get any new gear or music for the holidays?

DVD-Audio has been brewing for a couple of years now, finally going public with the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//digitalsourcereviews/300/">Technics DVD-A10 DVD-Audio player</A>. Jonathan Scull got his eager hands on this groundbreaking machine last September, only to find that evaluating a new format is a complicated affair. Will this player, and DVD-Audio in general, soothe the audiophile heart? Scull takes a listen and spills the bits.

The <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10924/">fate</A&gt; of Hales Loudspeakers has been a subject of much concern and discussion among audiophiles since the shuttering of parent company Wadia Digital a few months ago. There is now considerable light at the end of the tunnel, as revealed by Hales founder L. Paul Hales in a telephone interview December 22.