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It's rare to find people praising a competitor in this hi-fi business, but I first met John Michell soon after one of his biggest rivals had described him as an "engineer's engineer." Memorably, he'd be the first port of call for anyone in the UK who wanted something done properly and without compromise. Another competitor described him as quite the nicest person he'd worked with, and a naturally gifted practical engineer.

The Home Technology & Photography Group (HT&P) of Primedia and website <A HREF="http://BestStuff.com">BestStuff.com</A&gt; announced today the launch of <I>Best</I>, a shopping magazine focused on the products and experiences that enhance an upscale lifestyle. <I>Best</I>, which hits newsstands on Thursday, November 6 at a $3.99 cover price, is an "aspirational" magazine which offers features ranging from the selection and use of home theaters and high-end audio and video systems, to digital photography, computers, and video imaging products, as well as the finest in automobiles and ultimate travel suggestions.

From the May 2002 issue, Michael Fremer positions the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/showarchives.cgi?951">Odeon La Traviata loudspeaker</A> in his listening lair, writing, "Interest in super-efficient, horn-loaded, compression-driver loudspeakers has grown in the past few years." But as MF finds, horns may not always do the trick.

Loudspeakers are all about balancing conflicting variables: accepting that you can't have electrostatic transparency <I>and</I> horn dynamics; finding something to suit the size of your room <I>and</I> credit rating; and picking the best all-around compromise to suit your particular taste. Goldilocks had the right attitude for loudspeaker reviewing. All that too-soft/too-hard, too-hot/too-cold merely sets the scene; "just right" goes straight to the heart of the matter.

Now that we know how often you attend classical music events, how often in the past year have you attended live jazz concerts?

Mirage is a good name for a speaker manufacturer; it suggests that their products produce realistic illusions. A 1934 dictionary I've got supplies a definition for "mirage" that might also be apt: "An optical atmospheric illusion by which the image of a distant object is seen as if inverted." I don't mean that the Mirage OM stands Harry Belafonte on his head, or make him sing "O-Day"&mdash;instead, certain tenets of cones-in-a-box loudspeaker design and usage are turned turvy-topsy by Mirage's Omnipolar concept.

<I>Stardate:</I> 3087.6. <I>Location:</I> somewhere in the 4th quadrant. In response to Captain Kirk's orders, Mr. Sulu throws a few well-chosen levers and sliders&mdash;not much different in design and function from those used by Flash Gordon and Captain Video&mdash;to redirect the Good Ship Enterprise where no man has boldly gone before. New adventures begin immediately after the bridge crew pick themselves up off the deck and nonchalantly resume their stations.