LATEST ADDITIONS

Venture capital group Shared Ventures is now the legal owner of the assets of <A HREF="http://www.wadia.com/">Wadia Digital Corporation</A>. Wadia's majority shareholder, Shared Ventures, acquired the company's name, intellectual property, and physical inventory at a public auction in Minneapolis on September 12. The law firm of Siegel, Brill, Greupner, Duffy, and Foster, P/A, of Minneapolis, managed the auction. Originally scheduled for late August, the auction was postponed for two weeks after a flurry of interest following the publication of an official notice in the <A HREF="http://www.startribune.com/"><I>Minneapolis Star-Tribune</I></A>.

You've probably seen the ad in <I>Stereophile</I>: a very personal account by Avantgarde-USA president Jim Smith, describing how, during a 30-year career in high-end audio, he had become increasingly disappointed with conventional loudspeakers' ability to communicate the emotional impact of live music, and how he found the answer with the Avantgarde horn loudspeakers. It's advertising copy in the best I-liked-it-so-much-I-bought-the-company tradition&mdash;with the exception that Smith did not actually buy Avantgarde Acoustic, but <I>did</I> become their North American distributor.

So far, the audio quality of downloadable music has been almost as good as AM radio. How far does it have to go before you'll want to pay for a download?

Audio manufacturers who know what's good for them avoid stepping on the toes of <A HREF="http://www.bose.com/">Bose, Inc.</A> The Framingham, Massachusetts&ndash;based corporation is renowned for it ruthless marketing and zealous protection of its patents.

E<I>ditor's Note: This is Part Three of a six-part series from reader Herv&#233; Del&#233;traz of Switzerland, who is chronicling the development of his DIY (do-it-yourself) audio amplifier. Part One is <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10825/">here</A&gt;, and Part Two is <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10832/">here</A>.</I&gt;

The enduring audiophile dilemma about whether to optimize a home-entertainment system for music or movies may no longer be relevant, thanks to new disc players from <A HREF="http://www.sony.com/sel/">Sony Corporation</A> and <A HREF="http://www.philips.com/">Philips Electronics NV</A>. The machines were introduced at <A HREF="http://www.cedia.org/expo/">CEDIA Expo 2000</A>, the annual home-theater and custom-installation trade show held in Indianapolis.

H<B>ome Entertainment 2001</B> (formerly The HI-FI Show) is heading back to the heart of New York for the first time in five years. Described as "a unique hands-on event where attendees will see and hear the newest and the best in home audio and home theater," HE 2001 will take place May 11&ndash;13 at the Hilton New York.