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The final numbers aren't in yet, but all indications point to an astounding show of support from the audiophile community for the Audio">http://www.audiogon.com/charity.html">Audio Charity Auction conducted by Audio">http://www.audioasylum.com">Audio Asylum's Rod Morris and Audiogon's">http://www.audiogon.com">Audiogon's Arnie Chinta. The numbers are still stacking up, but as of Sunday, October 7, the benefit had raised $173,738 from over 400">http://gonmain.iserver.net/cgi-bin/auc_ch.pl?charity&1&c">400 closed auctions.

Last week, Napsterhttp://www.napster.com/">Napster; announced that it had reached a preliminary agreement with US songwriters and music publishers to settle a class action lawsuit currently pending in federal court in California. The beleaguered company says the agreement includes terms under which the songwriters and music publishers will license their music to Napster's new membership-based service.

Last week, Cirrus">http://www.cirrus.com">Cirrus Logic unveiled what it is calling the world's highest-performance six- and eight-channel D/A converters, which the company says will give consumers the ability to decode high-resolution multichannel surround content at home or in the car. The converters are the latest addition to Cirrus Logic's Total-E platform group of products.

The need to cut costs may push the music industry to experiment with collaborative manufacturing and distribution, according to reports that emerged the first week of October.

How likely would you be to buy a computer, TV, or DVD player knowing that it could monitor your activities and automatically report possible copyright violations to the federal government? That's one of the nightmare scenarios that could evolve from the proposed Security Systems Standards and Certification Act (SSSCA), drafted by Senator Ernest "Fritz" Hollings and strongly backed by Walt Disney Company and other members of the Motion">http://www.mpaa.org">Motion Picture Association of America.

The international music industry is once again singing the blues, and CD burning is the refrain.

John Atkinson wrestles with the fabled YBA">http://www.stereophile.com//amplificationreviews/420/">YBA 2 HC power amplifier to uncover its very essence. Can this meticulous design, engineered (some might say over-engineered) by Yves-Bernard André deliver the audio goods?