Three Days of Equipment, Music, and Advice Only Weeks Away

Just about a month away, HI-FI '98, The Home Theater & Specialty Audio Show, will interest thousands of audio enthusiasts when it visits The Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel in Los Angeles, California from Wednesday, June 10 to Sunday, June 14, 1998.

"We intend to have several rooms at HI-FI '98 dedicated to demonstrations of DVD-Audio and HDTV," noted Larry Archibald, Chairman of Stereophile, Inc., HI-FI '98's sponsor. "The DVD demonstrations will expose customers to direct comparisons of Compact Disc, long-playing record, and the new 24-bit/96kHz DVD-based audio formats that will open their ideas as to the fabulously greater fidelity available from a higher-bandwidth digital format. HDTV, which will be first broadcast in the fall of this year, will be as major a transformation of television as the changeover from black-and-white to color that took place in the 1960s. The excitement and superior quality of HDTV will be fully visible to all attendees at HI-FI '98."

The five-day event is open to the public for three days (June 12-14). Highlights of the Consumer Days will include multiple concerts each day; stimulating seminars; breakthrough product demonstrations, including HDTV consumer demonstrations; and other exciting events. Event and exhibitor lists are available at the HI-FI '98 website.

"We are putting on exciting, interactive demonstrations and exhibits to provide compelling reasons for consumers to attend," added Show Director Maura Rieland. "Visitors can bring their own music to audition the best equipment on the market; seek advice on how to build a new system or upgrade the one they own; attend concerts; and meet industry legends. They'll be able to see over $2 million worth of equipment in one showcase. It's the one event that lets you do it all for less than the price of a concert ticket!"

Show organizers have once again dedicated the first two days of the Show, June 10 and 11, to trade and press attendance. These Academy Trade Days, sponsored by The Academy Advancing High Performance Audio & Video, are designed to provide exhibitors with the opportunity to conduct business directly with retailers and distributors. The Academy's Music & Film Seminars will run June 9th and 10th, offering educational and technical seminars to the trade.

Currently HI-FI '98 has confirmed that 198 exhibiting companies will demonstrate over 300 brands. Show exhibitors set up the equipment in their rooms with the intention of accurately creating an acoustic environment for audio and home-theater demonstrations that can be appreciated by all attendees, regardless of their level of sophistication.

"Attendees go to the Show to see things they've never seen before and hear things they may never hear again. They actively participate in demonstrations, even voting on the 'Best Sound of Show.' There is truly something for everyone to enjoy," concluded Archibald.

Three-day tickets are now on sale for $25 in advance. They will be $35 at the door. One-day tickets will be available for $20 either in advance or at the door. Tickets are available online, or by contacting HI-FI '98 Show Management at P.O. Box 5529, Santa Fe, NM 87502, or by calling (505) 992-6600.

Show management has also announced that HI-FI '99, the 13th Home Theater & Specialty Audio Show, will take place at the elegant Palmer House Hilton in Chicago, Illinois, from Wednesday, May 12 to Sunday, May 16, 1999.

"Over the past few years both exhibitors and attendees have voiced their interest in having the HI-FI Show visit Chicago," stated Maura Rieland, HI-FI '99 Show Director. "We are excited about the prospect of a downtown Chicago show. After extensive searching and negotiations, we've assembled what promises to be a very rewarding event for the exhibitors and the public."

The Palmer House Hilton provides HI-FI '99 exhibitors with 1639 guest rooms and 88 suites for spacious exhibit rooms and sleeping accommodations. The exhibit floors offer distinctive, well-designed rooms with generous dimensions and high ceilings to complement audio/video auditions. The seven Show floors have spacious corridors that are accessible via a bank of elevators and stairwells.

From Friday, May 14 to Sunday, May 16, 1999, HI-FI '99 will offer three days of the worldÆs finest hi-fi and home-theater equipment for the public to experience and audition. During the Consumer days, the Show will host the live concerts that HI-FI Shows have become famous for, along with educational seminars such as "Meet the Designers" and "Ask the Editors."

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