For the last several months, the major record labels have been ramping up what some have viewed as a stealth assault on their customers by increasingly deploying technology that restricts the use of audio CDs (see <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11113/">previous</A&gt;). While an increasing number of music fans have been crying foul, one consumer has decided to fight back in court.

My dogs were killing me. It was the end of the second day of the 1985 Summer Consumer Electronics Show, which I was visiting on behalf of English magazine <I>Hi-Fi News & Record Review</I>. I had been dutifully tramping the capacious corridors of Chicago's McCormick Center and the rooms of the (now demolished) McCormick Inn, looking for signs of musical life amid the huge promotion for the 8mm tape format, which was being heavily touted at CES as the future of both video and audio (!) reproduction. Even trade-paper headlines shouting "<I>Audio: Not Just Video Peripheral!</I>" failed to lift my spirits as I took the shuttle bus over to the Americana Congress hotel on South Michigan, where most of the high-end audio companies were hanging out.

For many audiophiles, the reasonably priced "universal" DVD-Audio/SACD/CD player is the magic combination that will trigger a jump into the new high-resolution audio formats. As an answer to those universal player prayers, <A HREF="http://www.wolfsonmicro.com">Wolfson Microelectronics</A>, UK&ndash;based developer of audio ICs for multimedia and communications applications, announced the introduction of two new six-channel audio DAC chips last week&mdash;one of which brings the contentious formats together in one box.

Classical music fans will be happy to learn that Vivendi Universal has decided to give two of its classical labels a state-of-the-art web facelift. <A HREF="http://www.deccaclassics.com">Decca</A&gt; and <A HREF="http://www.philipsclassics.com">Philips Classics</A> are combining their resources and launching a single new site this month designed by trendy web developer Razorfish.

In his review of the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//amplificationreviews/403/">Conrad-Johnson Premier Eleven power amplifier</A>, Wes Phillips comes clean and admits that he loves to be seduced by sound. Phillips writes, "Now, I'm not proposing that we embrace coloration . . . but the removal of all pleasure-producing tonalities doesn't necessarily make for increased realism."

Melville, NY&ndash;based manufacturer <A HREF="http://www.josephaudio.com"&gt; Joseph Audio</A> announced September 1 that the company was "pleased to accept the 'Best Sound at Show' award as determined by the votes of attendees" at the Home Entertainment 2001 event held in May at the NY Hilton. "We're deeply grateful that so many at the show felt that our RM33si Signature at $7500/pair was worthy of such an honor," said company president <A HREF="mailto:Josephaud@aol.com">Jeff Joseph</A>.

Just as the Asian economic crisis a few years ago dealt a big blow to American high-end audio manufacturers, the slowing American economy is causing repercussions for Japanese companies.

The Super Audio CD has won the endorsement of two more major record labels, according to press releases issued the last week of August. The announcements followed by only a few days one by <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11123/">Universal Music Group</A> that it would begin producing the high-resolution recordings for mass distribution.

I'll never forget my first encounter with the Krell LAT-1 loudspeaker. Late one Friday night last fall, on City Island in the Bronx, it was time for the monthly meeting of the Westchester Audiophile Society and I was late. I rushed through the door past a group of audiophiles and headed straight for the two new black loudspeakers already set up and ready to play. Music writer and society member Sid Marks made a sound. I turned to him and he pointed across the room: "Go tap on that enclosure." I walked over to one of the black speakers and did so. There was no sound&mdash;no give, no nothing. It was as if I'd knocked on a granite boulder. "See what I mean?" said Sid. I nodded. There was nothing to add.