While a relative trickle of copy-restricted CDs have been released in the US, European labels have been more likely to experiment with lock-down technology. Russia is battling extreme piracy, as its culture and mass communications minister, Aleksandr Sokolov, reported to his government last week, asserting that pirated wares account for 80–90% of the overall audio and video sales in that country.

Music industry executives widely believe that "ring tones"&mdash;snippets of favorite tunes&mdash;and music downloadable to cell phones will be the next big trend, perhaps one that could help restore some luster to the industry's tarnished bottom line. "Music-related products for PCs and mobile phones are on pace to deliver as much as $500 million in combined revenue in the US for 2004, according to Nielsen SoundScan figures and analysts' projections," reported Brian Garrity in a mid-December issue of <I>Billboard</I>.

Once upon a time, holiday shoppers fought over Cabbage Patch Dolls and Beanie Babies.

<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/231">Paul Barton</A>, founder of PSB Speakers International, is an icon of the North American speaker industry. A talented designer who has for many years produced innovative and cost-effective designs at a range of prices, Barton does not let time stand still, constantly updating and revising his designs. But what makes him unique, in my view, is that, unlike the designers at most North American speaker companies, whose successful affordable designs are trickled down from their more expensive models, Barton, like the British designers, seems to get most of his excitement from his budget lines. His original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/241">PSB Alpha</A> was, in its day, the most significant entry-level speaker made in North America since the original Advents of the 1970s.

<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/231">Paul Barton</A>, founder of PSB Speakers International, is an icon of the North American speaker industry. A talented designer who has for many years produced innovative and cost-effective designs at a range of prices, Barton does not let time stand still, constantly updating and revising his designs. But what makes him unique, in my view, is that, unlike the designers at most North American speaker companies, whose successful affordable designs are trickled down from their more expensive models, Barton, like the British designers, seems to get most of his excitement from his budget lines. His original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/241">PSB Alpha</A> was, in its day, the most significant entry-level speaker made in North America since the original Advents of the 1970s.

<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/231">Paul Barton</A>, founder of PSB Speakers International, is an icon of the North American speaker industry. A talented designer who has for many years produced innovative and cost-effective designs at a range of prices, Barton does not let time stand still, constantly updating and revising his designs. But what makes him unique, in my view, is that, unlike the designers at most North American speaker companies, whose successful affordable designs are trickled down from their more expensive models, Barton, like the British designers, seems to get most of his excitement from his budget lines. His original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/241">PSB Alpha</A> was, in its day, the most significant entry-level speaker made in North America since the original Advents of the 1970s.

<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/231">Paul Barton</A>, founder of PSB Speakers International, is an icon of the North American speaker industry. A talented designer who has for many years produced innovative and cost-effective designs at a range of prices, Barton does not let time stand still, constantly updating and revising his designs. But what makes him unique, in my view, is that, unlike the designers at most North American speaker companies, whose successful affordable designs are trickled down from their more expensive models, Barton, like the British designers, seems to get most of his excitement from his budget lines. His original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/241">PSB Alpha</A> was, in its day, the most significant entry-level speaker made in North America since the original Advents of the 1970s.

<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/231">Paul Barton</A>, founder of PSB Speakers International, is an icon of the North American speaker industry. A talented designer who has for many years produced innovative and cost-effective designs at a range of prices, Barton does not let time stand still, constantly updating and revising his designs. But what makes him unique, in my view, is that, unlike the designers at most North American speaker companies, whose successful affordable designs are trickled down from their more expensive models, Barton, like the British designers, seems to get most of his excitement from his budget lines. His original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/241">PSB Alpha</A> was, in its day, the most significant entry-level speaker made in North America since the original Advents of the 1970s.

New experiences are some of the most pleasurable parts of being an audio reviewer. Despite being involved with the High End for longer than I care to think about, I had never had the experience of owning, living with, or reviewing a pair of electrostatic speakers, be they full-range or hybrid. I'd heard various Quads plenty of times at shows and in the homes of audio buddies, but in my own listening cave? Never.