Give an engineering team a blank page and a blank check and there's no telling what they'll come up with. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, for example, one company showed a <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//digitalsourcereviews/430/">$25,000 CD transport</A> with laser-pickup mechanism that was separate from its disc drive&mdash;almost the cosmic equivalent of having the sun revolve around the earth.

Give an engineering team a blank page and a blank check and there's no telling what they'll come up with. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, for example, one company showed a <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//digitalsourcereviews/430/">$25,000 CD transport</A> with laser-pickup mechanism that was separate from its disc drive&mdash;almost the cosmic equivalent of having the sun revolve around the earth.

Give an engineering team a blank page and a blank check and there's no telling what they'll come up with. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, for example, one company showed a <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//digitalsourcereviews/430/">$25,000 CD transport</A> with laser-pickup mechanism that was separate from its disc drive&mdash;almost the cosmic equivalent of having the sun revolve around the earth.

<I>This letter from Mike Pageau appeared in the April 2001 issue, and triggered the following "As We See It" essay:</I>

<I>This letter from Mike Pageau appeared in the April 2001 issue, and triggered the following "As We See It" essay:</I>

Having the Philips SACD1000 in my system promoted me to spill some ink about the Sony SCD-777ES. In the months I've had this SACD player in my system, my experience of music has been enhanced to the point where I feel more and more confident about the aural judgments I'm called on to make&mdash;because I'm convinced that I'm listening to a digital source on which I can bet the ranch.

A recent email soliciting acquisition partners has given rise to a rumor that George Tice is leaving audio. "Far from it," said the AC power-conditioning pioneer from his Jupiter, FL office. "I want to accomplish three things: move this company to the next level; devote more of my energy to research and engineering; and spend more time with my family." These goals are going to require a well-organized team effort, he insists.

You know the trouble with show reports? You read them after the show. So let me give you a brief report on Home Entertainment 2001 before the Show.

Large companies may be chopping jobs by the thousands, but there are signs elsewhere that the economy is still booming. Recent figures from electronics retailers <A HREF="http://www.bestbuy.com/">Best Buy</A> and the <A HREF="http://www.tweeter.com/">Tweeter Home Entertainment Group</A> and from <A HREF="http://www.sel.sony.com/SEL">Sony Electronics</A> indicate only a partial slowdown in spending for quality audio/video gear.