Despite the almost daily news reports that some music company has found a way to make people pay for music over the Internet, the fact is that very few people have done so. Most people who are getting their music on the Net are getting it free and like it that way---regardless of the quality. A survey released June 9 and funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts---a long-term supporter of National Public Radio---appears to validate this common observation.

Tired of the controversy over whether expensive audio cables might make a difference in your system? The best approach would likely be to try a few sets with your own equipment and room and see for yourself. But cost has prevented more than a few audiophiles from spending quality time with the pricey stuff.

Sure, we review a lot of big-bucks equipment in <I>Stereophile</I>, but readers constantly remind us to try the cheaper stuff as well. John Atkinson does exactly that in his review of the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/239/">Acoustic Energy Aegis One loudspeaker</A>. As JA puts it, "Acoustic Energy has introduced the Aegis One; its price is one-tenth that of the AE1 in its current, Signature guise. Does the Aegis One live up to what its heritage promises? I asked the company's US distributor, Audiophile Systems, to send me a pair so I could find out."

The <A HREF="http://www.napster.com/">Napster</A&gt; saga continues: Last week the Silicon Valley&ndash;based firm, which has been very successful with its MP3 file-sharing software, reinstated approximately 30,000 music fans who had signed online affidavits attesting that they had been mistakenly accused of appropriating songs by rock group Metallica. Those reinstated were slightly less than 10% of the 317,000 Napster users who had been booted from the system on May 3 as a result of legal attacks by Metallica.

Waiting for the Holy Grail of DVD-Audio? Even with players still distant on the horizon, one can now begin building a DVD-Audio music library with discs compatible with current DVD-Video players. At least that's the strategy offered at the recent High End 2000 show in Frankfurt, Germany this past week.

The trend of computers redefining the price/performance ratio for digital audio shows no signs of slowing down. A new PCI-slot soundcard has been released by <A HREF="http://www.digitalconnection.com">Digital Connection</A> that could help change preconceived notions about the level of sound quality achievable from a computer. The $295 DC Pro 24/96 enables a brand-new function for the PC, playback of DTS 5.1 music CDs, as well as support for 24-bit/96kHz playback and recording, currently available only on high-end soundcards such as the CardDeluxe from Digital Audio Labs and the RME DigiPro/8.

Tito Puente, the "Mambo King" who fused jazz with Latin rhythms, died Wednesday, May 31 at New York University's Medical Center from complications following heart surgery. Puente was 77.

With multichannel DVD-Audio just around the corner, the surround-sound debate among audiophiles is starting anew. But how far have we come with surround sound in 30 years? J. Gordon Holt wrote "<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//asweseeit/235/">Bye Bye, Quadrifi?</A>" back in 1971, in which he explored the same dilemmas faced by today's audiophile.