For lifelike audio presentation in your living room, what could be better than the real thing? When it comes to putting the sound of a piano in your home, nothing comes close to, well, a real piano. For more than a century, several companies have marketed player pianos, first using rolls of punched paper, and most recently sophisticated MIDI programs. But if a real piano represents the ultimate audio performance in your living room, who has the ultimate real piano?

<B>JONI MITCHELL: <I>Both Sides Now</I></B><BR> Joni Mitchell, vocals; Wayne Shorter, soprano & tenor sax; Mark Isham, trumpet; Herbie Hancock, piano; Chuck Berghofer, bass; Peter Erskine, drums; Vince Mendoza, arr., cond.<BR>Reprise 47620-2 (HDCD). 2000. Larry Klein, Joni Mitchell, prods.; Geoff Foster, Ben Georgiades, engs. ADD? TT: 51:35<BR> Performance <B>****?</B><BR> Sonics <B>****?</B>

For <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//finetunes/214/">"Fine Tunes" #17</A>, Jonathan Scull presents readers with the ultimate bachelor-pad mod for speaker stands: shiny black trash bags. More important, Scull investigates why we even try these things in the first place.

Next to join the online ATRAC parade, <A HREF="http://www.music.warnerbros.com/">Warner Music Group</A> announced last week that it has agreed to license the ATRAC3 audio compression technology from <A HREF="http://www.sony.co.jp/">Sony</A&gt;, for use in the electronic distribution of music. Warner says it expects to launch its electronic distribution business during the second half of 2000, using ATRAC3 on a non-exclusive basis.

Audiophiles and classical music lovers often risk falling into a repertorial rut. The classical standards are constantly being rerecorded&mdash;often to the point of needless repetition. How many versions of Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony or Ravel's <I>Bolero</I> do you really need? Rather than fill up your shelves with recordings of the same tired compositions, I suggest you look into some of these more obscure pieces&mdash;all of them perfect for playing on the first day of April. Below, a list of fresh "basics" that any good audiophile should own:

Thirty-five years after their heyday, the Beatles remain one of the preeminent phenomena of the modern age. More than 400 books have been written about them, both as a group and as individuals.

Last week, <A HREF="http://www.jbl.com/">JBL Consumer Products</A> (a unit of the <A HREF="www.harman.com">Harman Consumer Systems Group</A>) and Korea's L.G. Electronics (manufacturers of Gold Star and L.G. Electronics brand products) announced that they have entered into a strategic alliance to jointly develop and market a "broad range of new consumer electronics products." The companies say that the partnership "builds upon the respective strengths of both manufacturers" and will enable both companies to expand their offerings into areas outside their traditional product categories.

In an "increasingly complicated and competitive media environment," public broadcasting intends to be there. So declared the <A HREF="http://www.cpb.org/">Corporation for Public Broadcasting</A> on March 30, when it announced an almost $2 million investment in projects for <A HREF="http://www.npr.org/">National Public Radio</A> and Public Interactive. CPB has long held the intellectual high ground in broadcasting, and its new investments are intended to continue that tradition. The goal of the program is to create "new content and services which will broaden the public square of ideas and civic discourse," according to a corporate press release.

I wasn't raised a McIntosh lad. My dad used Fisher, Bogen, Leak, and Ampex tubed electronics&mdash;and, at one time, even home-built speakers&mdash;to keep the house filled with a steady, enriching flow of Mozart. He never owned a Mac component, and, when going upmarket, reached for B&O, alas. So while I knew that many audiophiles hold tubed McIntosh gear&mdash;especially the early designs&mdash;in very high regard, I was somehow never bitten or smitten. But let's face it&mdash;for lo these many years, McIntosh has been for many <I>the</I> name in quality American audio. Take my friend Dan, to whom I've referred several times in the pages of <I>Stereophile</I>. He runs a tubed Conrad-Johnson 9 preamplifier, but wouldn't <I>dream</I> of giving up his 270Wpc solid-state McIntosh MC7270. He's goldurn proud of it!