Well, here goes, I hope I don’t offend too many people!!............

 Cambridge.
  In the past, Cambridge were always very good value for the money, often trouncing some of the icons of the upper mid-fi market.  But certainly if you took the top off, as some of us are wont to do, usual comment was “----yes, but they sound good!!”
 Now, not only do they sound much better than before (really!), they also look so good inside, that I want to get plexiglass covers for my dealers to use, so elegant are they internally!! I know of no CD player under $1000 Cdn.,( that’s $5 U.S.) that is any better than the D-300 ($450), and most don’t even come close!
 The amps are equally impressive, and their new AC-3 processor looks to be a winner for the “ low, low price of, not $1500!, not even $1000! but a mere $750!!”

 Transparent.
  This company seems to be on to a winner with their new bulk and
 in-wall cables (5 in all), that span the range from $2.60/ ft. to $24/ ft. The beauty of this concept is that networks are available for each type of cable, allowing much more freedom in custom installations, and the option of adding the networks later, if need be. Ask your dealer to show you some examples.

 Mordaunt-Short
  M.S. soldiering along quietly in the background since their acquisition by Julian Richer (Cambridge Audio) and the hiring of the designer of the much-loved (and missed!) 05,10,20i, etc., David Jeffries, are just about to hit the market with some stunning new product. (see M.S. website). In the meantime, they’ve re-introduced the M 20i, Pearl as the MS 90, exactly the same speaker, but $100 less! Available now.

 The rest of the story--------
  The Chord Company, never ones to rest on their laurels, have some interesting new products, both interconnects and speaker wire, see website for details.
  MartinLogan have just shipped the new, and sexy, Prodigy. Words fail me with this, go check-out the website on previous page! Most dealers in this part of Canada have ordered a pair or two (Really!!)
 J.M.labs have just released a woofer spider upgrade ( 0.1) to the Electra 915 and 920, making them even faster in the lower registers, and of course, the Utopia’s are now a complete range of speakers with the addition of purpose-made Home Theatre products, the Micro’s, Centre’s, Sub’s and, ‘yes’ , Utopia In-Wall’s !!!
 Audio Refinement and Y.B.A. have both released A/V products. I’ll give you more details later (websites??). And while Naim Audio will likely never go in that direction, I’m sure that for those for whom sound quality is paramount, their new NAP 500 power amp and fabulous NBL speakers will be found in more than one Home Theatre system!! Later------------