Series 4

Luciano del Rio is the designer of the Nightingale line of electronics. He poses next to a pair of his ATS-90 monoblocks ($12,995), which use 7581A output tubes to deliver 90 watts each.

Jeff Smith, the man behind Silversmith cables, poses in front of the new wheelcover for his Jeep -- a gift from his girlfriend. We reporters dig for every little piece of news!

Gilmore Audio had some great bass in their room -- in the form of Abraham Laboriel solos. Wes Phillips thought the Gilmore audio speaker pictured behind Mr. Laboriel had great bass as well.

Kazutoshi Yamada of Zanden Audio holds the machined aluminum clamp from his new Model 2000 transport (price to be determined). Mr. Yamada does all of the circuit and physical design of his products -- quite an accomplishment given how good Zanden products look and sound. [www.zandenaudio.com]

ESP speakers are back. Designer Sean McGaughan poses in front of his new Concert Grand SI ($22,500 per pair).

For the second year in a row, Magnepan set up a very effective low-cost multichannel-music and home-theater demo with no speakers on the floor. And for the second year in a row, we marveled at the company's ingenuity in demonstrating its products in this way in a hotel room. [www.magnepan.com]

The Sharp Aquos displays (above and below) were impressive with both their picture quality and display configurations. The model in the picture above is the LC-37W5K 37" LCD monitor, which is available in a variety of finishes. Price is to be announced.