September 8, 2007

A sideways "M", a tornado, or the logo for...

Every company thinks its interconnects are special, but these from MIT really are. They incorporate the company's new MPC connector -- essentially a miniaturized MIT network that fits into the connector itself. MIT has not set a price for the MPC yet, but expects to be selling them very soon.

How do you match a center-channel speaker with floorstanders that use an exotic ribbon tweeter? You use that same driver in the center-channel, which is what Verity Audio has done with its new EXR Center ($17,000), a sonic match for the the company's Sarastro and Lohengrin II. [www.verityaudio.com]

No, a faceplate hasn't fallen off a chassis. This sleek unit is ExactPower's latest power-line filter, the EPDS, which costs $550 or $650 depending on configuration. [www.exactpower.com]

Simaudio goes down in price but keeps the quality high with the CD-1 CD player (top) and i-1 50Wpc integrated amp. Both cost $1500 and have a ten-year electronics warranty. [www.simaudio.com]

Joe Kane, of Video Essentials fame, helped create the Samsung SP-A800, a single-chip DLP projector that was designed "to emulate a broadcast monitor." When available, it will cost under $10,000. It produced a stunning black-and-white image -- often the hardest for a projector to handle well.