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Working at Sound & Vision, we sometimes wonder if the artists who make the music and movies we play on our tweaked-out systems have the same gear fetish we do. When we heard that the Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch had asked the prestigious Criterion DVD label to work with him on a collection of the trio's music videos, we suspected he might be a kindred spirit.

You probably already know that good speakers are essential to putting together a high-quality stereo or multichannel music system or home theater. You can invest several months' mortgage payments in first-rate audio/video components, but without good speakers you're simply not going to hear your system's full potential.

In the wake of Napster, movie studios are even more gun-shy about releasing new content without a digital chastity belt in place. Responding to calls for additional copy protection security from content owners and content providers concerned about the potential unlimited distribution of digital files over the Internet, <A HREF="http://www.thomson-multimedia.com">Thomson multimedia</A> says it is re-introducing its SmartRight system, which the company describes as a method of "robust content protection that could possibly operate as a secure layer to supplement less complete current approaches."

Lack of HDTV programming and uncertainties about interface standards have caused Hitachi to hold off on introducing any new fully integrated HDTV sets. In late May, <A HREF="www.hitachi.com">Hitachi Home Electronics America</A> announced its new UltraVision Digital line of television products, including 9 new rear-projection HDTV monitors, but there are no fully integrated sets or set-top boxes (STBs) among them.