wrote:

Now... Searching the 'net I am having a hard time finding information
about what brands are available. I used to LOVE the old AUDIO
Magazine
Annual Equipment Directory, because it gave an excellent summary of
what was available in the marketplace.

Is such a Directory currently being published? If so, which magazine?
Also, iis there a similar overview available online? All I can find
are
links to various online dealers.

Both Sound & Vision and Stereophile publish annual directories akin to
the old Audio guide. They come out in early fall, generally, so you may
not find them on the newstand now. I'm not sure either is available
online, but you should try both sites (www.soundandvisionmag.com and
www.stereophile.com).

This is the sort of thing that would be a natural for the Web, except
that nobody's figured out a way to make money on it. For mainstream
gear, searching at a big retailer like www.jr.com will give you a good
selection, though not everything. For true high-end brands (which may
or may not be any better, BTW), it's pretty much hunt-and-peck.

bob