I often see comments in various publications and Internet newsgroups that state, "One has to be careful when reading reviews on the Internet." Typically this statement is not explained, leaving me wondering which reviews they are talking about and why. A consumer should use reviews as only one aspect of the decision-making process. It is one way to gather some relevant information through an informed opinion; it’s not the end-all judgment as to what one should buy. There are good review publications in both print format and on the Internet.

Home Theater & Sound prides itself on being one of the most accurate, whatever the medium. So while I would agree that one has to "be careful," I would also ask the reader to research the publication a bit, read the reviews and the editorial policies of the magazine, and be just as choosy with their reading material as they are with the equipment they buy. To help you get to know us better, I thought it would be helpful to tell you a bit about our staff. We want you to get to know us so that we may help guide you in the occasionally confusing world of home theater.

Roger Kanno was a home-theater enthusiast long before the market really took off with the advent of DVD. He has a thorough knowledge of both the technical side of the hobby and ample real-world experience with a vast array of products. He has an astute ear polished by performing reviews for SoundStage! long before Home Theater & Sound was an entity.

John Potis has had probably more speaker systems in his home than anyone I know. His experience base is clearly superior to most. He has listened to, examined, tweaked, and enjoyed a vast amount of gear and the movies and music it reproduces. His background as a chef should tell you he is picky. I can tell you he leaves no stone unturned when reviewing for Home Theater & Sound.

Wes Phillips established himself as a worldwide expert on consumer electronics and high-end audio in the pages of Stereophile. He has since moved on to a sister publication of ours, onhifi.com, where he acts as the senior editor. His observations are astute, carefully communicated, and right on the money. You’ll be seeing more from him soon.

Doug Blackburn will go to any length to root out the true measure of a review sample or a technical dilemma. He is thorough in his examination of the technical performance as well as the sound of a component. Doug is unique because he has the grounded realizations of an engineer but doesn’t discount clearly audible characteristics that occur without an obvious apparent explanation.

Jeff Van Dyne and Vince Hanada both come to us from other publications. They have valuable experience in the review process and are both serious home-theater enthusiasts. Another important characteristic they share is the real-world perspective necessary to review lower-cost components. In today’s market, excellent performance can be had for a surprisingly reasonable sum of money. These guys know what to look for. Vince and Jeff will uncover some of this equipment for the readers of Home Theater & Sound.

Wes Marshall sports probably the largest software collection of anyone I know. He continually impresses with the seemingly obscure movie facts that make it into his reviews and Collector’s Corner column. This wealth of information will be seen in both his DVD and equipment reviews. I hope you find it as entertaining as I do.

Anthony DiMarco is the newest kid on the block. With a day job in video editing and a movie project he is producing, Anthony has a firm technical grasp on movie making. This knowledge is expertly manifested in his DVD and equipment reviews.

He Jung Kim is one of our most astute movie reviewers. Although she is taking a break right now, you can find her observant, valuable contributions in our movie review archives. She is still involved in the day-to-day production of our publication (as proofreader and HTML coder), and I personally hope to see her current thoughts on movies in print again soon.

And as part of our support staff, we have Christine Thompson copyediting. She contributes mightily to the polished, professional text you read each month. Also, creating our covers is our graphic artist Karen Fanas. I’m continually amazed at what she can produce from seemingly little to work with.

Leading the SoundStage! Network is publisher Doug Schneider and editor-in-chief Marc Mickelson. They both expect excellence and accuracy, and their vision continues to guide us toward the most complete publication we can produce.