@inna ~ Someone who’s out of the game for a good while and you advise them to stay away from attending the largest consumer audio and home entertainment show in North America???
I have been attending the audio shows for last couple of years and they are great place to catch up on variety of current topics and latest trends in the audio industry. The electronics / speakers / cables ranging from $2500 - $100K. Where else one would find products from 400 plus companies under one roof.
I strongly recommend anyone to attend these shows before they make any sizable investment in a audio system.