the overriding impression I gained was that IASCA moves VERY slowly in implementing change

Yeah, I guess I can understand that, in a way. Their ultimate goal is to encourage the sale of in-car audio equipment, and it wouldn't make a lot of sense from their viewpoint to change their competition rules to accommodate the 1/100 of one percent (probably not even that many) of IASCA competitors who wish to use empegs in competition.

[self-pity]
I guess my best option will be to work with my portable CD player and the auxilliary inputs on the empeg and try to get proper sound quality that way. But it seems unfortunate to have to rely on the DAC in a $130 portable CD player operating on AA batteries when I have the superb empeg sitting in the car that by all logic should produce a much better sound.
[/self-pity]

I do get to use the empeg's parametric equalizer with the auxilliary inputs, don't I? Yes, of course I do. So I guess that will make up for some of the deficiencies in the portable player.

Sigh....

tanstaafl.

"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"