low light

[baul07]

I own an Olympus c-750, using it mainly for taking
pics of a blues band that I am sound engineer for.
Not a half bad camera, but also not great in low light
which is most of where I shoot. Though I do like the 10x zoom.
Sometimes I use flash but it kills the mood.
My main upgrade would be less lag time on the shutter.
So, what P+S in the $400 range have the best low light response
and least lag time? Perhaps something with a hot shoe so the flash can be deflected would help.

Thanks

[David Metsky]

For P&S you have to look at the Fujis with the SuperCCD. That means the F40, F50, S6000, S9000, F100fs, or S100fd. They will have better low light performance then any other P&S cameras. The S100fd is probably the best choice (but reviews aren't in yet) except it is outside of your price range. If you can find one, an old S6000 would be an excellent choice. It lacks IS but you should be able to shoot at high enough ISO to compensate.