I too went with an Onkyo 9.9. I'm still curious too see how the 997 turns out though.

I'm in capital preservation mode right now so there's no hurry for me. My audio upgrade plans for the year are the BDP-83 and the 997.

Rob

How have you liked it? I'm still on the fence on which pre pro to get. The ones on my short list are the 990 and 997 of course, along with that integra 9.9 and the marantz 8003.

A local high end dealer that carries the 9.9 will be having a special family pricing invitation only sale next week where that 9.9 will be available for a better price than normal. I should probably make up my mind before then.

I spent most of the evening reading through various AVS forums on the DHC 9.9 . After also reading through the outlaw forums over the last week or so, one conclusion I can make is that Outlaw is far superior in giving tech support and warranty work than is Onkyo.

One more important item to add to the decision making task. I think if the 997 was available now, my decision would be cut and dried.

Yeah, I won't buy another Onkyo pre-pro. And from what one friend has told me, the 9.9 does not do two channel very well.

If the 997 was available now, it would have been a no brainier for me as well. Like most of you, I have nothing but the highest praise for the equipment and the few times I had to contact Outlaw support, I was never disappointed.

However, Outlaw has it's hands tied with being at the mercy of SN. I understand the delay for the product and can only pray that the end result lives up to the hype. In the mean time, I went with the Onkyo 886 and it has performed flawlessly so far. The fact that I got it at a price that was comparably to what the new 997 would have cost me on it's introduction is what sealed it for me. So for now, I am enjoying the full updated audio codecs, video processing and the Audyssey which works well in my small HT.

I am looking forward to the introduction of the 997 and the early reviews. we just don't know when it will be and I need to move on to other things at this time. For those that can stay strong, I commend you, I tried, but I couldn't pass this one up...

Outlaw can take as long as they need to get it right. I for one don't want a half baked pre-pro just because others are on the street. Another facet is how long the Onkyo, Denon and Marantz warranties are and what response you get when you need it.

We do live in a microwave society. We all want whatever the latest thing is and we want it now. It is frustrating that a product that was supposed to be released by early January 2009 may not be offered prior to the 3Q of 2009. Impatience often leads to poor decisions. I've learned that with other purchases I've made in the past. Why settle for something that is less than what you hoped for only because you couldn't wait?

I've heard some suggest that this product will be obsolete by the time it moves to market. That is somewhat obsurd. From year to year, the "D's" and "O's" of the world just re-package their existing platforms without offering any real improvements to the products. There are no other products that offer Trinnov. There will be no other products (save the S/N R-972) that will offer Trinnov prior to the 997. Its not like there is some other great new innovation coming in the next year to make the 997 obsolete. Maybe you don't care about Trinnov. That's fine.

As for me? I will wait. To each his own.

All very valid points to be sure. There are many factors that go into purchasing decision. The warranty factor is not number one on my list, but it is still up there. Of course a long term or lifetime warranty isn't worth much if the company isn't around to service it. No, I am not implying that Outlaw is in trouble, but I do recall having bought a set of Genesis II+ Speakers in the early 80's that had a lifetime warranty. They are no longer around, so I had to fix them at my expense. I do fear for technological innovation in the current state of the world economy. I guess a lot of product lines will be playing it close to the vest until things improve.

The other side of the coin is that things change so rapidly that everything that is produced and on the market is obsolete anyways. I bought a Blu ray and now question that move based on the evolving video market. In my case, I am enjoying the new prepro now and that is what counts. Workarounds work to a point, otherwise there would be no need for innovation or the updating existing products.

Besides, I have a 2 year warranty on my prepro and I would surmise that in that timeframe, a better product may emerge anyways. I only had my 990 for 2 years and now it will be in the hands of a new owner soon.

My timer expired on waiting for the 997 because the alternative became a viable alternative. That is all it is.

Who knows. I may still get one if the planets all get in line the right way for me in the future.

Until then, I will enjoy the music while I can...

According to the sales guys at Sherwood Newcastle, their R972 product (which is the basis for the Outlaw product...although it's a receiver, not just a pre/processor) isn't going to be available until sometime in April. So I'll hazard a guess and say that we won't see the 997 until May/June.

So I'll probably give my old 990 to my folks and either get the Sherwood R972 when it becomes available (and use it with my existing Outlaw 755 amp until I've got the money/energy to upgrade that too) or just bite the bullet now and get something from either "O" or "D". I need more digital video inputs.

Sorry, I couldn't remember my old password so I created a new userID.

Cheers,

Ritz