I have one concern that I haven't seen addressed: what is the financial hit that Outlaw is taking because of the 997 delayed release? With the "defections" I've read about (probably just the tip of the iceberg) I'm guessing there is some serious handwringing going on.

I think I've noticed a big increase in promotions and discounts this year, a bit unusual for a direct sales company who claims a smaller markup than companies using a multilevel marketing channel. I also found their partnering with other companies surprising, possibly also a last ditch effort to improve sales without making much of an investment.

In today's financial market, I suspect that two factors have come together to make life difficult for Outlaw: lower sales due to credit card issues for customers, and borrowing restraints for the company itself to make up for a possible lack of cash flow.

I have wondered about these things because I have a warranty issue with my 990 and haven't had the time to pull it and send it back. I don't doubt for a minute that OL is doing everything in its power to bring the 997 to reality. I hope their efforts are enough.

We don't know what impact the 997 delays have created. The whole industry has been having a tough year or two, of course, so the timing can't be great. On the other hand, surround processors are not the only product Outlaw offers. As for the partnerships, I'd offer a couple observations. One, Atlantic Technology is indirectly tied to Outlaw. I don't think any ownership overlaps, but management does: Peter Tribeman is president of both companies. The Vudu deal is unusual, certainly, but not unprecedented. When they were looking into subwoofer equalization they elected to sell Velodyne's SMS-1 because it wasn't worth trying to re-package a perfectly good niche product. Vudu is the same way: too expensive by far for them to develop something similar in-house, and not worth the hassle to try to develop a variant of the Vudu player.

I'm not sure how indicative it is of overall sales, but the number of postings in these forums is a trickle compared to what it was a couple of years ago. The delay of what I'd consider to be one of their flagship products can't be helping.

Forum traffic has always fluctuated some. I'm sure a new surround processor would create a big upswing on chatter. Some of the biggest sources of activity have been setup questions for new surround processors, as they involve the most complexity and thus the most questions. Amps, speakers, and subs are easier to set up and less likely to cause folks to come into the forum to ask questions, and mature products like the 990 probably generate less activity because there's such a large information resource in the form of old posts. So those could be selling extremely well and we wouldn't see much forum traffic as a result.

I think a lot of potential buyers of the 997 are just tired of hearing about a machine which might not be out for Xmas. Has the 60 day clock even started yet? I agree that the economy has probably put a damper on peoples desire to follow a machine they may not be able to afford no matter how it is priced. Some will move on to the other platforms but some of us who do not need the machine right now are waiting, patiently. If the 997 did not have Trinnov and HDMI processing, I would have moved on. As it is, I have a spare 7500 sitting here in its box waiting for the 997 to show up. It would be nice to get some update as to whether the clock is running or if the 997 beta testing is progressing as expected. Onkyo is doing their best to ensure that they capture as much market share as possible.

We are soon approaching one year from the announcement of the 997. Outlaw has only given two official updates and maybe a few informal posts since that time. Hard to believe they're going to start a more active dialogue about what's going on with the 997 at this point. We can't even get a picture of the darn thing! I too have been waiting for Outlaw primarily for the Trinnov processor. I just wish I knew how much longer I must wait...

the economy is a given and even getting new products 'right' is another...

I'm with tkntz ... by this time i would think the front layout is 90% complete.

A picture/image is not much to ask for....

Later,
Mark

The front panel would be 100% complete at this stage, I'd expect.

I also don't think it's helping any with Stereojeff over on the AVS forum making repeated statements of when the 972 (as well as the 997) is to be released with nothing happening. I think at this point to several forum members over there his words are probably considered dubious at best and probably hanging by a thread.

I'm just waiting for the heyday if it reaches Sept. 1 and the 972 still isn't available. I do have to admit I'm probably going to miss the drama on that thread. Rather like a train wreck. Gastly to look at but hard to tear your eyes away!

Wow. Outlaw is selling the 886 now? How weird is that? Even weirder, I started contacting sellers today to get prices on an 886 since I was tired of waiting for the 997.

Vurrrryyyy Eeeeennnteresting