Good question. I bet "other" is more likely, just because of the delays that the R-972 has suffered through.
Definitely seems true. The construction industry has its own challenges, but nothing quite as dramatic as the consumer electronics industry.
Consumer expectations, probably worsened by some weaknesses in consumer education. Too many people shop by feature list, and deviating radically from the traditional feature lists is a risky gamble. Look at reviews for the BDP-83 and see how many comment on the lack of Netflix or other streaming support - all of which relate to the absence of heavily-compressed feeds from the feature set of an HD video disc player. For surround processors, it's likely compounded by economic factors. For example, a standalone room correction unit would need to have good enough ADC/DAC hardware to be sonically transparent, and it would need to be paired with separates - it couldn't be used with a standard receiver. That makes for a limited market, and one that will be more demanding of that ADC/DAC hardware. Plus it would need the same sort of processing resources that a surround receiver or processor needs, so you are buying a pretty substantial DSP chip twice. You also may need to provide a video output so you have a convenient setup OSD. And don't forget a remote so you can set it up from the couch and make setup changes on the fly. All of a sudden, you've duplicated 80% or more of the hardware you'd need for a surround processor.

What about separating audio and video processing? It's a good idea, and if the industry had gone with IEEE-1394 (FireWire) for audio and DVI for video it would have been fairly practical. With HDMI, though, the two signal paths are trapped inside a single cable. That makes it more complex to separate the two. It can be done, but you basically have to run everything through the audio processor and then pass video on to a separate video processor. Not easy to do - it ends up being cheaper to do it all in a single chassis. In some ways, you could argue that HDMI is a big reason for surround processors starting to do everything. Another reason to be frustrated with HDMI...

There are instances where "do-everything" can be reasonably scaled back. I would rather see a media client/server stay separate from a surround processor, for example. Sure, the hardware may be robust enough that it's capable of acting as a media client for a server of some sort (DLNA perhaps) or even streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, or YouTube. That doesn't mean it's a good idea, though.

Why can't someone build a simple device which splits HDMI out to DVI and analog. Does it have something to do with HDCP?

It could be done, but not easily.

All the data in HDMI (audio and video) is digitally encoded. The audio data is interleaved with the video and control data (packets) and sent to the receiving device. The clock signal sent over HDMI allows the receiver to sync up with the data bits BUT this clock CAN'T be used to play the audio. The HDMI receiver uses a process called Audio Clock Regeneration to retrive the audio clock from the HDMI clock.

There's chips availalbe to do all this.

Problem is, after you convert the HDMI video signal, what do you do with the audio? convert it to optical or SPDIF? that's taking a potentially 7.1 signal and reducing it to 5.1. Not a big deal for most of us that haven't seen a lot of benifit from 7.1,but there's always the the exception, and those buying from feature lists are a large part of that excepion.
I would agree that there's probly a place in the market for such a product, but it probably isn't very large.

Kind of have to go to analog...

Basically, this device becomes a hybrid of an HDMI switch and a multichannel DAC with some audio switching capability upstream of the DAC, and unless you want to turn it into a full-blown surround processor you need all sources to do internal decoding so they always output PCM. Do you then also add bass management? Tough call. There is a market for it, although the presence of a universal disc player like the BDP-83 probably shrinks it severely - after all, the only formats with audio that can't fall back on coaxial and optical digital connections are DVD-Audio, SACD, Blu-ray, and HD-DVD. Of those, two are niche-market products, one it dead in the marketplace after having been utterly abandoned by its supporters, and one is steadily growing. By purchasing a single player that can do DVD-A, SACD, and BD, you can then hook it to your single multichannel analog input and fall back on coaxial or optical for every other source you have. Having an option like that probably makes it harder to sell an "HDMI to DVI/analog" box unless it could be built for just a couple hundred bucks. Considering the small market (and thus the small volume), I doubt that's a practical price point.

An Outlaw sub equalization product to rival SVS as-eq1?

As long as this has turned into a what if and why thread, I have a question regarding prices of equipment. Back in the late 90's I bought a Sony ES receiver for about $350. It worked well, but was limited to Dolby Pro Logic. It was at that point I discovered Outlaw Audio and the Model 1050. At the time, the $600 price tag was a little tough to swallow, but I took a chance and how sweet it was (still is actually) when I got it all set up. Next came the LFM-1. Again, a little more than what I really wanted to spend, but I knew I'd be getting a great piece of equipment and Outlaw did not disappoint.

The caboose on my long winded train of thought is, will Outlaw offer any more mid-range priced equipment? I was really interested in the 1070 when it came out, but at a price of over $1000, I couldn't swing it. The thought of separates are intriguing and the amps seem to be a good value, but the Pre/Pro's started out around $1000 (if memory serves). I see I can get a 2 year old 970, but it still costs $700. (Not to mention the $1450 Onkyo)

I hope I'm not coming off as whiny (apologies if I am), but I just wonder if that price point is something that can still be hit by the Outlaws. I'm still a huge supporter of Outlaw products and have recommended them often. Most recently my boss built a home theater and I talked him into spending a little more than he planned and getting the LFM-1 EX and he has been blown away. However, he ended up spending $650 on an all-in-one receiver by someone else because Outlaw didn't have anything in that price range.

I understand that the business moves rapidly and is very competitive and if the answer is that Outlaw just can't compete at that price point, then my question is answered. It's just something that's been on my mind lately and I thought I'd ask. (Ulterior motive is that the 1050 is going to need to be replaced sometime )

Todd

I have been wondering for sometime now if there will be a replacement for the 970/1070 platform - both were good values at the time (especially when they were on sale). Currently I use a reciever as a pre/pro and it works well, however, I would have preferred an actual pre/pro similar to the 970 but with some more modern features (and fewer quirks). While my gear works, I also hold out to see what Outlaw will be offering in terms of a new reciever and for some odd reason a new pre/pro. I just can't see the long awaited 997 being on the market for very long - way too many problems and it has not even been released.

I thought the Model 1070 was $900, and the Model 970 started out at $700 but was down to $550 when they sold out. The 990 sells now for $700 (a big drop from the original $1100 price).

All that said, I do see your point. I think there is an opportunity for a product in the 970's niche. A sub-$600 receiver in today's market is probably not going to appeal to Outlaw: that area belongs to folks like Onkyo, and unlike ten years ago it is now a difficult market segment to innovate in or otherwise differentiate yourself. A $600 or $700 surround processor, though, is a market with less competition and probably more opportunity to succeed. We've also got to consider inflation - the $600 that the 1050 cost when it debuted nine or ten years ago would no longer be $600 today, between inflation and significant changes to cost of steel and copper.

Well I am suppose to leave for the CES show on Thursday with a friend of mine but since he has pneumonia since last Friday I am up in air as to whether we will be going.
We have until Wednesday noon to make a final decision.

More fluids, more fluids.