2. I am impatiently waiting

I understand and appreciate Outlaw's decision not to release a product with existing performance issues. That doesn't mean 2 years + is easy to take. Ever since the 997 was 1st mentioned I have been waiting for that "place your order" email.

I'm about a "1.5". Definitely will be in the market, but unwilling buy unless the 997 is really woth it. I'm patiently waiting for the 997 to come out and I'm hoping it is a truly killer product.

I'm a "1" with a giant caveat that I want to upgrade my speakers first then add a second sub, all of which will have to wait a while because the wife and I bought a boat at the Detroit Boat Show last month.

The boat has a decent sound system though. Any plans for a dash mount, 2.1 channel Outlaw with a 6-disc changer?

Put me down as a 2.

I'm currently living with a Rotel RSP-1068 and RMB-1075. The RSP has lost its left front channel. If/when I get it fixed, it will be the second time I've had to send it back to Rotel to be serviced. I've been pretty happy with this Rotel setup but the fact that it doesn't handle HDMI has proved itself to be a big limitation. I like to watch streaming movies on my PS3 and the only way to preserve the AC3 audio is either to connect HDMI from your PS3 to your processor or jump through multiple hoops, repackaging the video file.

In addition, I'm quite anxious to see if Trinnov can better calibrate my speaker settings.

I have an LFM-1 which I love. My neighbors even feel it from time to time. C'mon Outlaw, please get this thing rolling!

Mike

I'll have to go with a:

3. I am on the fence right now

I had been very happy at a #1 for the longest time until the BDP-83SE came around. I was living in wait for HDMI control and my desire to try out Trinnov. The Oppo has me quite happy now with all things audio in the analog world. My scoring will change should my 950 finally decide to say good-bye. My new direction then will all depend on current product availability and features.

I'm going w/ Gonk on this one, a combo of 1 & 5.

I had to pick up something since the 950 that I picked up used to hold me over til the 997 was available, had a failure that would not allow me to select the 7-channel analog input any longer.

If the 997 appears and the reviews are more promising than it's "cousin" then I would probably jump back on the correct ship. ;-)

1.5. I warned the wife over a year ago that when the 997 was released I would replace the 970. She is happy it hasn't happened and I was patient. For the last month or so the 970 has been displaying signs of age, with occasional no-audio episodes on startup, so I'm becoming impatient. If the 970 problems become too severe I'll have to go elsewhere. All my music and many of my movies are played from computer files, so the lack of ethernet connectivity (presumed) on the 997 will make it much easier to ditch outlaw and go with another processor. Trinnov is great in theory, and I had high hopes it would be the difference for my bad room, but it's been too long. Right now it's a race between the 997's issue and the 970's death.

2. I'm patiently waiting. Even when it comes out I wont make an immediate decision. I don't "need" a new pre/pro, but if it's all cooked up to be what I'm hoping for, then I'll go for it. I'm very biased and like Outlaw quite a bit. I've bought into the whole concept of internet direct. I'll probably never buy this type of equipment from a brick and mortar again.

5. Got a good price on a very full-featured alternative and couldn't resist it. Ironically, to help offset the expense a bit, I finally sold my Outlaw 950. To demo it for the prospective buyer, I reinstalled it in my system (I hadn't been using it for awhile) and was impressed all over again with what a clean, good-sounding piece of gear it is.

I'm still a loyal Outlaw, but I needed an upgrade. If Outlaw gets the firmware on the 997 done right (which S/N seems not to have done with the receiver), there's nothing stopping me from selling my new gear and coming back to the corral.

1. I appreciate Peter's acknowledgement of the discontent that's been brewing in the silence. I had been approaching a 3 and considering other options, wondering if there was ever going to be a 997. Fortunately for me, my current unit is still operable. Just completely outdated. Believe me, it is not that I haven't wanted to upgrade. I have been waiting for an HDMI capable unit from Outlaw and have been for quite a while. When they announced the 997 over a year ago, I bought an amp on Audiogon and it is still sitting in the box. I had planned to buy one of the first units to be released, but given the bugs on the R-972, I'm going to need to wait to see if the 997 fares better.