I doubt anybody will buy the 8003 and then the 998. Some folks may not be in a position to wait for the 998, and thus may get the 8003 now because it's available. Somebody setting up a system from scratch today could get a combo of 8003 and amp - the combo provides some discount (possibly a major discount, if they're buying one of the bigger amps) and equipment that they can use today. I doubt such a buyer would buy a new processor for a while. The kicker is that they can offer something to those people who want to buy today. Those of us who may want to buy at some point are not likely to need this option.