I know that many have been waiting for the 978 and have been putting off the purchase of a pre/pro in anticipation for this unit. Others (including myself) have bought a pre/pro or reciever (or 2) in the interim, but was still very interested in purchasing when it was to come to light.

I'm curious to hear from those that would have purchased the 978 on what they now plan to do?

1) Purchase a current but similar to 978 offering (Marantz AV7005 appears to be the closest thing to it - less xt32)
2) Wait for the some other pre/pros that have yet to be released (AV7007, XMC-1, other..)
3) Wait for Outlaw's entry level processor
4) Nothing
5) Other??

I commend Outlaw for their recent announcement and made it clear that we should not expect a flagship model pre/pro anytime soon. This is bad news, but unfortunately the current reality. I hope that they find a lot of success with their entry level model.

Considering all events, best case scenario for me is that Outlaw comes out with a great sale on a Marantz AV7007 (provided it was xt32 equiped) the day it is released.

Waiting to see if Marantz release a pre-pro with XT32 until winter. Then I'll have to go around for a listen somewhere to make sure the SQ is up to snuff. If it doesn't look like it's going to happen, I'll probably end up getting an Integra 80.3. I do wish all these guys were making smaller form factors and that someone would finally put a headphone jack in the back so I can leave a set plugged in all the time easily (I hear the Integra cuts speaker output as soon as you plug headphones in - how 1980).

Honestly, I don't know of anything else, other than Emotiva perhaps, that's close to comparable for under $2500.

I think there may be too many questions about Emotiva to consider it realistically at this time.

I had actually ordered the Onkyo PR-SC5508 from Crutchfield, when they came out with a special purchase of the Onkyo TX-NR5009. The 5009 has the upgraded preamp section of the 5509, which is not available in the U.S. It is available for $200 less than the 5508 and you get the amp section and preamp upgrades for free! I have just gotten it installed into my system and I am generally very pleased with it. There are a couple of items which would be a negative for some. 1. It does not have balance pre outs. This is not an issue for me because I am still using my old reliable Outlaw 770 power amp, which does not have balanced inputs. I have them stacked on top of each other, so it is a very short run anyway and balanced inputs should never be necessary. 2. It does not have a 12v trigger for zone 1. This is irritating, but can be worked around by using the trigger for zone 2 and just powering up zone 2 at the same time as you power up zone 1.

I am not a big fan of Audyssey. I had the PR-SC886, which had MultiEQ. I hoped that the XT32 would be much improved, but I still prefer the sound with it turned off. However, my room is treated and is a pretty good sounding room with few issues. Audyssey seems to roll off the highs and lows and to me makes the system sound like an inexpensive bookshelf system. However, I am a bit of a bass nut and like a little emphasis at the bottom end.

I was really dissappointed that the 978 got cancelled. I had an old 950 that from a sound quality point of view was probably the best sounding processor I ever had. It just became too outdated and could not handle the new formats. I had high hopes that the 978 would have the sound quality with updated features. Too bad.

I know Outlaw doesn't have a direct replacement for the 978. Peter did mention an entry level processor that might be coming out in the fourth quarter. I would like to see a picture of it and see its specifications and features.

^^^

I'm wondering if they could springboard a higher level pre/pro off that one?

I don't even care about the fancy features it could have. But it would have to have XT32, and an awesome analog output stage. I personally don't need or care about video streaming, wifi, XM/Sirius radio, etc, etc, etc. Just need CD/DVD/BD video passthrough (not even processing thereof) and proper audio (HDMI) support for all the formats involved.

I will contentedly continue to run the Sherwood R-972 I got for dirt cheap into the 7700. It has a lot quirks and/or bugs, but once it is set-up, Trinnov is better than anything else I have heard...

So why has there not been any info on the new HT pre-pro that is possibly due in Q4?Would it hurt to let us know some basics given it is presumably near the end of it's development.Given Outlaw's track record on communicating with it's potential customers and the subsequent ill will it has created you think they would be bending over backwards to appease us.

I also am looking forward to some more news on that front. They may be trying to hit an upcoming milestone before speaking more, though - after all, they hadn't planned to say anything until it was ready to ship, until the Model 978 died and they had to adjust their plans.

Strangely enough I am as excited about this product as much as the 978,maybe even more so since I am not completely sold on room correction systems or additional processing of an audio signal.As long as a quality DAC has done it's job,there is proper bass management and I have HDMI connections.
Hey Outlaw why not just give us an update on when you will tell us more about about this pre-pro?

I'm a ways out on a prepro purchase. In my room Audyssey does wonders and I would like XT32, and I place a high priority on SQ. By the time I'm ready to shop Outlaw might have a replacement for the 978. But I also like the looks of the upcoming Marantz. Emotiva has made some missteps, with their DAC, prepro and subs. It seems like anything besides amps has been a struggle for them and that, plus the gawdy look of their upcoming processor has me pretty cautious about them. Right now I can't think of anyone else in the under 2000 category.