I'm opening the Xanax...

Seriously, I'm sure the Outlaws would be elated to have the 997 shipping and not bringing in a "Plan B strategy" of offering the Onkyo in combination with Outlaws' superior documentation and customer support.

But the 997 isn't ready. And Peter T. and co. aren't "snubbing" us or teasing us, I'm sure. They're just laboring with the reality that a modern pre/pro is a complex (and international) hardware and software development project.

Heck, it takes us 2-4 years to develop a videogame these days for a fully-developed hardware platform (and often starting with a fully-developed software engine from a third-party). Developing a pre/pro has many more unknowns than that 2-4 year game project.

I also feel the frustration at not being able to add a new Outlaw pre/pro to my home theater, and I'm generally not inclined to be a corporate apologist; but some of the hostility and speculation in this thread is just ill-informed and out of place.