Ritz, sometimes it's better late than never my friend, unless a competitor comes out with a similar product and pulls the rug from under your feet, so there is a limit ultimately. AV processors are a fairly small market any way you look at it, partly because most of them are fairly expensive; separates are simply a more expensive proposition. Maybe this explains why Marantz haven't come out with an AV8005(6), as rumored, to replace the discontinued AV8003. Outlaw may indeed sell them in relatively small numbers considering that they've also lost sales from the last couple of years to people who got tired of waiting and bought another brand.

I myself don't own any Outlaw gear but I'm looking for an affordable processor with a good digital room correction system to help me tame the terrible acoustics of my square listening room. Audyssey's MultEQ XT32 has been awarded the "Accessory of the Year" award for 2011 by Stereophile. But above all, the criterion I place the highest emphasis on is the SQ. In regards to some of the missing features, as many have mentioned, most of them can be added by third party boxes you can connect to the 978. Time will tell how this thing pans out.