It strikes me that when the March update was posted there was already ample grumbling and speculation about some horrible change in direction. The bits of info that Outlaw does release seem to be not merely scrawled on the back of a carry out bag and tossed at the webmaster, but very carefully measured in both content and tone.

I specifically will quote: " When you put this all together, the picture at the Hideout is quite bright. The Model 978 is squarely on the path to completion and we have a full slate of other products across the full spectrum of the audio/video market planned for release. We appreciate both your patience and your patronage. You will soon see that your faith in the Outlaws will be more than justified as we continue to lift the curtains on these groundbreaking new products."
Now lord knows that back when the Sherwood 972 was at the point that it was hitting reviewers and the Outlaw sister product was scratched that signalled a great big "whoa nelly" moment for their relationship with that manufacturer and as a result it seems that the Outlaw firm's leaders decided to say "we cannot tie our selves to such a relationship if we want to continue designing and marketing processors...". The carefully chosen words in the March update certainly lead me to beleive they have confidence in the the direction that they have gone since that decision. Nowhere does it suggest that they are "retrenching", narrowing their focus or otherwise doing anything other than moving forward toward better products offered exclusively through them.

I really wish others would comment on just the announcements that are relavent to the 978 and start new threads to hash out details of other speculative directions. Threads are really easy to create ...