I agree the "price point" that you suggest (under $1000 but over $800) seems VERY "underpopulated" right now and it seems unlikely to be filled even if products from other "internet direct" firms ever make it market...

I guess the question comes down to what sorts of features are "most" potential buyers of AV processors looking for?

Personally I don't think there are enough features suggested to justify development of such a product. Heck when I look at many products from "North American based" marketers be they NAD or Anthem or those from other parts of the world like Arcam or Cambridge I have hard time understanding how they can justify the prices they are asking given the VASTLY increased feature set of some the maintstream Japanese based firm or traditional US based firms... I suppose the firms that offer a dozen or so "step up" type products are motivated to offer their "dealer network" (however small that may be these days...) to sort of "remove features" to create more low-end products but that seems a really strategy for the struggling AV products. Heck even car makers have learned that "el cheapo" econo-boxes should not be offered with crank windows and no remote locks. The smarter makers offer things like "keep you key in pocket" starter buttons and other features that once-upon-a-time were "high end only".

I wish that some AV equipment maker would really be "disruptive" when it comes to pricing on things like higher resolution decoders, ultra-narrow auto-eq and other "features" that are largely software driven (and yes I know I have argued that these software driven decisions do often require more internal memory and better processors, which are hardware, but the trend remains for those items to fall in price more rapidly that the discrete power supply component and phsycial connectors which are far more mature...).

Features that I would "leave out"? Things that require excessive "hoop jumping" and/or licensing -- DLNA, AirPlay,THX, isf...