Tim makes a great point. If Pioneer wants to continue in the flagship market, they should make an effort to keep their $7000 platform up-to-date with the same capabilities as what's being sold at $1000. This includes their PQLS anti-jitter signal transfer for HDMI.
Anyone who has looked at, researched or bought a Susano SC-09/LX90 knows it's a take-no-prisoners design. The only thing I can imagine doing to the platform for a "new" model is add those new features. Everything else is just about perfectly executed.
Pioneer can either:
1. Give current owners an opportunity to update theirs for a fee & a trip to a service center. $500 or even close to $1000 would not be unreasonable considering the cost of trading it for a new one.
2. Piss off current owners by not offering an update. At this point, current owners can sell theirs at a loss & buy the new one OR just forget Pioneer, buy a new updateable Denon flagship or prepro & Pioneer loses a long-term customer.
Pioneer's best interest for maintaining good will & customer base is to offer that update when they announce new Elites that will have even more new features or certainly when they announce a new flagship. New buyers get Susano II. Current ones stay in the Pioneer fold by getting a update. Everyone wins.
ss9001
