Thanks for the update Gary. See, it wasn't so hard!

I've had equipment delivered two years after the original order date due to extended experiences like the one you described. Fortunately the guy is still in business (he makes great stuff!) but it was still pretty awful to hear his about travails. But it was all OK because he always kept us updated.

My player is arriving tomorrow (the works: Meridian DTE and region-free mods on RS-232 version). The analog board is disabled but Gary has promised to swap it out for me at a later date. Keeping my fingers crossed as well!