Joel
A few comments.

Your restraint is indeed admirable and should be recognized as such

Secondly, I do think that there are many (most) here that understand that each Buying Decision and Installation Decision that someone has made along the way is an INDIVIDUAL one, driven by Individual Circumstances. Hence, most people here will recognize that Meridian's decision to not offer Analog Amps any longer will have more of an impact on some than on others. I fully understand that none of this helps you, but just to offer encouragement / support from the silent majority around here

Likewise, I do feel your pain on the promises of Upgrade-ability on the 800 DVD Player. Unfortunately, this player has now been around for about 13 years or more and I do feel that over the past few years in particular, Meridian should have changed their Promotional Literature for this product, as it had become clear that the Market had changed dramatically, and continued Upgrades were no longer going to be viable. This should have been clearer from the Promotional to new potential users, so that they were not buying under false illusions

For what it's worth, since buying my 800 in 1998, I've upgraded to V2 Hardware and then to V3 Hardware, thereby keeping the player relatively up to date. As a result of those Hardware and Firmware Upgrades, the 800 remains (IMHO of course) the Ultimate player for the Reproduction of High Res 24/96 2-Ch and Multi-channel material. Personally, I don't think that there are many other CD / DVD Players (if any) that I could have bought in 1998, that would still be at the "top of the game" (at least in some areas) some 12 years on

So, Meridian's promises of "Upgrade-ability" were actually true, but they should have changed how they promote it over the recent past

Long story short, and as a long term member here, I know that there are many of the "silent majority" here who do feel your pain and sympathize with your plight. For what it's worth, and as you can see from the Equipment Restaurant, Meridian's equipment typically tends to last a very long time and they will continue to service the Analog Amps, even if they do take too long to do so. So hopefully, you will be able to continue to enjoy your current system for several / many years to come

It looks like Meridian will continue to update the 861 (either internally or using accessories like the HD621) to keep it "Current"

All the best for 2010 and you do have the empathy of the majority here smile


Cheers
Ronnie

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