I think most of thefault lies with the dealer in this instance.
I hear what you are saying but I have a hard time blaming him. We do go back a long ways, but not with Meridian, and I have tremendous respect for his knowledge and judgement. He would view me as "not an unsophisticated buyer" so maybe our conversations could have been more detailed since this is my first venture into Meridian.
I would hazard a guess that there are a number of Meridian owners that think their G68 is 7.1 discrete. But I am sure they are filled with bliss.