I do like the idea of being able to change out connections via a card, but what kind of card is capable of the bandwidth that a future revision of HDMI might need? I'm not sure on any specs. Did Integra ever offer much selection with their future-proof, modular receiver? Will it even get HDMI 1.3 capability? I like the idea, but I'm thinking it would just add to the cost and complexity when people will probably just want a whole new unit in another 5-10 years. Too many changes may happen in the parts that CAN'T be upgraded.
I'm kind of curious what technology partnerships Axiom will have in place for their pre/pro. I can't imagine them trying to handle every aspect of the design internally. I suppose more than anything I'd like to just see them get a product out with rock-solid performance, something that just works how it's supposed to with all of the sound formats. Video processing won't make or break the system for me, but since I'll never buy a dedicated video processor, it's a nice bonus for the devices in my system that don't have their own built-in scalers. I would certainly like it to be able to convert all signals to digital for the HDMI output. The more connections I can eliminate, the better.
I hope they can align themselves with some really gifted software engineers, for the GUI and any computer interactivity. I do like the idea of setup profiles that you can save to and load from your computer. It would be really handy. Also, it would be easier to see a whole overview of your pre/pro's setup on a computer screen, I imagine, and with a mouse to quickly navigate, major adjustments could be made that much faster. With some creativity, I bet the software on the computer side could get very deep.
I imagine the design won't go nearly as far as my fantasies, but it's nice to discuss, at least.
