All this stuff about upgrades will come as no surprise to long-term Technics users. I have owned:
KN 1200
KN 2000
KN 3000
KN 5000
KN 7000
To my knowledge there have been (Technics) upgrades since the days of the 2000, although with the early models these involved actually swapping EPROMs. Again, from the earliest days, Technics have been reluctant to admit to any upgrades. Dealers were (I am told) instructed to play down the existence of upgrades unless specifically asked by customers. I have never been able to understand this attitude. With regard to the KN 7000, where the operating system is DESIGNED to be upgraded (being on EEPROM), it seems that only the German distributors are willing to release upgrades. Now either these are "official" Technics upgrades or they are not. If they are not, has Technics/Panasonic seen fit to at least admonish Taiyo for "jumping the gun". If they are then why are they not on general release? Curiouser and curiouser, nicht wahr?
Mike O'R