My next surround processor is from miniDSP!

@plain_fan  - I think you and I are reading the specs a little differently.    

There's a section about Audio down mixing, which states HDMI 1.4 backwards compatability, but a little further down it says: 

HDMI 2.1 EARC/ARC compliant
HDMI 2.1 Variable Refresh Rate (VRR)
HDCP 2.3 compliant / Dolby Vision Compatible

@erik_squires - My understanding is that the differences in HDMI capabilities are related to chipsets and not baseband FW.  I wrote and received a reply from MiniDSP asking me to wait until the user manual is available as it will have more information.  I specifically asked questions about the items in my first post.

With the announcement of the Marantz AV30, the MiniDSP could still be a good offering or at least be a competitive alternative.

Love the form factor and simplicity. But it seems like a one-trick pony for that price? Tonewinner would have been nice if it wasn't for the software and childish name.

@bartsw 

But it seems like a one-trick pony for that price? 

Not honestly sure what a one trick pony means here.

@erik_squires just a processor. A pre-pro like the Tonewinner would have been more useful if it has dirac and you feed a streamer through it.