Just revisited this thread after a long time, I was happy to see that @Anders_Ertzeid has posted an honest account of what is causing the delays. Many of the reactions have been quite negative of the “I knew you were hiding something” nature. I’m new to hifi forums but a veteran audiophile and I must say I did not expect this level of honesty by Hegel. They’ve admitted they made a mistake in announcing something they weren’t sure of and have now explained the choices they made that led to this.
The nature of Hegel (small, young company founded on a vision to make something that did not exist yet) was one of the reasons I bought my H190 - after being blown away with how good it sounded compared to rival product. I sold my Supernait 3 to buy my Hegel and I enjoy it every day. The trade-off (that I’m willing to accept) is that they will make mistakes that bigger, more experienced companies might not make.
A larger company probably would have handled the communication better because they have large customer service and communications departments to deal with / avoid these situations. That’s not an excuse for Hegel’s lack of communication but you have to put things into perspective. When I see posts about a class action lawsuit etc. I roll my eyes. Yes, you were promised something that you didn’t get (and probably won’t given the fact that it’s hardware related) and yes, communication was sub-par but let’s take a step back here. I’ve been in consumer facing jobs for over 20 years and I challenge you to find a company with this level of openness towards customers and willingness to engage with them.
There are many options to solve this problem and enjoy the same functionalities that Roon readiness would bring. The ones I tried go from no cost (Spotify connect, Airplay) to very cheap (Qobuz on Chromecast Audio through H190 DAC) to expensive (I use a Lumin D2 through XLR). Roon Ready would also go through internal DAC and I will bet my kids’ college fund that you will not hear any SQ difference compared to the Chromecast solution. On a side note, I’m impressed how relatively small the SQ difference is between Airplay and my D2 - a testament to how good Hegel has implemented Airplay.
All in all, the Roon readiness is by no means the defining quality of Hegel amps nor the reason the vast majority of owners bought them. For your own sanity and blood pressure, I would advise you to use any of the solutions I mentioned to enjoy both Roon and your Hegel. If you can’t, then it’s probably best to take your loss and trade your amp for something that fits your needs better.