1. DTS-MA decoding is enabled. It works. However, there is a caveat with 7.1 systems that will likely not be fixed until the next firmware. This problem also exists with the current firmwares for the 09FD/320/23FD but was never really fully debugged for some reason by owners of said players. Basically if you have 7.1, the player upconverts all 5.1 soundtracks to 7.1 over both analog multich and HDMI. A recording I made confirms that the method used to do so is very primitive, a basic channel duplication with no matrix decoding of any sort (i.e., no DPLIIx, just a pure dupe of the surrounds for the rears). There may not be enough processing power for DPLIIx or the like, however if that is the case then the default behavior for HDMI should be 5.1 output for 5.1 soundtracks so users can enable the more advanced processing modes of their receivers. However there is not even an option to do so with this FW thus 7.1 users will be stuck with sub-optimal surround field until the next firmware unfortunately. While the method may be okay for multich analog where processors often cannot do 5.1>7.1, over HDMI pure 5.1 should be output so that we can use superior matrix decoding if the player cannot do this. IMO, a poor judgment call that will result in degraded surround field for 7.1 HDMI owners until the next firmware release. For analog multich owners there simply may not be enough processing power in the unit to perform an advanced matrixed DPLIIx decode on top of the DTS-MA, so the duplicate may be the best its going to get. Pioneer USA appears motivated to get the 5.1>7.1 HDMI issue fixed in the next firmware, however, from my understanding. Workaround for 7.1 HDMI owners is to bitstream if possible for optimal surround field until the next FW. Again, 5.1 owners are unaffected by this.
2. Star Trek dropouts are fixed. I was unable to duplicate them.
3. Standard DVD layer changes remain similar to 1.25a.
4. Overall player performance remains similar to 1.25a, maybe a bit faster but nothing groundbreaking.
5. DVD deinterlacing performance remains similar to 1.25a. Problem discs like "Noein vols 1-5" and "Family Guy vol 1" still have visible combing and/or aliasing.
6. Some of the few discs with menu lag appear to have gotten a minor speed boost, but there is still lag on some select discs as detailed in #7.
7. "An American Carol" is fixed, it no longer locks up when skipping trailers.
8. Variable crossover levels are 50/80/100/150.
9. Speaker delay times do not appear to be implemented yet.
10. Aladdin audio bug appears to be fixed, but I did not do a ton of testing on this.
I'm going to play more with the DTS-MA decoding on mis-encoded DTS titles like Die Hard 2, Pan's Labyrinth, and Harold & Kumar later to see how the player handles the mis-encoded streams. But the above info should set your expectations, at least.