You're right about cheap KORG analog synthesis products have appeal to seasoned users too. Also it's true that in this low end priced market small companies like DSI won't be able to compete with big ones like KORG since you can't miss a hit, not even a single hit, which is tough for small manufacturers. Hence, it's a wise descision for them to retire low end products.
This is a whole different story, but speaking of low prices, in fact, even mopho is sold at over US$800 here in Japan, a lot more expensive than the street price in the US which is something like US$499??
The prophet-12 in the States is street priced US$2,999, but in Japan over four or even over five grands in US$. It's not just the currency exchange rate issue. The sole importer/distributor in Japan "Fukusan-Kigyo" is greedy, and makes it virtually impossible for us to buy DSI products. Hence this is where cheap KORG comes in, even to professional customers.
I wish if DSI change the distributor in Japan so that we can purchase their synths more.