Were did you see the update from M-Audio? Email to you or a post somewhere in the internets? I forwarded a copy of the message to Jamie at Grace and this was his response
Most gear (pretty much every device we've ever used) does not rely on channel status information to configure themselves for high sample rate syncing with external devices. In fact the AES specification (AES3-1992 (r1997)) states "The indication of sampling frequency, or the use of one of the sampling frequencies that can be indicated in this byte, is not a requirement for operation of the interface." Thus a piece of gear should not rely on the channel status to configure its hardware.
Assuming this is the case and we confirm it with M-Audio, we can revise the firmware in the V3 to be compatible with the requirements MTII. We will need to get an MTII in house before we can release anything (working on it!), but Mike and I will work to make it happen as quickly as possible if necessary. FYI: Updating the firmware on your V3 in the field is a piece of cake. (1) Pop the chip out..and..(2) Put the new chip in...