Beatmania IIDX GOLD is now up and running at Brunswick Zone in Naperville, IL. If you're close by, I suggest giving it a try and supporting Beatmania in the US.
Anyways, here's major highlights about the test:
-The machine is a Dedicated U.S. version. Everything is in English (except the Japanese song titles).. menus, title, instructions, everything!
-The e-amuse isn't up and running, but the Konami rep present at the testing site said that Konami is working on doing something about e-amuse in America.
-1p and 2p can pick separate difficulties!
If you care about Beatmania and are interested in more, go to bemanistyle.com to read more about it.