say we're having developed a very sound/music intensive game, or say a game that is heavily based on joystick/gamepad support. would there be any chance for an indie developer to work out a deal with a hardware manufacturer to send a copy of our game along with their hardware. or would they only work out deals with established game development studios? anyone feel to share data/experiences with this?

Indie is an irrelevance. They wont care who you are provided that you have something they want/need. Your success will depend entirely on how good the game is and how good you are at negotiating the deal.