Here is my situation... I am currently looking into purchasing the 1050 in October. I will also have a little more $$$ to thow at other things if I decide not to pay off my credit card debt. Here is my question...

If I were to buy the 1050 and the 950 together, would I get any benefit from the 950 at all? I do not believe I will have enough cash for the 770 + 950. If I used the 950 for DD, DTS, DPL II, etc. decoding, could I run a digital out (from the 950) to a digital in on the 1050?

The reason I would go that way is to get the matrixed 6th channel. Since the analog inputs are straight in and bypass the DSP, am I wrong in assuming those will not create the 6th channel (in addition to the fact there are only 5.1 inputs)?

I just hate to spend the $$$ now on a wonderfull all-in-one reciever when a very nice pre/pro delivering some nice (better) features will be entering the market soon, but I would have no way of powering the speakers with just the 950.

I realize this may be a tough question to answer since the product has not been released yet, but I just thought if anyone might be able to answer it, it wuld be someone here.

Any thrown bones will be appreciated. Also, I look forward to the time when I too can call myself an Outlaw!

[This message has been edited by bluefire (edited June 18, 2001).]

[This message has been edited by bluefire (edited June 18, 2001).]

Here is the best advice you'll ever receive. Go get a pen and paper, i'll wait. Step 1:PAY OFF YOUR CREDIT CARD DEBT FIRST!(sorry Scott but i have to set this guy straight). Step 2:Go to any discount bookstore and pick up a copy of "The Millionaire Next Door." Step 3: Read it. Step 4:Learn how you can have all these components for 1/2 off what you would pay by not financing them on credit cards, and be able to afford whatever else you could ever possibly want in your lifetime, even if you never have a high income job. Step 5: Enjoy life being wealthy!
Please think hard about your financial situation, i'm worried for you, don't finance the banks, they have enough money already.
The Secretary

Money debate aside, I'd be uncomfortable rigging up a system like that to use the 1050 as an amp. And it seems like using the digital out from the 950 would defeat the purpose of buying it -- the 950 has DSP to convert digital inputs to analog multi-channel outputs, but I don't know if it has A-D converters to re-create a digital signal (I'd expect it to simply pass-through incoming digital signals to the output, although I could be wrong), and even if it can do A-D you'll end up using the 1050 to do DSP all over again, which means the extra capabilities of the 950 are gone (DTS-ES, DPL II). If you're going to buy the 950, it seems like you should avoid buying the 1050 and trying to make it an amp (which I would think would only work if you used the 6-channel direct input on the 1050, loosing the center surround that you're interested in). If the 770 is too much, consider the 750 and an inexpensive amp for the center surround (maybe a little bridgeable 2-channel). Or, just get the 1050 for now. Add a 750 or 770 when you can (I'm in that position now -- using the 1050 and waiting to add the 750), and maybe later upgrade from the 1050 to the 950.

I guess I'm just not sure pairing the 950 and 1050 together to use the 1050's amplification will work. Even if it does, using a digital signal from the 950 to the 1050 seems like it might defeat much of the purpose of having the 950.

Thanks gonk. You helped confirm what I was already thinking. After looking at things in greater detail, I have decided against buying the 950. I will just go the 1050 route and enjoy the upgrade to my current system without going overboard. When the planets are in proper alignment, I will go with the 950 and the 770, but the 1050 should be more than enough for me for the foreseeable future.