I've owned a 950 for approx. 1 month now and I keep wondering why I didn't jump on this preamp sooner. I have extensively revamped my home theater repeatedly over the past 1.5 years and finally have a system that I am very happy with. That means that I no longer feel the need to upgrade which is a first for me!!!

Over the past several months, I went from a Marantz SR7300 receiver to a Yamaha RX-V1400 to a Cambridge Audio Azur 540R (later partnered with a NAD THX216 amp) to a NAD T752 (later partnered with an Acurus 125x5 amp) to my current setup of the Outlaw 950 and Acurus amp. I also home demoed the Harman Kardon AVR430, the Denon 3805 and the Rotel RSX-1055 and I am so happy that I took the chance on the Outlaw. As I already had the Acurus amp (which I love), I figured that a preamp that costs as much as a receiver had to sound better than a receiver to justify it's cost. I had read tons of reviews on this site and the net and jumped on a used model for a great deal. Setup was very easy and the sound and detail that the 950 produces is terrific. I have experienced none of the problems some other people have complained about and feel that this preamp blows any receiver out of the water (with a good amp of course) that is anywhere near its collective price point. It may lack Dolby PLIIx and some DSP modes but I do not miss them in the least. Some say that the 950's design is getting long in tooth but I feel that it meets my needs perfectly and does exactly what it is supoosed to do. I could have stuck with the Denon if I wanted the latest and greatest but what I wanted was fantastic sound and the 950 delivers!

The 950 is VALUE - as much as it was when it was initially introduced. Could it be better? I guess we'll find out when it's successor is introduced in the future