For the stereo, do those sources offer analog bypass, or is the analog input getting converted to digital and processed? The 950 offers stereo bypass for any source, which prevents this sort of undesired A-to-D processing.

ive tried both ways gonk .. i was kinda hoping you replied have read a lot of your reeds ... anyhow .. at moment i use a dvd for a source on even my cd's but my curiosity is when you are sending coax or opt .. ( any digital signal ) to you processor you are using the dac in the processor .. in this case the 950 .. when using the analog R L to the CD input on processor you are using the on board dac in source unit (dvd etc) ... the onkyo 801 i have has direct and pure direct .. but these eliminate the Xover so no sub capability ..

anyhow gonk .. really wanting to now if i take (the plunge ) is the outlaw dac gonna take my coax from dvd player if listening to cd and give me a better conversion than the dvd itself or my onkyo.. .. or am i better keeping the onkyo and getting a musichall cd or nad cd player ...and is the outlaws 5.1 great or par ..

There are a lot of variables here. When using digital audio, you are using the processor's DAC. You also have the benefit of features like bass management (assuming your mains are set to small). With an analog input, bypass allows you to pass the original signal (generated by the source's DAC) to the speakers without any changes. The 950 does allow for some bass management even in this case: if the mains are set to small, a copy of the analog signal is processed to generate a signal for the sub. Which DAC is better is typically difficult to quantify. In general, I would expect the 950's DAC to match or beat a DVD player's analog performance. The only player I've used that I felt had DAC's comparable to the 950 is the Yamaha DVD-S1500, but I don't know that it is any better with CD playback. As for the 950's performance in 5.1 with Dolby Digital and DTS, I consider it a great processor. As others have said many times before, the 950 is a great performer at a really sweet price.

gonk,

Yes, the Pioneer 54TX, is a better buy than the 950 these days. I'm an outlaw fan, but these guys are not being subjective, they have outlaw on the brain. Feature wise, Pioneer wins hands down, better DACS, latest formats, and the list goes on. Room correction is very important, and MCCAC is getting very good reviews. THe next outlaw pre-amp processor will most likely be better than the 54TX, but the 950 is not period. The emotiva lite product is the only other product out there that will have most of the latest features at the 950's price point, if you are striclty looking at pre-pro.

i have to throw my $.02 in.

i would have to be MIGHTY hard pressed to buy a pioneer nowadays(or jvc,sony,kenwood,technics) they ,imo, are for the masses,the reputation they buit 25++ years ago has(i think) gone away,i would be mighty leary of any listed specs.over the years i have owned quite a few pioneer pieces(car and home) and probably heard 20 times as many.
not to say pioneer is bad,imo they are just not good,maybe i should go out and demo some pioneer,then again why?i'm,just not impressed anymore!


p.s. the best pioneer i ever heard had an analog tuner section!

p.s.s. i have a technics receiver for a second stereo,it jams 100x5,(x2 in stereo) but can't touch my 1050

b.t.w. i have always been for specialty companies,not a company that offers a complete line of everything for car and home,not that it's all bad,just my opinion.

Painttoad,

With the latest chips a/d d/a, especially for HT use, it's getting harder to disern between processors. 2 channel performance is where you see the big big difference. However, for HT use, I have seen reports where the 950 sounded almost as good as a lexicon MC-1. Remeber the Lex sold for thousands more than the 950, but the difference is that Oulaw used more recent hardware. The receivers are catching up, the issue with most receivers, is the amp stage. Pair one of these receivers with outboard amps, and you almost can't tell a difference for DD DTS use, (2 channel is a whole different ball game). I can't stress enough how important room correction is, and Pioneer's MCCAC is good..

i kinda thought the idea of a receiver is all in one....

granted my 1050 came with a b&k amp(used package deal) but i ran the 1050 alone just to test before i bought & ohhhh baby!pretty stout 65w.i do prefer the warmth of my b&k over the 1050,actually it's been so long,i forget what the 1050 sounds like in 2 channel!

The 7100 I just ordered will be my first external amplifier, but I have been disappointed in the 2 channel performance since switching from 2 channel receivers to home theater receivers. For me the major factor in moving to Outlaw seperates is the warranty. After having my receiver start going out after four years, I want a five year warranty, which you can't get from any receiver manufacturer (except for Sony ES series). I feel much more comfortable having my amplifier completely independent of the processor.