i tried an onk 898 receiver before the 950 (the first receiver of any kind to ever be in my system).

there was a horrible hiss in the front right speaker with some modes. there was a clicking sound in the sub which, after 2 weeks, spread to the center chanmnel. the 'local authorized service tech' said he didn't have a clue what the cause was, or what to do about it.

the difference with the 950, for me, is that outlaw acknowledges a problem immediately and sets a course to correct it. onkyo didn't even acknowledge that other folks had the same problem i did.

needless to say, i sent it back. i thought it sounded pretty good otherwise, but when i connected the 950, wife, sons, friends...ALL... said the 950 sounded light years better. (same amps, same speakers, same software)

i believe that BM is crucial to dvd-a/sacd. the 950's BM is very accurate and worth at least $100 of the total price.

5 year warranty...from a company that obviously backs it. receiver manufacturers will charge a good bit extra for that sort of extended warranty.

you won't get 'hall', 'church', 'stadium', etc., which is just varying digital delay, or, a REALLY cheesy digital reverb feature.

i'm not sold on ES/EX/circle surround/logic 7...i think, for now, 5.1 is where multi-channel sound is at. price/features/warranty/and SOUND, the 950 is the product of the decade. the icbm is a very close second. i haven't heard any of the multi-channel outlaw amps, but i also believe they are a great value.