I currently have a two year old Sony 4ES that has many/most of the main features that this reciever has. What it does not have is the self eq setup, and the HDMI switching. Why would I buy the 990?

if it has most of the same features (although i'll bet it doesn't have the extensive bass management features of the 990), then the only thing that would make a difference would be the sound of the two units. since none of us has been able to listen to the 990, we can't make an informed statement as to how it would sound relative to the sony. i would order one, put it in your system and see how it works/sounds. outlaw has a great return policy...if you don't think it's better within 30 days, just send it back!

The full benefits may not be known until folks get units in their equipment racks and listen to them, because if it is as good as the Sherwood has been reported to be one key benefit will be sound quality (something that can't be spelled out in a feature list).

I always have a hard time finding good specs on Sony products, especially older ones (Sony's site has been what I consider a train wreck for years), so I can't really do a good comparison of features. I did get a little help from Google, though, and found a little information. Aside from the potential for having the system sound better, the DVI switching (not HDMI, although for video the two are essentially compatible with each other), auto-calibration (not EQ - it sounds like it'll set speaker distances, speaker trim settings, and probably whether the speakers should be large or small), and AV sync delay control are all features that could help justify an upgrade. There is also Pro Logic IIx, Dolby Headphone, a USB input for audio from your PC, and an extra component video input. There's the option of bass management on the 7.1 analog input. There may also be some benefits to the video switching, as I couldn't tell if the Sony supports converting composite and s-video signals to the component video output.

One last comment, though: the 990 is not a receiver, so if you are currently using the STR-DA4ES to power your speakers you would need to buy a power amp such as Outlaw's Model 7100 or 770 in order to use the 990.

Well, gonk hit most of what I found while I was looking! But, according to the feature set that this guy listed, there is no upconversion to component video and it appears no real bass management either. Of course, the two big points gonk brought up are that we don't know the sound quality comparison and that the 990 is a pre/pro, not a receiver like the Sony.

Another item to consider is customer service and support. Sony's a big company, and their customer service doesn't necessarily benefit from that size. Outlaw puts some serious effort into good customer service, including such things as transferrable warranties (the 990 will have a five-year warranty, and if you were to decide to sell it during that time you would be able to transfer that warranty to the buyer, which is one reason that Outlaw products tend to hold their value well) and the 30-day return policy. There is also this forum, which tends to be a good place to get answers to common questions.

Question on the AV sync delay. This would be one of the biggest reasons that I purchase the 990, but only if you can discreetly access the delay function. This way I can program my remote to directly access that function without having to navigate the menu.

Do we know if this is possible?

We don't know either way yet. I took a look at the huge picture of the remotes , and there are a couple buttons around the navigation controls that might be candidates for this function, but I can't quite make out the labels well enough to be sure.

One of those buttons says SYNC.

The most important reason . . . the sound.

I previously owned the DA7ES. I powered the front 3 channels with a separate TA-N9000ES. Quietest system I have ever heard! Ultra flexible! Horrible remote. Movie were hard to follow dialog. Music was somewhat lifeless!

In September I upgraded to an 950/770 combo. No comparison! The Outlaw is way superior! I would hope that the 990 is a further improvement.