I'll let you know when I get mine. I can then compare it to the Anthem AVM30.

That would be great! I know alot of people would like to hear how they compare.

Why don't you buy one of each and decide for yourself.

Hmmm... I sense a catch-22 of sorts here... If we complement our new toy (which none of us have had for more than two or three days) we are equated to writing a "magazine review," but if we wait until we can produce a lengthy dissertation (which takes time, in turn taking time away from work, family, and actually listening to our cool new toy) then the other folks waiting in line are left completely in the dark (in the silence?). Personally, I find it a bit offensive to suggest that by saying it sounds great we are somehow deficient - especially since "great" is a very good way to describe this puppy.

What does $____ sound like? I'm wary of establishing a concept of directly correlating sound to price tag. I've been listening to my 990 a fair bit since it arrived. I can't directly compare it to a more expensive processor such as the Anthem AVM-20 or 30 since the price tag on those keeps them out of the picture for me, whereas the 990's price is attainable in my budget. For what it's worth, I have found that going from the Model 950 to the Model 990 is an upgrade in sound as well as features - an upgrade that even my wife noticed almost immediately. Don't sell short the suggestions that the 990 sounds great, because to my ear it really does.

Hi gonk,

Methinks you doth protest too much.

j/k

- we're just getting downright literary around here, what with the Joseph Heller and Shakespeare references.

To somewhat change the subject, how many of us who had the 990's shipped to work took a moment out of the work day to unbox it briefly and ended up with really confused co-workers? I had mine sitting on the log-in board for a little while. Aside from one co-worker who borrowed my 1050 briefly three years ago (his wife ended up vetoing the purchase) and another who owns a Rotel 1068, nobody in the office could really quite comprehend what they were looking at.

Well, many others have posted here indicating delivery of their 990. I just checked FedEx tracking of my 990 and it appears that it's on the truck out for delivery today. Who's excited? Yeah, it's me.

Gonk, in response to your question: As you already know, I didn't have mine delivered to the office. But I did show a buddy of mine the photos in the 990 gallery. I think he was with me until he asked "How many watts per channel?" and I told him, "0". Seems that even after a description of "serperates vs. receivers" he was still left shaking his head.

later,
simp

If everyone shared your passion, you wouldn't get a 990 for a few years..

Hello everyone,

I received the 990 today @ 10.20 A.M. I ordered the unit on Thursday @ 7:00 P.M. I wasn't expecting to see it until the end of next week. Now that's service, WOW.

I received my 990 yesterday and hooked it up last night. I don't have any real opinions yet, but the lock on is faster. Also, the surround channels seem to be more fluid and natural. IMO it may sound better than the 950, but I will give more impressions once I have more time to mess around with it this weekend.

I do have a question though. Does anybody know why I can't get Dolby Digital on some HD channels with out Dolby Digital + Dolby VS 5 SP Wide? The manual claims this is "Dolby Digital but used to expand the soundfield when front left and right speakers are positioned close to tv." I really don't like what the Dolby VS 5 SP Wide does to Dolby Digital and I don't need it at all since ironically I don't have a tv (I have a projector screen). I would appreciate any help I could get. Thanks in advance.

Also, I don't know what others' impressions of the size are, but this is the largest piece of electronics (tvs not included) I have ever owned, except maybe our first Betamax in the real early 80's. Here is a picture of it just sitting on top of my rack. For comparison sake, the 950 is two shelves down.

I think its obvious I will need to buy a new rack if I decide to keep the 990.