Useful feedback, blaineh. Maybe I can chip in a couple thoughts, as well.

The 950's on screen display works with composite and s-video inputs, overlaying both the setup menu and the pop-up input/volume data. The 990 behaves much the same way, although the format of the pop-up data (including such information as the input format) is different. The 950 had no on screen display support for the component video input, whereas the 990 will provide a blue-screen setup menu on component inputs and will pass composite and s-video inputs with their OSD data intact. Functionally, this is a significant step up. I'm curious why you are seeing less information in the OSD pop-up now - are you using component inputs where you previously used s-video? As for the issue of what information is included in the OSD pop-up, that's something that I think is worthy of discussion. Unfortunately, all of my inputs except for two (7.1 Direct and Dreamcast) use component or DVI inputs, so I haven't spent much time with the OSD pop-ups.

I agree that there is an opportunity to make more extensive use of the front panel display, although such changes will still not benefit folks such as yourself who have remote equipment racks. When I mentioned one suggestion to Outlaw recently (displaying the AV sync status on the front panel when using the "SYNC" button on the remote, so folks using component or DVI inputs could benefit from this handy button) I was told that it was already on a list of improvements under evaluation. Perhaps the method in which the selected surround mode appears on the front panel display could be truncated (not as far as the 950's potentially-cryptic front panel labels) to speed the process of scrolling through. I'd also love a "status" button that would scroll information such as input format, surround mode, volume level, and what-not, but that would require an extra button on the already-crowded remote so I will live without. The loss of the CR button is a result of the omission of Cirrus Extra Surround processing, since the 990 relies instead on the somewhat superior Pro Logic IIx processing.

The 990's remote is, in my mind, something of a "bare bones" universal. It would have been nice to see an MX-500, but the reasoning behind Outlaw's choice has some merit: no added cost for a more robust remote, thereby saving money for people who don't care to have anything fancier or who have already invested money in a remote equal to or better than the MX-500. (As a curious aside, the 990's Cat48 is actually the same OEM remote used with several other pre/pros, including the Anthem AVM-20, AVM-30, and Statement D1 as well as the Lexicon MC-12.) While the 990's remote lacks some features and strengths of the 950's remote (an SL-9000 clone) - such as learning ability and the combined input/device control buttons (which, inevitably, also generated some ire from 950 users used to remotes like the 990's Cat48 that separate the input and device control functions) - it does at least have transport controls that are independent from the navigation pad, making it better suited to controlling DVD players. As sub-$100 alternatives that are a solid step up from either of these remotes, the Home Theater Master MX-500 and the Harmony H659 remotes (both available from bluedo.com with manufacturer's warranty for less than $85) have been working well for 990 owners.

Keep us informed as you give DTS and Dolby Digital a try...