Ritz, thank you for the info. which leads to my next question...

why would a person need balance vs. unbalanced? What is the purpose and how does it affect sound/sonics?

I am leaning very heavily (98%) toward the Outlaw 990/7500; however, your comment about mixing the 990 with the Rotel 1095 is something I had not considered and will now look into. I am not one who needs to have all of my components matching in appearance. While Rotel is visually more appealing than the Outlaw, my first priority is functionality.

I agree, the Rotel 1095/Outlaw 7500 is overkill but I figured what the hell, if I am going to go separates I may as well go for the gusto (within my budget), keeping in mind that the Maggies love a lot of power (200+ watts seems to be the magic number for the maggies, thus, the 1095/7500).