Let me preface this with, this is not meant to be a hate thread.

I am in the market for a new pre/pro and amp. And actually I'm building a new system from the ground up. With all of the various technology going around, I'm trying to figure out what I need and don't need. I started looking at the many $3000 pre/pros such as Rotel RSP-1098, Arcam AVP700, Anthem AVM30, NAD M15, NAD T163 and Parasound 7100 but can't figure out why I would need these over the very reasonably priced Outlaw 990. So I wanted to see what other people had to say about the 990 that were in some of these other pre/pros out there. Thanks for the help.

It's a good question!

I'd love to have transcoding of analog video to digital video so I could just use the DVI monitor output all the time, even though I recognize exactly why it couldn't be included in the 990 (and why it's not on any other currently-available surround processors except for the Anthem AVM50 and Statement D2 that contain full blown video scalers).

As with many units on your list, the included remote is a fairly basic universal (the same model as provided with the Anthems and the Arcam), which makes it worthwhile to shop around the a third-party universal remote that you like (either Universal Remote, Harmony, or Pronto probably).

If you want to get really nit-picky, I'd like to have the "MUTE" indicator that appears on the front panel display be shifted to just cover the digital input and leave the active input label visible, and I'd like to have a way to find out exactly what the incoming signal format is (mainly how many channels are included in the Dolby Digital or DTS bitstream, since I can tell already whether it's PCM, DD, or DTS).

As for other features that are present or not, a look at my SSP chart doesn't bring anything to mind. There's the always-popular HDMI v1.x support that is still largely absent from surround processors (and likely will be for another year or so, even though the big corporations' receivers are already starting to offer it), but if anything the 990 comes closer than most thanks to the DVI switching that gives full support for HDMI video switching...

More DVI inputs. I could use two additional inputs, for a total of 4.

And it would be nice if they were HDMI instead of DVI, but that's really no big deal.

I echo the request that it tell me the channels present on the DD/DTS input stream.

Thanks for the input so far.

Gonk - Nice chart. I don't suppose you could update it with the Rotel RSP1098, NAD M15 and Parasound 7100.

I don't own the 990, or any Outlaw equipment but if wishes were easily granted I would like:

A more attractive and functional front panel. I like the layout of the Sherwood P-965 and would like to see a similar design with hidden door to functions and also add a row of direct source selection pushbuttons incl 7.1 direct. I would pay up to an extra $10-15 % for that on the unit cost.

Also HDCD decoding would be nice but wouldn't pay too much extra for it. Maybe 5% more.

Ability to configure preset input levels on all sources.

I used to have the Rotel 1098 on there and took it off for space. I try not to make it too much wider than it already is, and there wasn't much info at hand about the NAD Master Series or the new Parasound Classic stuff when I did the last update.

I can't think of much of anything I would change. I run all video to the video source anyway so HDMI or DVI does not matter to me.
The auto set up could be improved just a bit as my sub and back surrounds always require a bit of tweeking which is no big deal. How about a seperate adjustment on the remote to turn the gain on your sub.

Aside from the absence of HDMI switching and HDMI audio support, I'd very much have liked the 990 menu display functionality to have worked with the DVI output and not just the component/s-video outputs. Means I had to run another 20+ foot cable to my Z4 FP that I had no use for other than to display the 990 on-screen menu system.

Storm_m3,
I'm really happy w/ the 990 - dvd, XBOX, analog, upgrade ability thru software ...and most importantly - the sound. If i where to really nit-pick - 2 items:
1) a front pannel that dims....
2) a little front panel display (somekind) to run setup menu's.

I love my 990, but I really really really wish it had:

Dual component video outputs. I run the component output to a projector, and I have a regular TV for when I don't need or want the projector on, like when just watching regular TV or having TV on in the backgroud. I have to run s-video from my Tivo straight to the TV, and my Xbox requires the projector because it's component output only. I'd like to run component to two different displays.

Display dimmer. Self explainatory.

Other than that, there's nothing I miss!

I wish the 990 would offer some kind of interactive remote.. one that would have a small screen that would display all the menu's.. just like on my TV screen.

how cool would that be?

I'd like:
(1) Conveniently remote-adjustable balance control since I'm listening off-axis more often than not. I know remote balance adjustment can be done via a confusing procedure involving the Guide, Set, and directional buttons, but I said "convenient".
(2) Ability to configure input levels on all sources, as Tweeterman has suggested - especially since I have to raise the volume when playing records. Of course 10db more gain from the phono preamp would take care of that too.

If I had $3000 earmarked to a new SSP I would definitely be tempted by the Anthem AVM30, with the intention of upgrading to a AVM50 and getting SSP and video scaling in the same unit. 'Pretty unique combination so far, but seems natural to me. Not $4K - $5K nice though...I'll be waiting a few years I guess and happily enjoying the 990 in the mean time.

I really like my 990 - the DAC's sound great, and I really like the flexibility of the product. That said, I wish I could configure the speaker outputs by input - for example, on Audio 1 and Audio 2 I'd have the same sources and video output, but on Audio 1 the speakers would be set to be center only and on Audio 2 it would be full DTS movie mode. This would allow me to setup a "nightime" or basic TV watching mode without messing around with the remote, I'd just hit one button and viola!

Cool idea, acacia1602 - that would open up some interesting possibilities...

Thanks everyone for all of the replies. It sounds like everyone is generally happy with the overall feature sets. Hopefully Outlaw is listening to some of these requests for the next generation pre/pro.

I've been doing a lot of listening to Paradigm and B&W. I think the B&W 804's have my name on them. I love the clarity.

Has anyone done extensive listen with the 990 and the 800 series? Will the amplifier be sufficient for the N804S? Thanks again for all the help.

I have been very happy with my 990 and 7125 so far! But, I would like:

1) I use the Zone 2 feature of the 990 to run speakers throughout my house. One minor irritation is when you push any buttons on the Zone 2 remote, the 990 display does not come on to let you verify anything such as Zone 2 ON/OFF status, or volume level for Zone 2. But, if I first press a button on the main remote, to activate the 990 display, and then press the volume button on the Zone 2 remote, the 990 will display the Zone 2 status, volume level, etc. I suspect this could be fixed with a firmware upgrade.
2) The ability to at least have the unit automatically measure and report/display the amplitude response across across the audio band.

Stom_m3, the 990 is a preamplifier / tuner / HT processor. It drives amplifiers, not speakers. Your question should be which of the Outlaw amplifiers has the power output you want for the B&Ws. Probably any of them has more than enough power for any reasonable use (peak sound levels no more than 100db) in a room of 3000 cubic feet or so.

i wish the signal wouldn't drop when upconverting from composite to component. it's a real bummer when flipping through the channels and the projo cuts out every other channel