What I did is very simple. The left channel analog out of the CD player to the pure analog audio preamp (NAD). The right channel trough the Outlaw 990. Guess what, whatever I select stereo or bypass. The Outlaw output was delayed creating echo. This is clear indication that 990 is processing the audio in A/D/A. No bypass. The quality of 990 A/D is very good. I compared it to a Denon 3930CI.
The Denon A/D sound little bit better for me but it could be subjective. The problem starts when you use such a quality A/D converter with analog input of 990. i.e. 7.1 input. Then you get double A/D conversion and that sound ugly. Unfortunately the DVD audio or SACD can’t be converted in the D/A of 990.
Kris