The 7.1 Direct input's left and right channels are shared with the DVD's stereo analog input, which is presumably why the two are associated with each other. From what I can tell from the manual, though, you can use the DVD input for DVD's (with a digital input) and simply use the 7.1D button to toggle between digital audio and the 7.1 analog. This would be necessary because if (as is typically the case) your DVD player was also also your DVD-A/SACD player, you'd want to use both input types (digital and multichannel analog) depending on the disc being used. There's nothing that says you have to have the same player for both the analog and digital - it'd be preferable if you needed a video connection for the DVD-A/SACD, but SACD doesn't require video.