Should I get it?

Alright here is the deal I have just purchased a used 755 amp to hook up to my good old 1050. I would really like to upgrade to a pre-amp, I like the features of the 970 and I know the 990 is a better pre-amp, but there is absolutely no way I can fit that monster anywhere. I really do not need any of the features that come on the 990. I guess my real question is that I was wondering if the sound cut out problems have been resolved if I were to buy a brand new unit. Now that I have the 755, which is a monster I really have no use for the balanced connections. Some help would be appreciated.

I've had both, started with a 990 but returned it because of the space issues due to it's size. I did experience some no audio issues with my 970 but it ended up being a bad capacitor which Outlaw fixed. After that no problems. I liked the analog bass management of the 970 as music is my first priority. I was really satisfied with the sound quality of the 970. I don't know at this point if I will wait for the 997 or buy another 970 or possibly a 990 (I have space for one now). I wouldn't hesitate on a 970 though, as Outlaw's customer service should you experience an issue is (in my experience) first class.

Well I pulled the trigger and ordered a 970 and a 3 stack of rca cables to go along with my new(used) model 755 amplifier. I have been very happy so far with the performance of the 755. I was wondering is there any difference between the 755 and the 7500 besides the balanced inputs?
Anyway I sure hope the 970 and the 755 are as enjoyable as when I first purchased the 1050.

My System:
B&W 685 (mains)
B&W 601 S3 (Surrounds)
B&W LCR 60 (Center)
B&W ASW 600 (Sub)
Outlaw 755 Amplifier
Outlaw 1050
Sony DVP-NC685V (DVD,SACD,CD)
Sony BDP-S350 Blue Ray
Sony KDL-40V4100 40" LCD TV
Panamax 4300 Power Conditioner

One more question about the 970's rs-232 input for updates. What if I do not have an rs-232 output on my computer should I ever need to update?

There are some USB dongles that provide an RS-232 port.

Thanks Gonk I had not thought of one of those.
There has not been any updates recently for the 970 has there? I would think that the 970 I will be recieving will be updated with the current firmware.

If you are getting a new one from Outlaw, I would expect it to have the latest firmware loaded.

Thanks Gonk. I was also wondering about the switch in the back of the unit for bass management. Will someone explain to me the difference between the 3 different possitions and also if there is a different setting that is better depending on what source input I am using or is there one setting that is good to just leave in that possition full time?

I haven't read the manual in a while, but I think it has a good section on this. Basically, though, you would pick one setting and leave it there. The switch only affects the 7.1 analog input. "Bypass" provides no bass management to that input. "HPF/LPF" has an analog 80Hz crossover network that redirects bass from the seven full-range channels to the subwoofer (mixing them with the LFE channel). "Digital" converts the 7.1 input from analog to digital, steers it through the 970's DSP section for the same bass management that digital inputs get, and converts it back to analog.

WOW that was fast. That clears up a lot for me I did not realize that switch was only for the 7.1 input section. I am just so anxious to get it after having the 1050 for so many years and now that I have a 755 I could finaly jump on a pre-pro.

I don't know how the 970 will compare to your 1050, but I love my 970. I've recently sent it in for repair and when I put my old Pioneer back in service, I was reminded why they used to call the brand "Pain-in-the-ear." I can't wait to get my 970 back!

Hey Saturn5 how long did you have your 970 before it had to get repaired, and what was the problem? One more question that I probably should know is how long is the warranty on the 970? I know it is 5 years on the amps.

Gunslinger,
Warranty on the 970 is 2 years. I had my 970 repaired for a capacitor issue (under warranty)and I believe it took about 3 weeks.

Alright I have recieved the 970 and so far it sounds great. I have run in to a few what sounds like common issues already. The first beeing that the remote will not turn the unit on, but all other functions work including turning it off. The seccond is the switch for the 7.1 input when switched to digital shows didital on the screen, when switched to bypass it shows bypass on the screen, but when I switch it to the filter setting it will again display bypass. I am not sure if it suppose to show bypass or if it should show the filter setting, and if it is suppose to show the bypass mode when on the filter setting I do not hear a whole lot of audibal difference if any. Not that I listened very closely or for very long. Any input would be hand. The 970 sounds great for movies and music a big upgrade from the 1050.

See the manual - the power button on the remote is a discrete "OFF" command, and each input button doubles as a discrete "ON" command. Pick the input you want and it will turn on.
Both the bypass and filter settings bypass the digital section. Thus, this is correct.

Gonk you are the best. Both problems are easily solved and I love my new 970. I just upgraded to HD cable today also and that also goes great with the 970. After all of the these new upgrades I need to take a day this weekend and redo all of my cables what a mess they are right now So far I have not had any experience with the no audio problem or long delays with finding the digital signal. I tool your advice from an earlier post about turning off the auto polling feature right away. What exactly does this feature do anyway?

Auto polling offers a solution to older digital cable boxes that didn't provide a digital output for some analog channels, as it allows the 970 to switch over to the stereo analog input if the digital input remains inactive for a period of time. This sort of box was very common as recently as five years ago, but the HD cable boxes are generally not subject to it and the non-HD digital cable boxes that are around now are mostly scaled back versions of the HD boxes. Thus, you generally don't see cable boxes that have only semi-functional digital outputs anymore. Since the feature is subject to nuisance "analog checks" it's best to disable it unless you have a component that actually needs it.

I love my 970. Had it for several months and (knock on wood) zero issues. I also did not know that about the "Switch". Thank Gonk! I just hooked up a SACD player to the 7.1 analog inputs and just left it in bypass without testing how it sounded in other modes. But I probably wont mess with it is sounds superb in bypass. When I was setting up the SACD I was not sure if I should set with PCM or DTS. I could not tell the difference in sound quality. I left in in DTS. I am not an audiphile. more like audiophlie.

DTS or DSD? (Since we're talking SACD, I'm pretty sure it's DSD.) That setting was probably for the HDMI output, and so it wouldn't influence what the player is doing in your installation anyway.

Well I have had the 970 for almost a week now and I love it so far. I have purchased a lot of new equipment lately ( Sony 40" lcd, Sony Blue Ray, which I wish now was an Oppo, 755 amp, and the 970) so my cables were a mess. I had noticed when I first set up the 970 I heard a hiss/hum which went away once I organized all of my cables and seperated the power cables from the speaker cable and interconnects. After replacing the 1050 with the 970/755 combo and new outlaw PCA cables between them I am blown away at the difference in sound. Movies sound 10 steps above, and music has a whole new sound with an amazing sound stage and great imaging. I know the 970 has been out for a few years, but I think I will hold on to it for a while. At least until the new 997 is out for a while and comes down in price.