1. Okay, I just went downstairs to test this. When I get to +5 I start hearing a hiss. It gets louder as I proceed to +16.5 on the reciever's display. I normally listen to the unit at -20 if I am going for pretty darn loud. My wife will make me lower this if she is watching as well. If I am rocking to music, and I mean really rocking (concert levels) I have gotten to -10. I can't stand this level for too long myself, and wouldn't try to as it could definately cause ear damage. Until I reach +0 (with no source on) the setup of the 2500 and Outlaws is dead quiet.

2. As I still get the hiss at insane levels with the amps, it would have to be inherent in the 2500's preouts. Let me stress though, that I would be in pain and agony from the loudness, long before I ever got to the point where any hiss would be heard.

The unit's internal amps aren't bad (I lived with them for a while and was fairly happy), but with the Outlaws, I heard many things and details that were not apparent with the internal amps. The bass is also extremely clean and tight now. I would not hesitate to recommend the combo to anyone. The only caveat I could see would be if your speakers were really inefficient and you had to totally crank the volume to get to loud levels. For the price, the 2500 is simply unbeatable.