Well everybody wants amps too but they managed to leave those out :-). I think that if you're moving to separates anyway it makes sense to be able to buy this stuff a la carte to a certain extent.
Just think how much more flexible and cost effective it would be if Outlaw offered this matching set of rackmountable products:
1. The surround processor I described above sans tuner and switching.
2. A 5 x 1 digital switcher for DVI/HDMI and digital audio (optical, coax, firewire).
3. A analog video, digital audio switcher with upconversion from composite/s-video to component.
4. A video converter which would convert component video to DVI.
5. A great no compromise AM/FM tuner for those areas of the country that clearchannel hasn't yet ruined.
6. A rack system similar to Middle Atlantic's Slim-5.
I would buy 1 and 2 but you might get 1 and 3. Someone else could get 1, 2, and 3 and 4.
Of course, Outlaw would still offer a receiver with 3 x 1 HDMI switching for those who can get by with only a few inputs and want an all in one solution.
I think one of the benefits of separates is it reduces complexity and minimizes the chances of things interacting in noisy ways. This is why pre-amp and amp are often separated. I would imagine that moving the video stuff elsewhere wouln't hurt things sonically. This is probably why many components have a "pure direct mode" that disables the video circuitry.
Thanks for your comments,
talismax