All: I may eventually get a chance to compare the Onkyo to a pre/ pro of some type. Who knows what I will find out or decide. While I currently remain unconvinced, it ought to be fun to find out if there is a difference that I can hear.

gband: I appreciate your point on linear amplifier operation.

Warf: I was reading on the avs board some comments about a ATI amp that had high frequency hiss when it was turned off. It was returned for a second which also had the same issue. The owner contacted ATI again and they said that it was a function of the capacitors discharging. I would be interested in knowing if you observe this characteristic when you turn it off.