I asked similar questions and Outlaw's 30-day return policy allowed me to answer them with minimal risk. I had a Pioneer Elite 100 watt/channel receiver that I wasn't all that happy with the sound. I purchased my ATI 2005 (virtually the same amp as Outlaw's 7500) used and paired it with the Pioneer. There was a noticeable improvement in the sound. Things got even better when I replaced the Pioneer with the Outlaw 990. This combo has been in my system for several years and I continue to be very happy with it. I think the move to separates has a number of advantages:

1. If you buy a separate amp there is flexibilty to replace just the pre/pro as new features (e.g. video processing, room correction, etc) are developed.

2. The Outlaw/ATI amps have been around for a number of years and are very reliable.

3. In my case the separate amp sounded better than the amp in my receiver when using the receiver as the pre/pro. However, I'm not 100% sure if I would have added just the separate amp to the receiver. Because the 990/ATI 2005 sounded better than the receiver or receiver/ATI2005 combo I committed to separates. It was worth it to me to spend the extra money for better sound.

4. With Outlaw's 30-day return policy all you are risking is the cost to ship it back to Outlaw if you aren't satisfied with the sound.

Really only you can say whether the additional expense is worth it for your particular receiver, room, speakers, etc. The 30-day return policy allows you to find out. Enjoy!