^^^

What Gonk said.

My point was, stuffing a bunch of features into a budget AVR isn't going to guarantee the same or even similar sound quality that I would have expected with the 978 and its analog output stage. "Features" and "sound quality" are not the same.

I had a 950, and I am very familiar with Outlaw's other SSP's. I have also had a budget AVR or two in my lifetime. I most certainly got more enjoyment out of the 950.