Exactly - the 990 includes a 7.1 channel analog input. HD optical disc players (when they arrive, and whatever name the format(s) happen to be) will share a general trait with the early DVD players - onboard decoding for the newly-developed audio format or formats. When DVD players appeared, very few people's receivers supported Dolby Digital and DTS was essentially unheard of. Most of those early DVD players included onboard Dolby Digital decodes so that receivers with six-channel analog inputs could give users access to the DD 5.1 soundtracks that were one of DVD's big selling points.