Third attempt &

I got it. By using the 7.1 preamp outs, I'm able to take the 981's digital signal, process it via the 990 and listen via my external headphone amp. According to the manual, all the 7.1 preamp outs are active, all the time and if this is so, I assume there's no harm done in using the 7.1 preamp outs for stereo only, without adding a load to the remainder of the outputs?

Thank you all!

John