Shimrod,

The 970 was good with music, but the 990 is definately better. The $400 difference in price may seem like a lot, but the 2-channel performance of the 990 is well worth it. It is also built like a tank; I thought the build of the 970 was much less rigid (connectors felt loose when pushing cables on them, etc.).

I would also say that if you are listening to radio stations, you probably won't hear a huge difference between the two units. If you are listening to CDs however, there is a large difference in favor of the 990. The "Upsample" mode is truely incredible.

I don't make a lot of dough myself, but would definately recommend the 990 over the 970 to anyone. You will also get a longer warranty, lots more flexibility, and better performance on movies out of the deal. The 990 truly is the best deal out there right now IMO. I will be receiving the Emotiva LMC-1 soon and will perform another shootout between it and the 990.