Anthem AVM 20 or Integra DTC 9.8

You need to be more specific about your uses. The AVM20 is an old(er) unit with good sound but it lacks the newest facilities, such as roomEQ and new codecs. The Integra has all that and its performance with digital sources is very good but its analog inputs are not that great.

Kal

I have the AVM20. I can't hear if the DAC's are in or out of the loop. If you feed
it Toslink then it is fine for movies and good for music although you may get
some audible jitter depending on your setup. I found it benefited from a Power
Conditioner (the only item I have that does -so certainly not a world class power
supply in it).

It does not have auto room EQ but comes with three programmable notch filters
which can be adjusted using a test CD and RS meter. The biggest advantage of
the
AVM20 is flexibility (a huge number of inputs and outputs and extremely
sophisticated programmable input gains and paths for every input - separate
music and cinema configs and excellent quality volume control). Of course it
does not handle all the codecs but if you get the V2 upgrade it covers most
what you'll come across)

My sources are analog (SACD) and digital (CD) output from a Sony DVP-S9000ES in a video-off mode, analog output from a CIA phono stage (Throrens TD 160 II, SME Series III, Ortofon SME 30H), digital output from a PS3-80, and digital output from a Direct TV HD/DVR. The pre/pro feeds Proceed Amp-2 and Amp-3 amps and a Velodyne SMS-1 (LF room correction) via XLR lines. Speakers are KEF 104/2, 200C, and 102/2 surrounds, all biwired. Sub is Velodyne HGS-15. The SMS-1 seems able to handle room correction below 80 Hz well. Video switching is via an HDMI box. Except for the amps, power is through a Monster Power Center HTS 2500.

We use this system for some TV programs, all films, and all music. Music taste tends toward small classic and baroque (e.g. Bach, Corelli) and jazz (e.g. Evans, Coltrane) groups, with the occasional big orchestra piece (e.g. Mahler).

Cary Cinema 11a, although likely more expensive used, is also on my list, but I really hope the PAV can be repaired at reasonable cost.

db