I also made the change to class d for the same reasons in my 11.1 Auro-3d / Atmos system . I'm currently running a Marantz AV8805 along with
2 Class D Audio SDS-470 4 Channel amps and a SDS-400C 2 channel amp , also a Nuprime STA-9 in mono and it's a fantastic combo .
Unfortunately the evil upgrade monster is back , and I been thinking about trying a L/C/R 3 channel amp and ATI , Apollon are on my list.
I would think about 3 & 4 channel combo instead of a single 7 / ch amp , as the front l/c/r are priority as I'm sure you know .
I like the Apollan AS3600 as it can be used as a true three mono amplifier. This means it can be a 3 mono blocks design if only channels one, three and five are used. In this case each module is in mono mode and full power is available for each channel.
I would like to try the 1200AS2 , but ATI USA made keeps calling my name !
Maybe try a single
Class D Audio SDS-470 4 Channel , I think you will be surprised...worse case use it for the height speakers and you have flexibility for your front mains .