Emotiva UMC-1... Still a science-lab affair?

Hi, I'm new to Audiogon, and hi-fi in general. I started my journey on Audiogon looking for a new AVR to replace my beginner, entry-level Yamaha with something that will do my new speakers justice:

B&W CDM 7 Special Edition
B&W CDM C center channel

I picked out the Marantz SR6005, but asked a very knowledgable friend of mine about all of this and he suggested instead the Emotiva UMC-1 and a 2-channel amp for now; later I can buy another amp and pick up the rear channels. He said I can't beat the value for dollar, and the sound will be much better than the SR6005 that I am auditioning right now.

Whatever I get, I want to run in 2 channel (plus sub) most of the time and later do 5.1 when my theatre room is ready.

Problem is, my initial research on the UMC-1 is that most owners are really having to tinker with it to resolve bugs or get it to function properly. I can't tell if the bugs are worked out or not. I really don't want to live on a forum to see if "my issue is normal" or "do I need to update the software yet again."

His advice is probably very good, but should I stay away from the UMC-1?