Making a case for a "separates" approach to HD
It's no wonder HD fans have a high incidence of chronic upgrade-itis; it goes hand-in-hand with the forever forward march of technology. Most of us build our HT setups around an A/V receiver -- exotics aside, all the functionality in a receiver can provide good value. But when the upgrade fever strikes, replacing the bundled switching, decoding and amplifying tasks is a lot of "purchase inertia" to overcome. The system-building approach advocated by the linked article (written over a year ago) presents an interesting alternative to the receiver-based system: separate the video and audio chores. Admittedly we're into a fairly high price point here, probably in the $2k receiver range. But if that's how you roll, consider if the larger "up front" cost to a video processor and receiver fits with your view of "price vs. performance."
