I'm looking for suggestions please.

[Ricci]

I need a cheap reciever or pre-pro with at-least 5.1 pre-outs and all the usual surround formats DD EX/ DTS ES etc. I am not worried about HDMI at all right now. I'm switching all of the speakers to a 5.1 set-up with powered monitors all-around in the living room and my nearly 10 year old Sony without pre-outs is not going to work. I'm willing to spend a bit of money on something that is solid, and will be a useful bit of equipment for a long time. I actually have 2(soon to be 3) surround set-ups and this will be a stop gap until I decide what I want to get for the main system to handle all of the new HDMI/1080P/ madness. After I get that unit this would get relegated to a secondary 5.1 system that won't need to be so up to date.

All that said I'd like to keep it below $300 if possible. Once I go much higher I may as well spend a little more to get something nice. I am not afraid of used gear at all.

What are some good 2-3 year old units I should look at? Anything new I should look at?
I won't be using the internal amps so with or without doesn't matter to me.

[tonyvdb]

To find a receiver or pre/pro with pre outs and the surround formats DD EX/ DTS ES etc your looking at something fairly new. The Yamaha RXV995 is a great older receiver and can be found on ebay used for less than $150 it has DD and DTS 5.1 with pre outs. For the surround formats DD EX/ DTS ES etc that is 6.1 or 7.1 You need to decide how many channels you really plan to use.
For around $550 you can get a new OnkyoTX SR705 and that gives you THX certification and all the latest surround formats including TruHD and DTS HD.

[Ricci]

Thanks for the reply Tony.

Let's say I skip on The DTS ES and DD EX. I only definately need 5.1 also. What else would you look for besides the Yammie?

[tonyvdb]

You can look at Onkyo but I know that the 605 Does not have pre outs and thats the only new model that you can afford. the 705 is about $500
Denon and even Pioneer is another two brands to check out. They have some nice receivers.
For $300 its slim pickings given you want the pre outs.

[AverageJoe]

Although it's pretty big for a receiver, the Motorola DCP501 does have pre-outs. Manufactured in 2005 as an all-in one replacement for cable box, A/V receiver, and DVD player, they never really caught on, so new-in-box units are readily available for about $100 on ebay. I have two of them and use them in a couple bedrooms (They're big, but actually save space since they replace three devices). Other than the size, it might work for you.

[Ricci]

I ended up getting a used Outlaw 950 Pre-pro. I should get it in the next few days.

[jackfish]

A Harman Kardon AVR 235-Z for $228 from Harman Audio has been working very well as a pre-processor with an Emotiva LPA-1 for a friend of mine for those who are looking to go this route in the future.