Okay, I have read several threads over the past few months and have gotten great advice to build my system.  I will be moving soon and renovating the family room, and need a receiver.  My current system is as follows:

RF52, RC52, Quintet III side and rear surrounds, Sub 10

I will utilize the room for about 70% HT and 30% music.  I was hoping to get a good unit for around $500-$700.  I am planning to purchase a 1080p plasma tv, and may have to hold off on a blu-ray player until prices drop.  While I am pretty well versed on all of the lingo, the HDMI and upconverting features on receivers throw me a little.

I was looking at the Yamaha RX-V663 and the Onkyo TSXR705.  Both of these seem to have similar features, including one that is important to me.  That is 9 speaker terminals so I can hook up my 7.1 system as well as 2 outdoor speakers.  The room size is 26x13 and I am not sure about my seating positions yet.

Any advice will be great.  BTW, I have upgraded my system twice, without even hooking anything up yet.  Having the equipment sitting in boxes in the basement along with reading the material on the forum is enough to give me the upgrade bug!

Anyone with advice, please!

I have the onkyo 605 and I like mine.  I also think it is good to get the 705 because it has pre-outs which if you needed to get a external amp for more power to the speakers you will be good to go.  good luck. 

Personally in my opinion I would purchase the Onkyo. Not only do you get more HDMI inputs, 3 compared to 2, but you also get pre-outs. Pre-outs may not be a feature that grabs you right now, but you are then given the chance to upgrade to separate amps in the future if you wanted to. I have had my current Marantz for about three years and am finally going to take advantage of the pre-outs on it. Another nice feature that the Onkyo has is pre-outs for Zone 2, in case you are using speakers that demand a little bit more power or you can set the volume to an amp you may use closer to the speakers.

Though it doesn't make any difference the Onkyo is also THX certified. Some people care about that and other don't. Not a big deal either way in my eyes.

I also like how the Onkyo's back is set up compared to the Yamaha's. Everything is easy to distinguish since they use different colors.

Good luck and let us know what you choose.

I am trying to plan ahead, and I think the Onkyo has a lot to offer.  I found it on-line for $500, which is an excellent price.  I think the 705 should meet my needs.

 Vanns has the Onkyo TX-SR705 for $499 with free shipping.  You have to add it to cart to see the sale price.

I have an Onkyo TX-SR703 and I am very pleased with the features, power and quality of it.   

I found that Vanns has the best price on this unit by far.  After reading a number of threads, dealing with Vanns has been nothing but positive. 

6ave.com $620 for an 805