I think the original that I wrote and accidently deleted would have explained my question better. I currently have a Denon 2802 receiver which I really like. I usually listen to music in the "direct" mode rather than "stereo" because it sounds a little cleaner.
But how to switch my receiver from stereo to Dolby Digital, was not my question. I remember reading a post from a guy either here in the Axiom forum or on AVS forum, who complained that every 5.1 receiver he tried, HK and Denon included, didn't play simple 2 channel stereo well. I dismissed that, but after today I'm not so sure.
A few weeks ago I heard those Vienna Acoustics Beethovens ($4500 each) powered by a Denon receiver. What struck me was how similar that set up sounded to mine. What I heard today was much cleaner than either my system or the one with the Beethovens. I believe what I was hearing was very transparent speakers (like my Axioms, like the Beethovens) display the characteristic sound of their source. In the case of the Parasound separates, a very clean source.
If I hook my M60s up to a 2 channel processor like the one I heard today (with outboard amps) my M60s will no longer be hooked up to my Denon for HT. I lose my HT, and have to buy some M22s to replace the M60s. Or, and this was my question, is there some way to utilize the M60s in both setups without having to disconnect and reconnect the speakers everytime I want to switch sources? Like an A/B switch for speakers but used to switch sources instead.
