I can't comment on sacd or dvd-a, but as far as 5.1 music goes they're awesome! 5.1 dolby and dts dvd corcerts that I own sound amazing. even when I listen to sirius I set the denon to 5-ch stereo.

There are moments when I prefer the 2 ch direct mode but most of the time I listen to music in surround sound. (probably because of how good the QS-8 's are !)

When I first got them I could not believe how loud/clear/powerful they were.

definitely worth auditioning

HT PICS