I agree, get what features you want. My Denon 2805 has lots of Bells and Whistles that I don't use, for ex., it has tons of extra DSP options. I wanted a good AVR that had the latest surround decoding abilities like DD, DTS, PLIIx, etc... Also, the 5-7 channel stereo is a cool feature. I think most of today's reputable brands will carry the same surround decoding. Some will be THX certified, which to me is not that big of deal. If you stay with a good name like Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha, HK, to name a few, you will be fine.
