Well now the friggin thing is working again. It powered up without a hitch. I did have to cycle it a couple times to sync up to the input devices, so I suspect there is something inside it with a headache.

I am still going to replace it though. Confidence level that it will continue working is about zero.

Now I'm wondering if I ought to just buy an A/V processor, and get a 3CH amp for the R/L/C channels, and I can still use my two 5 CH amps for the rest of the speakers. I'm surprised to see so many dedicated processors on the market now. Even Monoprice is making one. Emotiva has several (very confusing line up).

I'm not buying Onkyo. Or Pioneer. Or Yamaha. Or Sony.