Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500?

Video Asylum

TVs, VCRs, DVD players, Home Theater systems and more.

152.3.0.20

Greetings all,
Hopefully this will help out some other people looking for a good all-around system on a budget.
I'm devoting some money to my hi-fi setup for mastering and active listening, so I don't want to go overboard trying to design the mother of all home theaters. I've more or less determined the speakers and such that I want to go with, but I'm nowhere near certain on what amps I should be looking at.
I'm wondering what amps people recommend for home theater/mid-fi usage. Setup will most likely include a DVD player, VHS, and a PC (for a PVR and MP3 playback). As far as music goes, it will be more ambience listening while roaming about the house or doing stupid things like assembling new cables or speakers... what am I thinking?
I should stress that I'm not looking for audiophile quality because I know it doesn't exist at this price level. I also, however, am trying to avoid getting the type of system you pull off the shelf of Best Buy or Circuit City that sounds just barely passable. If I have to pay $6-700 to get something markedly superior, OK, but I'm aiming for $500 or less if I can do something that will pull off a good night at home. If you own or have experienced these amps in person, all the better. If you've only read about them and are doing research on them as well, please share and let us know what you've found...
One amp I've heard about was recommended at the Audioholics site. The Panasonic SA-HE200K is said to be a decent amp with a lot of bang for the buck, but I still have some prejudice against Panasonic for their build quality problems a few years ago. Same goes for Sony (I had my CD player, amp, and VTR all die within a year of each other...)
Let's hear it!

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Topic - Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - Some Guy 13:27:25 03/14/03 (10)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - AbeCollins 08:08:13 03/17/03 (3)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - Some Guy 06:50:44 03/19/03 (2)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - williak 10:09:52 03/19/03 (1)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - AbeCollins 08:17:31 03/21/03 (0)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - williak 14:46:27 03/14/03 (3)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - Some Guy 06:27:39 03/17/03 (2)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - bondmanp 11:23:39 03/17/03 (1)

Re: Not only Sears ... - williak 13:58:57 03/17/03 (0)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - DHVCD 13:52:53 03/14/03 (1)

Re: Best 5.1 A/V Receiver for under $500? - Some Guy 14:47:10 03/16/03 (0)

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