Pioneer SC-95, SC-97, & SC-99 Receivers

[smitty4ut]

I just bought an SC-95 receiver to replace my Denon 3808ci the other day. So far I am very happy. It took me a couple of days to really start liking the Pioneer. I purchased a Marantz 6010 first, only to realize that I couldn't do what I was looking to do with it alone. I was going to need to purchase a separate amp for my Zone 2. So I returned it, and purchased the Pioneer SC-95, I do like the MCACC vs Audyssey. The decoding of the sound seems to be very detailed for movies. I have not had much time to listen to music yet. The GUI for the Marantz was better than the Pioneer. I do like the big display on the front of the Pioneer, compared to the small one on the Marantz. I can read the Pioneer from across the room. The Marantz, I would have to pull the info up on the TV screen to see the formats and so on. Not a big deal, but I like being able to just look at the receiver display to know what it's doing. I also really like the APP so far for the Pioneer. I didn't have the Marantz long enough to use the app for it. The app for the Pioneer only gets 2 stars on the iphone app store, but I find it very helpful. I really like that I can control my Zone 2 and choose what input it is using as well as the volume and so on. still learning how to use it, but it seems to do everything very well so far. I plan on adding Tdml & Tdmr speakers to my system later to take advantage of Dolby Atmos & DTS:X. I just have to figure out how to hook everything up to make it work with my configuration. I should basically be running a 5.2.2 with a Zone 2.

So I just wanted to ask. If I want to go to a 5.2.2 Atmos setup and still be able to run my Zone 2 off of the speaker connects on the SC-95. I was wondering if the Speaker setup G 7.2.2 + SP B Manual Page 22 would work. I won't be using the surround backs, but would hook my deck speakers up as B and then just switch them on when I wanted to listen outside. Any thoughts or opinions on this would be appreciated.

I guess my other option is, since I am using a XPA-5 for my current 5.1, I could move my surround L/R to the SC-95. Then connect the Zone 2 Pre-outs to the now available channels on the XPA-5. I just hate to have to run my big amp to power 2 speakers on my deck.

Hopefully this info will help someone else. Also if anyone else has any ideas on my configuration issue, please let me know.

Thanks