Emotiva A-5175 vs. NAD T-977

[Atomic4877]

I am currently running my 7.1.4 system off a Denon x6500h for my surrounds and height channels and running my c, r, l channels off an Emotiva a-5175. I can get a good deal on a NAD t-977 and was thinking about switching. I would run all seven floor channels off it and have the x6500h run just the heights. Per the specs I would be losing about 15 watts per c, r ,l speaker but gain quite a bit for the rest of the channels. I just wanted some opinions on how much of a difference this upgrade would be? I know NAD is highly regarded and oftentimes can output more than their specs. The N-977 is 140 x 7 at 8 ohms and the Emotiva is 125 x 5 channels driven at 8 ohms.