Samsung BD-P1500 Player...Which Receiver?

[chris83]

Hi All,

Just purchased a Samsung BD-P1500 Blu-Ray player, and I'm trying to figure out which receiver to purchase. I'd REALLY like to find a receiver for less than $350.

Being a Blu-Ray newb, I apologize if this is a bit "Duh!?" for the well-learned here. Below is my equipment:
Sony KDS-50A2000 HDTV
Samsung BD-P1500
DirecTV H20 HD receiver
Panasonic SC-HT900 HTIB (Which I will be replacing)

Here is what I would LIKE to do:

Run an HDMI in to the receiver from the Samsung for audio and video
Run an HDMI in to the receiver from the H20 for audio and video
Run an HDMI from the receiver to the Sony HDTV, so the receiver handles all the audio and video

Questions:
Do I lose too much on video going through the receiver?
Should I run HDMI just from the Samsung and DTV H20 directly to the Sony and go with audio cables only from those components to the receiver?
If yes on the audio cables, is optical okay?

I'd just like to have a setup where I can get excellent quality audio from the Blu-Ray discs I am watching. Right now, my HTIB can't handle anything with 7.1, so I have to listen to such discs as "Pinocchio" and "Star Trek: TOS" on mono.

Advise, critique, savage, whatever. You folks are the experts.

Thank you!