I agree with
@Mikado463 .
There are AV receivers (AVRs) with no amplifier section. They're called AV Preamp/processors (Pre-Pros for short). The big AV makers, Denon, Marantz, and Yamaha sell them. Despite the lack of any amplifier sections, they cost more than nearly all the AVRs made by these same companies. Apparently the Pre-Pros are loaded with all the possible AV features, functions, bells & whistles. Because they sell so many AVRs and so few AV Pre-Pros the AVRs benefit from mass production while the Pre-Pros are a niche market.
These Pre-Pros made by the big makers are not compact. But I haven't looked lately at new models. Because of the expensive licensing fees for Dolby Digital, DTS, HDMI, etc. most or all of the small makers have abandoned the AVR or AV Pre-Pro market.
You sacrifice nothing in sound quality by using an AVR as a pre-amp instead of a dedicated Pre-Pro. An AVR also allows you the less expensive option of using a more powerful external amp for some channels, but not all of them. I use an AVR plus an external 2-channel amp which drives my front left & right speakers. The AVR drives my center channel speaker and the two rear channel speakers I have.
Look into those AVRs that have pre-amp output jacks for the audio channels. Some Denon examples are the AVR X3700H, AVR X4700H, and other higher priced AVRs. Believe it or not, you might find most or all of the features you want, in them – at a lower price than if you bought an AV Pre/Pro.
All of the AVRs that have this feature will have individual pre-out jacks as seen below:
