Most definitely budget wise.. I guess I can thank the wife, she didn’t want a bunch of machines in our entertainment systems lol. My compromise was the 6700h one box solution to run all speakers. (also got refurbished to save a bit) I am curious though, I looked hard for a cheaper option that would run all 11 channels with no need to add an amp... Is there a cheaper one box option out there? Will kick my self if so lol.. I could have completely been miss reading and not understanding how these Denon receivers work.
Probably not, but a lot of the mid tier models will process that many channels with an extra amp. You can find smaller less intrusive (and less expensive) amplification for powering effect speakers. Are you really going to use that many channels tho? You need a pretty big room to lay all that out correctly.
Neither here nor there now tho. The wife wants a 1 box solution and you got one. It's an awesome avr and you made a good choice as far as brand and model. The 6700 is a lot of avr, and I'm not gonna beat you up over it, lol. If you were still shopping I'd be leaning on you pretty hard tho...
I really like the suggestion to bump your sub budget a bit and grab the VTF-3 MK5. I have a pair of those and they loaf most of the time in my big room, but when I want to rattle the walls they can deliver.