Emotiva
I haven't heard much about the new emotiva receiver, but there are plenty of reviews on their seperates. I would suggest their Refrence series vs. the receiver because you get a better amp and you can upgrade the pre-pro without changing the amp.
With a Yamaha, Denon, or Pioneer in your price range, you will get the latest features like HDMI, video upscalling, etc. but less amp power. Emotiva will have new prepros out next year with HDMI 1.3 and other update features and existing owners get 40% off.