I think I'm in a similar boat to you. I've also just seen the Pioneer VSX-LX50 for £400 and I also like the look of the 2400ES that is soon to be released by Sony. The appeal of those two to me is that they both also have pre-outs but I don't know how they compare to the others in terms of sound quality. It also seems that if you're willing to push the budget to £600, you can pick up an Onkyo 875 which apparently blows all the others out of the water.