Unfortunately, we haven't gotten enough input to make a decision. In the interim, I have thrown more requirements into the mix -- my wife is hearing impaired and so there are closed captioning support considerations. Also, I've come to the conclusion that we
do need new speakers. The ones we bought in 2006 were really cheap (I think the whole
HT system, with 5 DVD carousel and 5.1 speakers, was less than $200), and a few recent programs have shown some limitations of the speakers. So we'll likely stick with a full
HT system, with speakers, even if they have proprietary connectors, thereby requiring us to run new wire around the room; again we have the luxury of being able to easily do so because of the room's shape and position of the television and doorways.
I have been posting this around on some of the Home Theater forums:
So at least I'm narrowing things down (not really considering the Samsung, anymore), though to be honest, bad news about the Sony's capabilities could derail my whole Sony strategy.
