If your receiver has 5-7.1 analog inputs and you don't mind taking your video directly to your TV, you don't have to worry about HDMI in a receiver. According to what I last read on Dolby's website it's not clear whether HD discs will allow the digital stream past the decoder anyway.

I can't remember the series of Boston's I heard at the time I listened to them and Paradigm, I clearly preferred the Paradigm. The Paradigm series was a bit more money though.

I beef with Yamaha's bass is not the amount, but the quality, it lacks detail. On Yamaha products I've owned and heard you will get a boom but can't tell what instrument made it. On the other hand, giving Yamaha credit, they seem to be a bit warmer and less offensive in the mids and highs compared to similarly priced units.