Pretty much nailed it down, can you help me decide? Integra vs Elite

I am also considering the SC-27 or the DTR-9.9 and have the same question you do about heat. The pioneer spec says it has power consumption of 330 watts. The integra says 11.6 amps. Since the specs are not easily comparable I am glad that there have been other posts about these receivers that confirm the pioneer ICE amps run cool. I currently have an old Sony STR-DA777ES which runs hot and doesn't have the nice provisions for HDMI.

It seems somewhat inconvenient that the Pioneer wants the iPhone adapter to plug into a jack behind the front door.

William06 and others had some relevant comments about comparing the SC-27 and the DTR-9.9 in a separate thread. Since I am new and have not had 3 posts I cannot include the URL - sorry.
Similar to comments in that thread, I am just looking at driving a 5.1 setup at this time, so I'm not dealing with height speakers and PLIIz that would make the DTR-9.9 a clear choice. I have the OPPO BDP83 and have read other comments that the SC-27 and the OPPO work fine together. I realize that by having the OPPO I am not sticking with the camp of folks who enjoy Pioneer's PQLS by having a pioneer player.

The DTR9.9 has Audyssey with MultiEQ XT as compared to pioneer's MCACC. I do not have experience with either but having read many posts each one has its pluses and minuses. I don't think I am swayed one way or the other based on the posts I have read.

The DTR-9.9 has the latest Reon video processing chip that appears to be getting a lot of favorable comments in other posts.

I don't have a collection of HD DVDs so the problem that William06 had with dolby sound dropouts with the pioneer is not an issue to me.

I prefer to buy gear of this type from a local dealer and one close to me that has both units has mentioned a Black Friday sale of their demo units coming up, so I will likely be buying one or the other soon. I see you also live in the Bay Area so maybe you'll beat me to the sale!

I have looked at the recent 11-6-09 pioneer filing of their financial statements and the situation is not very good, but since I already have a Kuro 141FD I may be leaning to the SC-27. Given this situation I am placing a lot of trust in my local dealer should something go bump with pioneer in the future and I find myself needing help with parts or service support.