Techie Question PRE OUT

Hey folks, I know there are a lot of technofiles out there..hoping you could help me out.

I have a home theatre audio package where the dvd player is also the receiver and the audio all hooks up through the subwoofer. Anyway, its a long story but I want to keep the sub and speakers (which have rca connections) but replace the dvd/receiver, using a new receiver.

Here is my question: If i get a receiver that has rca PRE-OUT for the six surround channels im thinking i can hook the speakers i have now right to the pre-out of the receiver ( i would hook a new dvd to the receiver through the optical input). I really dont understand what the PRE OUT is but essentially the dvd/reciever combo i had had all the surround rca outputs that hooked to the subwoofer and speakers. Could i accomplish the same thing with Pre-Out outputs of a new receiver.

God I hope this makes sense!