I recently got the A9010 too, for my secondary system, and I love it. (As does WhatHiFi too apparently - they gave it 5 stars:
http://www.whathifi.com/onkyo/9010/review)
I got the 9010 because I was really happy with the component that I think is another, more well-known bang-for-the-buck: The Onkyo C-7030 CD player. It's incredibly well-built for a $150 player, has a very nice Wolfson DAC, and a motorized volume control, which means you get a nice analogue volume pot but still retain the ability to remote-control it.
Pairing the A-9010 and C-7030 also provides some modest integration: When you turn on the 7030 with the remote, the A-9010 automatically turns on and switches to the correct input.
The other great thing about the A-9010 is that it has its own built-in Wolfson DAC, and optical and coax digital inputs - so you can connect a Chromecast or any other streamer with a digital output to it and use the receiver's DAC. In my case, I have it connected to my TV's optical output. This allows me to stream from my Roku 3's HDMI port, into the TV's HDMI input, and then out the TV's optical output and into the Onkyo. With the Plex app installed on the Roku, it gives me a lossless way to wirelessly stream music from my computer in another part of the house right into the A-9010's DAC, and to use my TV and the Roku remote for super-easy navigation, selection of tracks, and so on.
I've paired the Onkyo components with the Pioneer BS22LR speakers mentioned above.
So not including the TV (since I would have that anyway), the whole shebang cost me less than $600:
C-7030: $150
A-9010: $270
Pioneer BS22LRs: $60 (on sale)
Roku 3: $80 (refurb)