opinions sought on Marantz ht amps

[brendon]

Hi all ,I am currently looking at purchasing a HT amp around the marantz Sr5400/6400 price point(approx $1300 AUD ,1 aud= approx 72cents US ) and was interested in what people thought was a good buy at this end of the market.I expect usage to be approx 75% 2 channel and 25% HT and it will be in a small (4m x 3.5m ) room.If budget allows I am looking at B&W 602 mains with 601 rears .Source will be a pioneer Dvd-a /sacd player.The amp I am after must have good 2 chanel sound.
Thanks Brendon.

[jimmyp58]

There's a few gents from your area that I am sure will hop aboard on this (Aussie Geoff comes to mind) and I know that Sithlord has experience with Marantz equipment (dvd player).

Jim

[Bam!]

Hi all ,I am currently looking at purchasing a HT amp around the marantz Sr5400/6400 price point(approx $1300 AUD ,1 aud= approx 72cents US ) and was interested in what people thought was a good buy at this end of the market.I expect usage to be approx 75% 2 channel and 25% HT and it will be in a small (4m x 3.5m ) room.If budget allows I am looking at B&W 602 mains with 601 rears .Source will be a pioneer Dvd-a /sacd player.The amp I am after must have good 2 chanel sound.
Thanks Brendon.

If 2 channel is a priority.....I'd look at Arcam...........but mostly Rotel......The 1056 will deliver better everything IMHO over the Marantz receiver....

HAve a listen......

[brendon]

Re rotel recommendation

Hi Bam,Rotel would be my first choice but my budget does not quite get there .My father had a sweet little Rotel 20 watt amp and sony Es series cd player along with a nice pair of british bookshelf speakers back in 1984 and this was my introduction to good quality hi fi.All of these components are still going 20 years later!!May be I will have to look second hand.
Thanks for your reply Brendon

[Bam!]

Hi Bam,Rotel would be my first choice but my budget does not quite get there .My father had a sweet little Rotel 20 watt amp and sony Es series cd player along with a nice pair of british bookshelf speakers back in 1984 and this was my introduction to good quality hi fi.All of these components are still going 20 years later!!May be I will have to look second hand.
Thanks for your reply Brendon

Not to make things worst.....but the match between Rotel and B&W is quite something too.......

You can find a used 1056 for sure.........

Go with 1056 over 1055..........

[brendon]

rotel pricing

Hi Bam ,I have just looked at a few local dealers web sites and a 1056 is well over 2000 pacific pesos so as much as I lust after rotel (pre/ power combo esp) ,I think for the next couple of years a more modest amp will have to do.I am looking at the marantz as they are reputed to be best 2 chanel /music amp at the cheap end of town and have better than average actual power outputs.I also saw the Arcam amps but cheapest still well over $2000 AUD.I spoted a NAD amp that looked to be in my price point but have heard mixed reports about build quality(along with every other amp ever made if you belive consumer review sites!!) .I really like Rotel design philosophy and looks ,quality etc and usually buy components for the long run but I just dont think I can justify the price to my better half even if I promise to keep it for 10 years!I have been using your posts on 2 chanel equip to desensitize wife to how much I want to spend as my whole budget is less than some of those amps and speakers!
Brendon

[number17]

Rotel 1056 vs Marantz 6400 is really an apple to orange comparison.

For the price range, you'd be comparing the Marantz 6400 to Denon 2805, and Harmon Kardon AVR230/330.

I haven't had too much experience with HK though I've heard good things about them. HK had problems with their PS in the last generation and it turned a lot of customers away, but their latest models have received newly designed PS's that has fixed that problem.

HK also beats Denon and Marantz in features and smartness ... just look at the thing's bass management and different settings for different inputs.

For sound quality though (which is what I REALLY care about) I can't say too much about HK cos I never had a chance to really sit down and listen to it.

I can, however, throw in my 2 cents on Marantz vs Denon as I was also looking at those systems.

Denon is definitely the receiver with more features between the 2 ... and that's been Marantz' trend all along. They consider these features 'gimmicks' and claim they'd focus their resources on the sound quality. One example is they were the last guys to come out with component video switching on their receivers.

The Marantz in general are very good for music. Their sound is on the warm side, and they're very musical indeed. Throw anything at them - jazz, rock, pop, classical, and the receiver will not disappoint. They are good for movies, but instead of some other systems that will knock you socks off in the first 30 sec's Marantz are easy listener's.

Denon's are also very good all-round receivers but personally I think they are on the bright side. The brightness is apparent for music and movies, and if you're the kindda guy who likes the dialogues and the high end to pop out when watching a movie then Denon's the receiver for you. Personally I don't like that, and hence I went with Marantz myself.

But don't take my words for it. Get a listen of the 2 receivers and see which one you like more. I can't say one is better than the other, but they're definitely different.

Here in North America Marantz come with 3 years warranty while everybody else (Denon included) come with 2.

[purplepeople]

The source is DVD/SACD so it already has all the decoders and 6 channel output. You could get 3 older Rotel 2-ch recs and run them simultaneously. If they are all the same, a single remote would change the volume simultaneously. I'm doing that with a mixer and active monitors. No special Church Hall settings or TV surround, but when I watch DVD and things fly around and around, it is totally (un)believable!

ensen.

[brendon]

thanks to all who replied

Thanks for your replies,they have given me plenty food for thought.It looks as if my HT has just been pushed further back as I bought a near new car yesterday to replace our family wagon which was getting very long in the tooth.At least the SACD version of Dark Side of the Moon which I found at the local shopping center this morning has conventional cd tracks on it so I can listen to it in my car until I buy a 6.1 amp to go with my dvd/sacd player I got last month .
Thanks again Brendon