Marantz 5600 or 7500? (1 Viewer)

[Slade]

I'm starting to upgrade my home stereo/AV system and am looking at the Marantz receivers.

The Marantz 5600 is $600 at Cambridge Soundworks and the Marantz 7500 is $1000. Is the 7500 worth the additional $400? (Is there a 7600 coming soon?)

Is the extra 15 watts between the two noticable? My living room is approximately 450 square feet, with aproximately a 12 foot ceiling. I would like multi-room capabilities down the road.

In selecting a receiver, I'm focusing more on a good musical sound, than HT. This will be connected to my HT (which is just a TV, DVD, CD, tape deck and Dish receiver). The way it sounds playing music is more important to me (if it sounds great with music, the HT sound will be good enough).

Is there any difference in the power supplies or build quality between the two models? (I would love to get the 8500, but it's out of my price range right now.)

I currently just have an old 70s vintage Pioneer SX-790 receiver, connected to some inexpensive speakers. I'll be replacing the speakers later, but I want to start with a good receiver. (I guess any new receiver will be an improvement!)

Thanks for any help!

 

[ChrisWiggles]

Yes it's a nicer receiver, though you should sort of consider receiver and speakers together in a sense, not isolated purchases. There's no reason to overbuy receiver or speakers if you consider them together. I think there is a 7600 coming isn't there? I've been a little out of date with maratnz, seeing as I have a 5300 .

 

[John Garcia]

There will be a lot more difference than "just" 15w. I went from a 6200 which was rated at 105 to my 8300 which is "only" 120w and there was a definite difference. Chris is right that your speakers as well as your room should be a consideration in your choice of receiver because you may get the 5600 only to find that it isn't enough.

Where are you located? I can get deals on certain Marantz gear locally.

 

[Jonathan Lofgren]

I would check out accessories4less.com on prices for Marantz as well. I don't know how comfortable you are with refurbished gear, but they have the 7500 for $699 and the 8500 for $1099. I'm pretty sure they all have one year warranties. No matter what you decide, I think that Marantz makes a good receiver. I have a 6200 and have been quite satisfied. I would also suggest spending a little more now and then being satisfied rather than getting a lower model and upgrading right away. No one needs a receiver. It's clearly completely a luxury item so you might as well get the one that makes you happy.

 

[Slade]

Good points from everyone. Thanks.

Maybe I should just go ahead and spring for the 7500.

A question about refurbished gear. Can anyone tell me more about it? Is it refurbished from the factory? Do they replace any parts in it? Do they clean it up?

Thanks again,
Slade

 

[MikeNg]

Generally refurbished items mean they are 'seconds' either from the factory or they were shipped back from a previous purchase because of a defect or damage. They are then brought back up to OEM spec but sometimes have some sort of blemish. Functionally they should be the same as a new unit. Sometimes they can be better than A stock as they may include firmware updates, newer parts, etc.

 

[John Garcia]

I've bought plenty of stuff from AC4L; they're great. I was going to suggest them also. They are factory refurbished and AC4L is an authorized reseller. I bought the 6200 and ended up upgrading fairly quickly, and I went ahead and just stepped up to the 8300 (which was about $600 more) instead of the 7300 and I haven't had any reason to upgrade since.

 

[Yee-Ming]

Please allow another satisfied Marantz owner to chime in: I have the 8200, software upgraded to 8300 spec, and have never considered upgrading since then. Since there haven't been any recent new formats, the "obsolescence" factor of the older 7500 doesn't really factor when weighing it against the newer 5600, but the extra power will always come in handy. Basically, what Chris and John said.

And I'm guessing (though I'm not sure) the 7500 comes with a nicer remote too?

 

[ChrisWiggles]

Probably, but guessing as it's marantz gear it's probably still a pretty rudimentary remote

but then it's the receiver that matters not the remote

 

[John Garcia]

The newer remotes are half decent actually. I kind of like the one that comes with the 7500, it's like an updated version of the RC1200. You can always go with some other universal... I use the RC3200 that came with my 8300 for my 2ch bedroom system (Marantz PM7200). I bought the 8300 because I listen to more music, and it has not disappointed.

 

[Slade]

I thought Marantz remotes were considered good? This was from several years ago, but I remember a remote that Marantz had that had an LCD screen and was considered a pretty good one at the time.

I guess their remotes have been eclipsed by newer designs?

What would be a good universal type remote for it? By the way, I also have a Dish Network receiver that has an RF remote. Is there a universal remote that has RF capability?

Another question. Do the current Marantz receivers - 7500, etc., have the same build quality as the older ones?

Oops - one other question. Is the Marantz 8500 a substantially better receiver than the 7500? (Worth the extra $500?)

And - What is HDMI conversion and do the Marantz receivers have them?

Thanks again for all the help!

 

[Slade]

Hope I'm not being too laborious, but I have a couple more questions...

I see a lot of recommendations for Denon, Yamaha and HK, but not as many for Marantz receivers. Is there any reason for that? Just not advertised as much or something? My impression was that Marantz tended to have better build quality than HK and Yamaha (don't know about Denon).

Also, A long time ago, I read that Marantz receivers seemed to have better (radio) tuners than some other receivers. Is this still the case? I would like to be able to receive some classical and jazz stations on FM occasionally.

Thanks again!

 

[John Garcia]

Marantz touchscreen remotes are all made by Philips (all of their remotes maybe?), so they are quality units, but I *hate* touchscreen remotes because I don't want to have to look at it to perform 90% of functions. The one that came with the 8300 is cool because you can download software to completely customize it and save various configurations, but it's still a touchscreen.

I've owned 3 Marantz receivers and 4 amps in the last 6 years and I have not been disappointed with any of them. I also have bought 3 for family members and they are all very happy with them.

IMO, the 8500 is worth the extra $$ only because you will less likely to need an upgrade anytime soon, though it will depend on what speakers and how big of a room you have as to whether you actually need it.

I can't help you on the tuners, but I think that you may be talking about vintage models that had some excellent tuners. Today, most tuners are pretty similar, AFAIK.

The URC line of remotes (100, 200, 300, 350) have RF capability built in and they are quite good, IMO. Check out www.remotecentral.com for info/reviews on remotes. Amazon seems to have very good prices on these guys lately.

There are fewer Marantz owners on most boards I've been on, but that doesn't have anything to do with their quality or capability. FWIW, Denon and Marantz are owned by the same holding company.

 

[Blaine_M]

I've got a 5400, and I have a friend who just bought a brand new 7400 that is not refurbished from AC4L for I think $699, has a full 3 year warranty. I was thinking they had some brand new 7500's for $699ish, have to check for sure, but they are authorized and have the full 3 year warranty. I'll never own anything but a Marantz, unless they have a major hit in quality. The 5400 is the 2nd I've owned.

 

[Blaine_M]

I was wrong on the 7500's, they are refurbished for the $699, still not bad at all though.

 

[John S]

I do find the extra money is warranted as you go up in product lines with most all the manufactures.


I like Marantz stuff well enough. On other boards for what ever reason they seem to be used more than here, I would not read anything into that at all.


Most on here like Marantz a lot, even if they don't own it.

 

[Ben LG]

Ive had similar experience with AC4L, bought a few Marantz receivers, a integrated amp and a CD changer and all came in like new condition. Their customer support is fast and helpful too. AC4L is the only place I would buy refurbished gear from. Also keep an eye out for coupons since Christmas is coming up.