Marantz DV8300 Question for Manoj M. (1 Viewer)

[Tim Schwartz]

Manoj,

Nice job on your DV8300 review in DVD Etc. Did Marantz ever reply to your questions regarding the Bass Management on these units?

Tim

 

[ManojM]

Thanks Tim, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I was uncommonly blessed to have the Marantz and the Krell DVD Standard here at the same time. Marantz's reply thus far has been that SACD bass management was implemented, but for reasons unknown DVD-A bass management was not. The particular engineer in charge of the 8300 has been ill for some time in Japan, and has not been able to provide these reasons up to this point. If you really want proper bass management, the Outlaw ICBM is commonly recommended (I have not used it), although it does also add the expense of another set of interconnects on top of the unit itself.

 

[Tim Schwartz]

Thanks Manoj. I've thought about using the ICBM with the Marantz, but I may try out the new Elite 47-AI. I've heard it sounds better with the new Burr-Brown DACs, and has full bass management. Plus I can get it for $900. Yamaha also has a new universal player coming out, but I question their players reliability based on past experience with Yamaha equipment.

 

[Al Roeth]

Hi,

I looked online to see if I could find/purchase the review of the DV-8300, but I didn't see any info on the current issue or about a review on the DV-8300.

I also haven't seen your magazine around, so I was wondering if there was some way I could get the review on the Marantz DV-8300? I'm trying to make some decisions on whether to buy that unit, or maybe just separate DV-6200 and an SA-8260, obviously losing-out on DVD-A. I've got a Marantz VC-5200 now for CD and DVD now.

Being so new, there don't seem to be many real reviews on the DV-8300, so it would be helpful to see yours.

thx =)
al

 

[ManojM]

Tim,
Both Yamaha and Integra are bringing out universal players, they introduced them at CEDIA. The Yamaha is a carousel I believe, and is $999. We may review one or both of these players in the future.

Al,
The magazine should be available at Borders and Barnes & Noble, and the new issue hit newsstands this past Tuesday. If you cannot find the issue this weekend, then PM or email me and I will be happy to send you a copy.

 

[Al Roeth]

Manoj,
Thanks for the tip, and I tracked a copy down this afternoon.... very nice magazine, although "note" the photo error for the Onkyo receiver in the new products section... showing an H/K from the previous page
But back on-topic *laugh*...
I was wondering, could you expand a bit beyond your article on the performance of the DV-8300, especially in regard to both DVD-Video and SACD/CD performance?
For example, you mention that the DVD section is based on the Panasonic DV-47, which has the chroma bug, and to your comments "looked somewhat grainy". Have you compared this to the Marantz DV-6200 or VC-5200(which I believe have the same DVD-Video section??) and do you have any opinion on whether the DV-8300 provides a worse, equal, or better DVD playback than the DV-6200/VC-5200?
The reason I ask is that if the DV-8300 doesn't provide as good DVD progressive playback as the VC-5200 or it's sibling the DV-6200, I am thinking of sticking with my VC-5200 and maybe looking at a Marantz SA-8260 for CD/SACD playback, which by all accounts should have better CD/SACD playback than the DV-8300. Given that I can get a DV-6200 for about $350(or just keep my VC-5200) and a used SA-8260 for about $750, it's a toss-up... obviously losing out on DVD-A of course.
So I guess there are two, maybe three questions:
1) Is the video performance of the VC-5200 and DV-6200 the same?
2) Is the video performance of the DV-8300 worse, equal, or better than the DV-6200?
3) ...what do you think of my separates solution versus just getting the DV-8300? Is the performance "good enough" to just get the all-in-one unit and DVD-A?
...although it may sound silly, this is actually something I've been somewhat struggling with for several weeks over, and the lack of review material for the 5200, 6200, and now the 8300 doesn't help. That's why I was so happy to see your review
Thanks in advance, and I look forward to your thoughts.
al

 

[ManojM]

Al,
I actually noticed the Onkyo HK picture mix-up while I was on a flight to San Francisco with publisher Terry Carroll. He turned about 3 shades of red, and started yelling at staff on the cell phone the moment we landed. He was already unhappy that they priced the Fujitsu plasma wrong, and they spelled my name wrong on one of the articles. With all the layers of proofing the magazine gets, you don't think this would happen, but it still does...

As for the 8300 video, it has a very nice interlaced output, but the progressive scan picture is just not as good as other players out there. I compared the picture quality of the 8300 with the Kenwood 5700, the Philips 962, and the Krell DVD Standard (all of which I had on hand). The PQ on the 8300 is just not in the same category as the above three, with a softer picture, increased grain, and de-interlacing that is not quite as good as the DCDi and SI chipsets. Marantz did not change the video section from the DV-47 at all, although it benefits from its own power transformer rather than a shared one. I cannot give you any comparisons with other Marantz DVD players as I have not used them in my system.

As for your separates vs. the universal player dilemma, it is somewhat difficult for me to answer since, again, I don't have experience with the other Marantz players. If I was spending my money (which I have), I would:
1) buy the 8300 for audio and the Phililps 962 or Kenwood 5700 for video (total about $2000)
2)buy the 8260 for $750 and the Kenwood 5700 (which has great PQ and very good DVD-A) for $800.

In my system at the moment I have the 8300 and the Kenwood 5700. The only DVD player that I have wanted signficantly more than the Kenwood for PQ was the Krell. The Krell was also better than the Marantz for CD playback, but the Marantz was still pretty good, and I really do enjoy the CD playback. Someone on this forum complained that the Marantz sounds harsh and that CD playback is not good. The 8300 has never sounded harsh in my system, although my friend bought one and it did sound a bit harsh initially in the treble region before break-in. I am a sucker for smooth tonal balance and a big soundstage, and the 8300 really does a nice job with both. It is just so nice and simple to drop any music disc into the player, heck even the Lady Jacqueline uses it without a problem. (Interestingly enough she also immediately saw the picture quality differences also between the 8300 and the other DVD players) Although we obsess endlessly on these forums over the technical merits of our gear, there is something to be said for simplicity and usability also.

Your other choice would be to see how the Yamaha 2300 is, as it is the new $999 universal player that also has DCDi processing. I may be getting that eventually for review, and I may also get the new Integra univeral player (which I honestly know nothing about) in for review. It's tough to advise you to keep waiting though, as I am having so much fun listening to music that I cannot imagine myself without the ability to play both high rez music formats. As an aside, the new Rolling Stones SACD stuff sounds really, really good.