Marantz SR-8200 pictures/specs posted (1 Viewer)

[Howard_S]

I've been anxious to buy a new receiver as well. Considering Marantz, Elites, Integras and Denons. At the Integra 9.1's price range which would be best? How 'bout at Integra 8.2 and 7.2's price range? And how do they compare with the more expensive models? Is it worth paying the extra for the 9.1 as opposed to the 8.2 and so on for the 4 brands?

 

[Chris PC]

I use regular old cable. I guess I could rent Terminator one. I have the Mono laserdisc, but thats got rot. I'l try the Terminator laserdisc anyways. DVD won't help cause my DVD is hooked direct to TV via component cables. have you tried viewing those scenes without the S-video switching? Have you tried with the signal going directly into your TV? I have an NTSC 32" JVC TV and I never have any problems apart from a bit of noise from cable TV signal.
The S-video noise is gone as far as I can tell. I believe the tech fixed the S-video switching noise problem. I can't see any noise anymore.
My problems are now:
Dropouts at the beginning split second of tracks/songs as described above and the HISS is still there. I really can't say I notice the HISS all that much, but I can hear it a bit in the background when pausing analog sources. Its more a matter of knowing that the hiss and noise is a sign of less than good engineering. I heard a pioneer in the store and cranked its volume and it sounded the same. I can hear the noise on analog sources when pausing. Digital of course, the receiver 'clicks off'. Sneaky little thing, but you can still hear a bit of hiss.
The pioneer 503 DVD changer that is in the store does the exact same thing and its hooked up to an SR 5200. So I don't have to take my DVD player in, but I might. There are a few Integra DTR and Onkyo TXDS receivers in the store, hence my trade in option, so I will try those receivers and check for drop-outs and HISS noise. If they don't exhibit those problems, then I will be seriously looking at an Onkyo TX-DS 797, even though its almost double my budget. Gotta have DPL II and 6.1, plus the 797 has:
7.1 pre-outs and 7.1 inputs
3 optical and 3 coax inputs
80 hz crossover
50 hz center freqeuncy for bass
adjustable bass, treble and subwofer level via remote without going into OSD
DD EX and DTS ES
[Edited last by Chris PC on November 18, 2001 at 12:04 PM]

 

[Dennis B]

Chris,
What I meant with "went away" is that even though I tried several CDs, forward/backwards scan, direct track number, I couldn't get a single dropout. I tried both the optical and the coax cables. I have no hissing except at > 0 dB levels with analog inputs, and still I really gotta be paying attention to it. It's noticeable at > 5 dB but I would expect that at that point. I also verified that the CD itself contributes a lot. Different CDs (older ones) made noise appear a little bit earlier. No sound/hiss whatsoever from the surrounds.
I don't know exactly what the problem was, but that particular CD player was really well-matched to the 7200 WRT this issue. I am now expecting a DV-6200, also by Marantz, to see how things go. Anybody wanna dissuade me of getting this unit? So far few, but great reviews. I'm aware of the Mediamatics poor deinterlacing perf, but I guess the TV can do the job for video-based DVDs...?
Pete,
I also got 602/601s (but a center CC6), so I really can't wait till you post your first impressions on the 8200.
Rgds.

 

[Chris PC]

Dennis,
Just to clarify when "I" experience the dropouts and to compare with your experience.......
In order to really test the dropout issue, you have use the player in such a way that it causes dropouts repeatedly, when it really should not. There are times when there aren't dropouts and there are times when there are, so its not consistent, but from my experience, the most likely time appears to be
1) when you first turn on the player or
2) when the changer is changing discs.
The above garantee a drop out repeatedly, every single time, both for my receiver here at home and the ones (5200 & 7200) I tried in the store.
The SR x200 receiver hasn't detected anything, and upon first detection, it cuts off the first split second of the track. Also happens changing discs in a disc changer, as the digital signal is lost and the receiver decides there is no signal and tried to assume that anything could be coming, so it waits to "detect". My 6200 also does dropout or cut off the beginning of songs/tracks when scanning forward or back or entering a track number, but the above methods are the ones which garantee a drop out every time. That sucks because I want to hear all the music, right from 0:00. This really sucks when using the 5 disc changer on shuffle or random play. Every track is from a different disc and gets cut off each time. Marantz is crazy for not fixing this, unless they are not aware how wide spread this problem is. once playing a CD, the receiver doesn't seem to cut out or drop out when playing success tracks by itself.
Does the 7200 cut off tracks when you first play a CD, like right when you power up the cd player for the first time? When the receiver has been turned on, but it hasn't played a CD yet through digital?
[Edited last by Chris PC on November 18, 2001 at 05:53 PM]

 

[ChrisAG]

Chris,
Yes, I have tried direct S-video hookup to the TV (JVC 32"), and the problem is not present when I do this. That is the first thing I checked when I first noticed the problem with the 6200. I have tried various grades of cable, and the problems exist even with good cable. Since my TV has only one S-video input I need the switching.
You may think your S-video is fixed completely (and I hope it is), but you may notice a couple of problems over time (provided of course you are using the S-video switching in the 6200).
1) during fade-to-black is there a single vertical band that seems to divide the screen into a slightly lighter shade on the right side? A darkened room may be required to see this effect.
2) Terminator 1 is not the only source that produces the vertical hold upset, I just hoped it would be a convenient example for you to try. Regular TV can do the same thing, especially A&E type channels that show a lot of flashy bright edits for commercials and such.
Regarding the hiss, some CDs have hiss in the recordings, while others are very quiet. When you tried the Onkyo did you use the same CDs that exhibited hiss on the Marantz?

 

[Chris PC]

I'll pay attention to the S-video noise issue(s). Although, I may be returning the 6200 to the store and trading it in.
About the HISS, I am not talking about recordings. I am talking about selecting an analog input when nothing is playing on it, or the source is paused, and there is hiss. You don't need anything connected even. Just select an analog input and crank the volume. I noticed a Pioneer receiver exhibited hiss noise when I cranked it to within 20 dB of max and at max volume setting it was a noticably loud hiss. Oh well. Some receivers have hiss and some do not. I have heard from some that the onkyo receivers do not exhibit hiss noise, but I'll go listen for myself.
Since I've hijacked this thread. Sorry, but I'm going mad trying to fix my receiver problem. I don't like spending all this cash and getting 0 satisfaction.
Anyways......I do wonder what the next receiver level up will have in store for its owners? Will the SR 8200 exhibit any of these problems? Hiss/noise? Audio dropouts? S-video noise? Component video noise? Any other problems?
I certainly hope they put out a decent SR 8200 and start getting on the ball about fixing the 5200/6200 and 7200's out there that aren't working well.
[Edited last by Chris PC on November 18, 2001 at 07:57 PM]

 

[Pete Jennings]

Marantz just updated their site again for the 8200. The literature PDF states that this monster is 42.5lbs!!! The remote is programmable from a PC (although the software isn't ready yet).
If UPS doesn't deliver this today to my dealer, I don't think I'll make it until Friday afternoon! :frowning:
Pete

 

[Pete Jennings]

Well, no delivery today, and according to the UPS website, only next day air and two day air packages are be delivered on Friday. It'll be Monday at the earliest I guess... :frowning:
Pete

 

[Ricky c]

do you guys know if on the 8200 you still need a seperate amp to use the multiroom.I have outdoor speakers that i would like to run seperately{seperate sources}.thanks

 

[Tom Luczywo]

With the 8200, you can assign the rear channels to power the 2nd room audio speakers..........so if you are not using all 7 channels of power, you can take one pair of the 2 rears (side rears) and assign them to room 2.

 

[Pete Jennings]

Well, the 8200 is here! I installed it, but have not quite tweaked it to my satisfaction yet. I will give it a week to "settle" in before making any judgements about it. It's a heavy mother, built like a tank in the good 'ole land of the rising sun! (Japan for those who are historically challanged).
Later,
Pete

 

[John Garcia]

I was at my local dealer today, and got to take a look at it and the new remotes. Not bad.

 

[Kevin L K]

How much did the 8200 cost? Thanks

 

[Pete Jennings]

I got it for around $1400 at a B&M. MSRP seems to be $1700, with a SRP of $1500. Some of the unauthorized internet dealers are selling it for $1250 and below.

Pete