What's the deal with Marantz (1 Viewer)

[ScottJackson]

Is there something wrong with the Marantz MM9000? Does it suffer from flaws similar to the x200 receivers? It's 5x150, THX certified, and it seems to be a pretty good amp. Yet, I've seen suppossedly new units being sold for around $500-$600. Is it an amp worth getting? Any opinions from current and past owners would be greatly appreciated.

Scott

 

[Selden Ball]

I've been using an MM9000 for about a year with an AV9000 and NHT 2.9 front speakers, NHT AC2 center, and some ancient Advent Heritages for surrounds. It works fine for me
There used to be several professional reviews on the Web, but they all seem to have evaporated.
I think it's just that the amp isn't very sexy. From what I can see through the top, it isn't very "uniform" inside. By that I mean that it doesn't have separate identical amplifier and heatsink assemblies for each channel the way some modern multichannel amps do. There are no visible heatsink fins, either, although it's cooled only by convection. There's no fan in the box. At my usual listening levels, the preamp is actually wamer than the amp, so I can't get too excited about the cooling method.
My impression is that Marantz may be trying to get out of the separates market. That might help explain why the amps are being unloaded at low prices. The AV9000 is also available for quite low prices. Of course, it's only 5.1 and doesn't have DPL-II, either. But it sounds great.

 

[TomH]

$500 to $600 is the going rate for a new MM9000. Its not bad for that price but I passed on one because it appears to perform more like a receiver amp section than true separates. Probably fine if you have efficient speakers.

 

[Kevin C Brown]

I would take another look at it.

Their monoblock amps are very well received by the audiophile community: MA-500, etc.