It took me a while to hook things backup. Granted I was not really motivated to do it as I am slowing moving things over to the new house, but I had to test the AV8802 before the first 30 days so I could ensure it was not defective. Please see my Gear used in this testing:
Note the Following;
- I am comparing this to my Integra DHC 80.3
- Since there is not blind testing, I am relying on audio memory, which is definitely not the most accurate way to test any review.
That being said, I firmly believe that there is a difference in Sound Quality Pre/Pro vs Pre/Pro I will demonstrate on the following listening tests from movies I have watched over and over in the past and on music tracks. For a few of the Movie Examples, I even switched out my AV8802 with the DHC 80.3 Integra.
Movies:
Captain America Winter Soldier
- I actually put this only because I had left it in my blu-ray player when I disconnected it for painting the loft area. My perception of the sonic difference between pre-pros was immediate and purely by accident. In the scene where Bucky and Captain America fight off the Bridge, I definitely felt I heard a little more in the track. More specifically, when he draws his knife during the fight, when he swings his knife and the noise his mechanical arms made when it was readjusting, I felt I heard a little more detail. I say this is impressive, because I wasn't even trying to listen for it when I watched. I wish I was better experience in explaining the difference, but I just heard a little more of the sounds. After doing this about 10 times, I actually got motivated and hooked my Integra back up and I still felt that way. Not exactly scientific, I know, but I definitely felt their was a perceived difference. Excellent level of clarity and detail. The Marantz AV8802 creates a huge soundstage and handle all the mayhem of explosions, fights and dialogue without losing the detail.
Intersteller
- After reading all of the posts, I had to try this out. This is primarily about the Bass, and in the case of both Pre/Pros I thought they handled it similar. The perceived difference this time was the fact that I could hear the voices more clearly over the loud tracks with the AV8802. Again, since I had both pre/pros to test out, this is not the most accurate way to test, but I did it a few times. I purposely hooked up my pre pro on top my stand, instead of inside so all I had to do is change cables from one to the other.
- SIDE NOTE: Bass response was many times better with Audyssey room correction performed as I did try it with it off and there was a significant sonic hit.
Additional Observations on Movies:
- While with blu-ray content I felt there was a noticeable difference between pre pros, I did not feel that same when I tested movie content on both VUDU and Cable Tracks. Here, I didn't feel there was any noticeable difference between
- There was a firmware update 2 days ago, I do have a strange issue where the sound goes out for a split sec randomly when I am watching TV from my cable box, but not on any other content.
1. Pink Floyd Dark side of the moon
- Comparing the two Pre Pros, music in general sounded very similar between my Integra and the Marantz AV8802. Given the fact I have only put in about an hour of listening to the various tracks, imaging, detail and overall sound quality. The tonal balance was fundamentally neutral, the highs clean and extended; the various effects of the change dropping, on "Money" seemed more detailed, but the difference was Negligible
2. Norah Jones
- This is a staple I use to test my speakers and my equipment, I am not ashamed to say I reallly enjoy her vocals. Come Away with Me. I’ve have played this track over and over many times over the years and the AV8802 allowed my GE T1s to deliver Norah’s voice with a wonderfully smooth sound. I was really impressed with the way my T1s handle women's vocals (Annie Lennox, Dido, etc) and with Norah Jones I loved the details in her voice, it sounds so natural. I was equally impressed with the soundstange and the ability to provide that 3D effect from PURE DIRECT 2 Channel. While I didn't do a direct comparison between units on music, I definitely didn't lose anything switching over to the AV8802, in fact quite the opposite. Again though, this is perceived only.
I could continue my observations, but I think you can get the general idea from my observations, I am happy with the Marantz AV8802. My perception is that I was able to hear a little more detail and SoundStage than my previous equipment, but my methods are by no means scientific.
Summary:
While I primarily purchased the Marantz AV8802 to handle 4k Content and to try out the new sound formats, I was pleasantly surprised on it's sonic performance. Audyssey worked flawlessly, and the ease of setup and integration into my existing setup made it a pleasure to work with. I didn't have any of the "Hum" issues I did when I had the AV7005 a long time ago which was a nice surprise. I am completely satisfied with my purchase, especially on the deal on got on the unit, and have no hesitation to recommend
Additional Notes:
- I did not have the Opportunity to test ATMOS and will not for a while, but I will update then.
- The unit never got to hot to the touch, in fact quite the opposite it was warm, but not too uncomfortable, even after hours of playing around with it.
- Menu's are much improved and it was easy to go back and make changes
Challenges:
- It takes more work to get the GE's bass to play nice with the Marantz as I had to tweek some settings, but the overall outcome was quite impressive. I had gobs of low frequency accurate base when I played intersteller
- Trying to troubleshoot the cable sound drop out issue still
- It has a Spotify sticker on it, but I'll be damned if I can find it on the online apps
(update: Spotify is not an app on the Pre/Pro, its Spoitfy Connect through Cell/Tablet over network)
UPDATE 2: Cable Picture/Sound Droping out FIXED: Strange thing here is that I had one of those Jensen Transformers for my cable box due to the hum it produced on my Integra 80.3 and AV7005. When I removed the transformer and tested it again, no hum and picture is fixed.
Additional Notes:
- When I initially was setting up my AV8802 I used my Aon 3s to test out as fronts, because they are small, and I can troubleshoot hums etc a lot easier moving 15lbs speakers vs 100lbs. They sounded like an entirely different speaker hooked up the Marantz than my Integra 30.5 AVR. I am sure a lot has to do with room setup, but the bass extension was so solid for such a small speaker, you could probably get away w/o a subwoofer in a small room.
