Once again it is early in the morning but my coffee has cooled down enough to drink so I realize this is a resurrected old thread. IMHO, as someone who has owned Marantz, Yamaha and Denon AVRs, I would say go with either Denon and Yamaha if you want better quality to cost ratio. I still do own at least one of each brand's models but only actively using Marantz separates and an old Denon 3805. There is absolutely no audible difference in pure direct between the 11 years old 3805 and the 2 years Marantz separates. My even older 100W Yamaha had no trouble driving the infinity 362 (obvious depends on size of your room a lot) and also sound audibly similar to anything else.
To me, Marantz AVRs 5000 to 7000 series look very similar so if you like the look of one you then you have one thing less to consider. If cost is a big factor then you will likely have to pay significant more for similar value. That could be because more people prefer their look or due to the hearsay about their warmer sound. That is totally BS (just my opinion base on experience) though it might have been true 35 years ago, but even then it probably was the case for some specific models. I also have a pair of 35 years old separates that was known for the warm "golden" sound but unfortunately (or fortunately) not to me.
