Marantz AV 10 installed: - Early Review and Impressions.

[TLS Guy]

Only if they have the budget.

For clients who don’t have the budget, I recommend a much less expensive Denon or Yamaha that will still sound very good.

Yes, that is pertinent and good advice.

I have never remotely stated that people should do what I do. I have done all this for a lot less then people think.

I have looked after equipment for years and years. I have purchased gear not working in eBay and fixed it. Three of my Revox machines are a case in point and I have fixed quite a few Quad 405s and updated them. I bought my Thorens TD 125 non working and restored it, and quite a few other items.

I did a lot of the work in this studio myself and it was hard work, but it saved a lot of money. The biggest saving is that I design and build my speakers and keep them long term.

Sure I try my best to make it look professional with varying degrees of success.

Finally, I have had a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction on this journey and with the results achieved it has been very worth while, and cost a lot less then it looks like. In this case looks are deceiving!

 

[Trell]

I have never remotely stated that people should do what I do.

You do use that as a base to rant about AVR and Room EQ, no? You've on many occasions published pictures of your rooms and sometimes even with FR response as well. So separates, stereo only is your basic statement, for the rest of us.

I have done all this for a lot less then people think.

A vacuous statement.

You designed and built you own house with audio in mind. Such houses are expensive, though I'm sure you used your knowledge and experience to keep that cost down. Or perhaps the opposite chasing goals?

I did a lot of the work in this studio myself and it was hard work, but it saved a lot of money. The biggest saving is that I design and build my speakers and keep them long term.

Less than your new house?

 

[Trebdp83]

Perhaps a rant thread about @TLSGuy's homes and systems can be started by some and save this one for AV10 specific posts. They are far more interesting than the current lot. That goes for the posts in many threads in this joint lately.

 

[Trell]

Perhaps a rant thread about @TLSGuy's homes and systems can be started by some and save this one for AV10 specific posts. They are far more interesting than the current lot. That goes for the posts in many threads in this joint lately.

Perhaps discuss the DAC IC in the AV10 and how they significantly improve the sound? It's described as being transported to a concert hall.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

So no more ranting about AVR and Room EQ from him?

Don’t push our luck. Just take the small win with Audyssey XT32. No guarantees about other Room EQ’s or AVR’s.

 

[Trebdp83]

Perhaps discuss the DAC IC in the AV10 and how they significantly improve the sound? It's described as being transported to a concert hall.

Imagine the benefits of spending your time and energy on something actually worthwhile.

 

[TLS Guy]

You do use that as a base to rant about AVR and Room EQ, no? You've on many occasions published pictures of your rooms and sometimes even with FR response as well. So separates, stereo only is your basic statement, for the rest of us.



A vacuous statement.

You designed and built you own house with audio in mind. Such houses are expensive, though I'm sure you used your knowledge and experience to keep that cost down. Or perhaps the opposite chasing goals?



Less than your new house?

You have no idea why I built this house. Our lake home was great fun and we had good times there. We bought it in poor shape and restored it. In the restoration that had an AV room. We sold it well and I rebuilt the AV room with different easier to use equipment for them. It sold very well.

We built this home primarily as a nursing home prevention project. It is built to ADA specs. There are no stairs in or out. The ground floor is on grade. There is an elevator between floors, which is hydraulic. The master bed on the main floor has a walk in shower and tub. My wife has already had some orthopedic issues and surgery and this all worked well. In the US, nursing home care and senior living places are very expensive. So, my primary plan was a good one and not AV.

So we had space on the upper floor for an AV room and I did most of the fit and trim with one of my grandsons who was eager to be a useful teenager and actually have a clue how to build stuff.

I installed all the racks and equipment including everything we moved from our lake home AV room.

Actually this all added very little expense to the cost of the home. Most of the equipment I already had. I just added the AVP 7705 which packed up recently, a new TV and four ceiling speakers. We needed the TV because the one for the AV room went down into the great room. The system was a request from my wife. That was a new build.

All the gear in the family room was transferred from the family room at the lake home.

So, my message to you is, that you can not assume what things cost. If you have half a clue and brain between the ears, things can be done for a lot less than you think. In any case it is really none of your business and certainly nothing to raise issues about.

Yes, it has turned out well and is right by design. Many have spent a lot more and have lousy systems.

So I think coming on "all mouth and trousers" is not appropriate.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

We built this home primarily as a nursing home prevention project. It is built to ADA specs.

You got my respect.

 

[Alex2507]

I have had a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction on this journey and with the results achieved it has been very worth while, and cost a lot less then it looks like.

Not that last purchase. Like, damn, niched into oblivion is right. And then amp shopping!

I'm glad you're sorted out and surprised by even better sound. I thought PENG was able to explain that change but you say you're still unsure of the reason? Now I'm confused but congrat's anyway.

 

[TLS Guy]

Not that last purchase. Like, damn, niched into oblivion is right. And then amp shopping!

I'm glad you're sorted out and surprised by even better sound. I thought PENG was able to explain that change but you say you're still unsure of the reason? Now I'm confused but congrat's anyway.

Yes, I'm not sure why it sounds so much better.

I have trouble believing it is the distortion figures. If that is so then the ear is more sensitive then we think. But Peter Walker did double blind testing with his ESL 63, with incredibly low distortion for speakers. It was to settle the solid state is no good from the gurus claiming that as fact. He double blind study with a pair of Quad II tube amps and a Quad 303 solid state stereo amp. Not only could they not tell the difference between those amps, but Peter for part of the test added 2% THD! The gurus could not pick it out and their choices of all three were not statistically significant. The Gurus were outraged when they found out.

So I have to believe the differences must be in the software wizardry and DAC. That is the only thing that makes sense to me. But I am in no doubt it sounds better.

I really did not have much option. Only two realistically, and I had to feel that not withstanding all the issues I have had with Sound United pre pros of late, that the AV 10 was the best option. You are right about the avocation becoming niched into oblivion though. There has been a rise in complexity since I built out my first AV room 2006. Only time will tell if you can produce a reliable product with all this digital wizardry and not end up with a failure issues.

One thing I think is the importance of layout. AVRs and AVPs of all stripes have in my view had the appearance of being thrown together, and YouTube videos confirm it. This AV 10 from videos and what I can see looking through the top of the AV 10 looks to be elegantly laid out with adequate component spacing.

That is another lesson Peter Walker taught me. Layout is very important and crucial to the longevity of electronic gear. He set an unbelievably high standard. In terms of reliability he laid down an unmatched benchmark. So all my amps that I have used in the last 55 years have proudly displayed the QUAD logo. If you go on eBay you see his gear still commanding high prices, no matter how old it is. In this case the high prices are justified. Unreliability is a huge nuisance not only to the customer but everyone involved from manufacturer to customer and everyone in between.

Lastly do 'not cry' too much for me, the dealer was very good to me, and this episode will not send me to the poor house. It is now all chalked up to experience, which I will gladly share with you all. Unfortunately this thread has had a disruptor, which is a pity, as I was trying to help others make decisions that may well be important to them, and others who are not members. When you do a search this thread is already high up the list of information about the AV 10. So this unwarranted distraction was very unhelpful and not good for the reputation of the forum.

 

[highfigh]

And there there are your misanthropic xenophobic rantings on topics you know little about with more than a little tinge of xenophobia.

Ooh, look at all of your big words! You're so smart!

Whatever you infer is YOUR problem, but at this point, you're like a puppy with a toy that it doesn't want to give up. Just keep chewing on it.

This is an audio thread- don't go off on your hate-filled rants.

 

[highfigh]

Go read his posts in the Steam Vent, and when he runs out of arguments or is just annoyed he drags out his xenophobe card against non-US members. He's done that for years.

And yes, he's a bigot.

Do you know the definition of 'libel'?

You really don't understand. If you did, you wouldn't attack me- where, SPECIFICALLY, have I posted about hating anyone? I hate criminals, terrorists and I'm not too crazy about a lot of politicians, but that's all. How could I justify hating people outside of the US when my ancestors came from other countries? The only non-US member who pisses me off is you.

Run along, then.

 

[jinjuku]

And there there are your misanthropic xenophobic rantings on topics you know little about with more than a little tinge of xenophobia.

Tired of this and so are the people reporting this. Thread was fine UNTIL you posted Trell. You'll get sometime to think about it.

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Tired of this and so are the people reporting this. Thread was fine UNTIL you posted Trell. You'll get sometime to think about it.

Yay! Finally.

 

[TLS Guy]

Can the illumination feature brightness level not be adjusted separately from the port hole and full display panel brightness level? Is this not achievable from the Display Settings in the Onscreen setup?

It would be criminal if the AV10 did NOT outperform the 7706 in every way. I do not think you will miss the 7.1 CH IN feature. I’m curious about the comparison to the material played using it in the old unit to HDMI in the new unit with digital processing now fully available for use.

I’m also still curious about the use of the LFE Distribution setting but it may be a bit complicated in your case based on the way your speakers are set up and wired.

I don't think so. I am not sure it is much different to the previous arrangement. Previously you set speakers to large individually as now. Then when you set the crossover you had the option to just set whether you wanted some of the bass LFE sent to each individual speaker by checking LFE + main. Now if you check LFE + main once, then every speaker set to large also gets a portion of the LFE as well as the subs.

So far this has worked out for me as the center has two drivers that can handle that, the side surrounds have two Dynaudio units that have 2.5" voice coils and are very capable drivers, and the rears have two KEF B139s in each, and they can best a lot of sub drivers. In the TL lines they reproduce effectively down to 20 Hz. So, thinking about it, I think that has contributed to the uniform low bass in the room without mucking about with Eq.

 

[TLS Guy]

Yay! Finally.

Well its only a partial victory. It is a pity Trell did not take advice, as in many ways he had knowledge to contribute. I fear he must have a 'chip on his shoulder' about something. Psychiatry was not my specialty, so I will leave it at that. But he certainly put a lot of effort into trying to derail this thread!

 

[jinjuku]

Well its only a partial victory. It is a pity Trell did not take advice, as in many ways he had knowledge to contribute. I fear he must have a 'chip on his shoulder' about something. Psychiatry was not my specialty, so I will leave it at that. But he certainly put a lot of effort into trying to derail this thread!

It seems to be a recurring feature... I don't recall electing @Trell DEI Chief around here. I wonder if he mis-spelt Troll.

This stuff has been going on a while. Your thread about Bidens decline years before the election had members absolutely gunning for you over a simple arm chair medical observation. One that turned out to be quite accurate.

 

[lovinthehd]

It seems to be a recurring feature... I don't recall electing @Trell DEI Chief around here. I wonder if he mis-spelt Troll.

This stuff has been going on a while. Your thread about Bidens decline years before the election had members absolutely gunning for you over a simple arm chair medical observation. One that turned out to be quite accurate.

If trell's self procalimed variation on troll confuses you....you're confusion on Biden vs drumphy is still quite amusing.

 

[jinjuku]

If trell's self procalimed variation on troll confuses you....you're confusion on Biden vs drumphy is still quite amusing.

Not confused at all. Look, you're the one that couldn't handle the fact that I said I would drop the LA Fundraiser Biden freeze and just come and chat with you all after the 1st presidential election. You know the one were I predicted it was going to be a schittshow for Biden and he absolutely pooped his depends on national TV?

I hated being right but it's better than how wrong you were: "But Biden was just trying to talk to the people in the front row.

BTW I voted for Harris knowing full well she wasn't going to win.

 

[Danzilla31]

Yes, I'm not sure why it sounds so much better.

I have trouble believing it is the distortion figures. If that is so then the ear is more sensitive then we think. But Peter Walker did double blind testing with his ESL 63, with incredibly low distortion for speakers. It was to settle the solid state is no good from the gurus claiming that as fact. He double blind study with a pair of Quad II tube amps and a Quad 303 solid state stereo amp. Not only could they not tell the difference between those amps, but Peter for part of the test added 2% THD! The gurus could not pick it out and their choices of all three were not statistically significant. The Gurus were outraged when they found out.

So I have to believe the differences must be in the software wizardry and DAC. That is the only thing that makes sense to me. But I am in no doubt it sounds better.

I really did not have much option. Only two realistically, and I had to feel that not withstanding all the issues I have had with Sound United pre pros of late, that the AV 10 was the best option. You are right about the avocation becoming niched into oblivion though. There has been a rise in complexity since I built out my first AV room 2006. Only time will tell if you can produce a reliable product with all this digital wizardry and not end up with a failure issues.

One thing I think is the importance of layout. AVRs and AVPs of all stripes have in my view had the appearance of being thrown together, and YouTube videos confirm it. This AV 10 from videos and what I can see looking through the top of the AV 10 looks to be elegantly laid out with adequate component spacing.

That is another lesson Peter Walker taught me. Layout is very important and crucial to the longevity of electronic gear. He set an unbelievably high standard. In terms of reliability he laid down an unmatched benchmark. So all my amps that I have used in the last 55 years have proudly displayed the QUAD logo. If you go on eBay you see his gear still commanding high prices, no matter how old it is. In this case the high prices are justified. Unreliability is a huge nuisance not only to the customer but everyone involved from manufacturer to customer and everyone in between.

Lastly do 'not cry' too much for me, the dealer was very good to me, and this episode will not send me to the poor house. It is now all chalked up to experience, which I will gladly share with you all. Unfortunately this thread has had a disruptor, which is a pity, as I was trying to help others make decisions that may well be important to them, and others who are not members. When you do a search this thread is already high up the list of information about the AV 10. So this unwarranted distraction was very unhelpful and not good for the reputation of the forum.

Honestly I really believe it boils down to the better Dac, and the better upmixer

I noticed this same improvement when I went with the Yamaha CX-A5200 to the Monoprice Monolith HTP-1

The A5200 is a FANTASTIC processor but the HTP-1 sounded better a lot better.

I really suspect it comes down to the upmixer in my case and some of the more advanced bass management features the newer Htp-1 has over the older CX-A5200

Regardless congratulations on your purchase! I hope the AV-10 provides you enjoyment for many years to come!!!