hey Peng, the only catch is that it comes as Bstock from Gibby's which is a used reseller. I think they give you only a 1 yr warranty on their Bstock. So now to decide between the Marantz SR5012 and the Denon AVRX3400 they have onsite. Of course, the rep at Gibby's who was just amazing recommended trying out the Anthem! receiver they had there also. Sheesh....... Any thoughts? the Marantz I would imagine. Thanks!
I have owned, and still do, multiple Marantz and Denon units, as well as an Anthem power amplifier. To me, Anthem dealers will always recommend Anthem products because of the much higher profit margins. I do trust Anthem's build quality, but you will pay more for less mainly because they are not mass produced. In my experience, in terms of sound quality, the AVR-X3400H is a clear winner for under CAD1,100. At that price imo it beats even 2 channel integrated amps in the $500 to $1100 range such as Yamaha's in feature and equal them in sound quality and audio specs.
You can take a chance on the SR5011, but if you do, why wouldn't you also take a chance on the B stock AVR-X3400H that is more comparable to the SR6012 because it comes with Audyssey XT32 Sub EQHT, eARC, Apple Air 2, but just 7 channels vs the SR6012's 9 channel of processing capability.
So I would stay away from Anthem, and decide whether to bite the bullet and get the X3400H brand new or take a chance on the B stock. If you phone 2001AudioVideo and ask if they have any X3400H left, even floor demo, you may be able to negotiate a fantastic deal today. They now have the X3500H on sale for $999. I paid more than that for my X3400H only a few months ago. I have since returned it for the X4400H only because I wanted to try 7.1.4 Atmos. The X3400H/X4400H sounded every bit as good as my >C$3000 Marantz AV8801.
