Marantz's new separates

[AVRat]

http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/hands-on-with-marantzs-new-av8003-and-mm8003-processor-amp-pair/
http://aventhusiast.com/audio/separates/marantz-unveils-av8003-pre-pro-mm8003-amplifier
It'll be interesting to see how these will fit into the scheme of things.

 

[adk highlander]

Looks sweet. I wonder where they will price this. With the Integra out there with the same specs at only 1600 Marantz will need to be agressive to beat it.

 

[bandphan]

DM Holdings throwing more at us!

 

[Seth=L]

The Integra, for one, has more connectivity. And if this Marantz follows in line with other Marantz gear, then it will have less in the features over all department. These look like they would cost significantly less than the Denon separates, but those are something else entirely.

 

[highfihoney]

DM Holdings throwing more at us!

Thats a good thing,D&M has been a blessing to high & higher end audio.

 

[bandphan]

Thats a good thing,D&M has been a blessing to high & higher end audio.

agree whole heartedly (just stay the heck out of mc labs)

 

[highfihoney]

agree whole heartedly (just stay the heck out of mc labs)

I cant agree with that one,D&M has been a godsend for Mcintosh,just look at the new product offerings from 2007 & now for 2008,some pretty innovating stuff going on over at Mcintosh nowdays thanks to D&M,no real break through products in the HT line but the 2 channel lines are growing faster than ever before,this is something no manufacturer who's focus is exclusively ultra high end gear has accomplished.

Mac is thriving thanks to D&M.

 

[bandphan]

I cant agree with that one,D&M has been a godsend for Mcintosh,just look at the new product offerings from 2007 & now for 2008,some pretty innovating stuff going on over at Mcintosh nowdays thanks to D&M,no real break through products in the HT line but the 2 channel lines are growing faster than ever before,this is something no manufacturer who's focus is exclusively ultra high end gear has accomplished.

Mac is thriving thanks to D&M.

Not doubtn, just think that the trickle down should start with mc

BTW sweeeeeet setup

 

[highfihoney]

Not doubtn, just think that the trickle down should start with mc

BTW sweeeeeet setup

Thanks for the compliment,when D&M 1st took control of Mcintosh i was worried a bit,ive been with Mac for decades now & i remember the junk they started making (mostly speakers) with Clarion at the helm,the 1st thing i thought was uhoh,here we go again I was wrong.

What i would like to see is some better team work or technology sharing between Denon & Mac in the HT dept,Mac allready makes the worlds best amplifiers & their preamps cant be bested,now if they'd just get up to speed in processing with Denon.

Just so ya know D&M is at the helm of Mcintosh but they are not the majority share holder,the bulk of Mcintosh is privately owned by one man.

 

[AVRat]

Thought I’d resurrect this thread instead of starting a fresh one since Marantz posted the manuals online last week for anyone who’s interested. People over on that “Other Forum” are starting to find the faults of the pre/pro before it is released in June. I had high hopes for the AV-8003 especially when I saw the price!

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=969706

 

[satish536]

The power amplifier is a beauty.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

The power amplifier is a beauty.

There are 4 things I don't understand about Marantz.

1st, why are they making a "cheaper" product than the Denon pre-pro/amp? I thought Marantz was a "higher-end" company?

2nd, why don't they have a SACD/DVD-A player instead of just a SACD player?

3rd, why don't they have a blu-ray player?

4th, why does their $7,500 preamplier NOT have any TONE controls, but their $3,000 preamplier have Tone controls?

 

[tn001d]

3rd, why don't they have a blu-ray player?

They do have one... it suppose to be a little better than the denon blu-ray player and without all the problems the denon has.

As for the pre/pro i have read about all its short comings in the other "forum". The biggest thing is not being able to derive a back surround channel from 5.1 DTS HD or Dolby TrueHD.

The amplifier looks nice at $2400. Not sure what the hell the 8th channel is for. Too bad you cant have dual center speakers. Although i suppose you could split the pre-out with a RCA y adapter

 

[Seth=L]

That Marantz Blu-ray player looks very nice indeed.

 

[AVRat]

Not sure what the hell the 8th channel is for.

Yes it is strange. Just don't understand why they offer amps with an even number of channels. Marantz, Axiom (8), Denon (10)?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yes it is strange. Just don't understand why they offer amps with an even number of channels. Marantz, Axiom (8), Denon (10)?

Well at least with 10 channels in the Denon, you can Bridge them and still get 5 channels for 5.1.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

They do have one... it suppose to be a little better than the denon blu-ray player and without all the problems the denon has.

As for the pre/pro i have read about all its short comings in the other "forum". The biggest thing is not being able to derive a back surround channel from 5.1 DTS HD or Dolby TrueHD.

The amplifier looks nice at $2400. Not sure what the hell the 8th channel is for. Too bad you cant have dual center speakers. Although i suppose you could split the pre-out with a RCA y adapter

1) The BD looks nice, but I was looking for the gold-color Reference Series-matching BD player.

2) You mean a Center for the front and Center for the back or 2 Front Centers? I've tried dual front centers, and it sounded terrible due to the Comb Filteringeffect.

3) Yeah, I don't get the 8th channel either.

 

[Bluesmoke]

WOW! The pre-pro looks great. Marantz should make the 700X and 800X receivers in that style. The curved sides look nice.

 

[Audioholics]

1st, why are they making a "cheaper" product than the Denon pre-pro/amp? I thought Marantz was a "higher-end" company?

Marantz is actually both to D&M. It represents their premium (but not McIntosh-level Premium) high-end 2-channel products and also their mid-fi receiver products.

 

[tn001d]

Will you be receiving any for a review?

Hopefully it will be separate reviews for amp and pre/pro .. since many of us might be skipping the AV8003