I am looking to upgrade my old Denon 2500 receiver. I listen mostly to rock music, about 80% music and 20% HT. The Denon is hooked up to B&W 604 main speakers. I like the connectivity options of the Denon, but since I listen mostly to music the Marantz seems to get good marks.
I would give a slight edge to the Denon 4306 over the Pioneer Elite 74Txvi. The Marantz doesn't have as sophisticated auto acoustic and speaker balancing system as the Audyssey system in the Denon or the MCAAC system in the Pioneer. The bass management is also much better in the Pioneer and the Denon.
For music - the Marantz, hands down! I don't find the auto acoustic and speaker balancing of some brands a big deal as I would still tend to do those tasks manually with a SPL meter and be certain the set up is right.
It was finally time to stop talking and start shopping. The Rotel dealer also carries Denon, Yamaha, Pioneer Elite. I ask to see the Rotel 1057, the sales people(plural) denied the existence of the product. The saleman then told me that he doesn't sell very many Rotel receivers, just seperates. He then suggested a Denon 2807 or Yamaha 2600. I asked about the Pioneer 74TXVi, he couldn't find an example, but he did have a 72 that he said was just the same as the 74 minus 10 watts a channel. Would Rotel be better served just selling their stuff on the Internet. Anyway I was pretty impressed by the Pioneer and the salesman finally found a 74TXVi for me to listen to.
hey david, i just want to share this tidbit. i went to my favorite dealer who carries all of the above products except for the rotel receiver, just separates. i actually did an extensive a/b comparison of the denon 4306 vs the pio elite 74 with multiple cd's in 2 channel while connected with b&w 604s3's. i picked the 604s3 to compare the receivers as i have the 605s2's and i figured this to be the closest model to what i have in my home. i ruled out the yammy 2600 after a few minutes just because i didn't like the soundstage and lack of depth compared to the denon. so it was a shootout between the denon 4306 vs pio elite 74. btw, i run a denon 3805 for my ht 7.1 b&w setup. my mind was made up after about 20 minutes of listening a/b comparing that the pio was extremely more detailed sounding and seemed to open up the sound better than the denon. it just seemed to be more "uncompressed" and virtual than the denon. i continued listening just because i had the time to do so, also i wanted to like the denon since i own 1. but, the fact remains that i would definitely purchase the pio elite over the denon if i had the chance to do so. also, it weighs more and i know this is an argument in itself, but i think the power supply is most likely heftier and alot of the reason why it handled the b&w's so well. so, if it were between 4306 vs 74, i would spend my hard earned money on the 74 knowing i purchased the better receiver imo. all this said, and after reading alot about outlaw, but not yet hearing, i would probably just go for the outlaw over both receivers. a receiver to me is a step down from what im used to. but the convenience is nice, and im getting older and have grown to like that convienence. hope not too much babble. go pio elite if receiver or marantz take a listen which u think is better separates try outlaw (not much risk) good luck
Although I haven't been able to A/B the Pioneer Elite and Outlaw together, I have heard them separately, and to my ears, the Outlaw is the better choice, especially with the B&W speakers. I have heard the Outlaw 990 is even much better than the 970 in 2 channel performance.
Take Outlaw up on their 30 days trial offer and test the 990/7125 combo. If you like the sound of the Outlaws, this combo will be a great corner stone for your system as you upgrade speakers.
Now, A-B the Denon and Pioneer to something from NAD, heck if they have it, compare them to the entry level T743 A/V receiver and be prepared to be blown away...I was. I compared a 2106 Denon and Pioneer Elite 72 (which was $1299) and my jaw about hit the floor. Unbelievable sound with the NAD T743 for the money ($699.00)
by doing this you will also see just how "cold" some of the Japanese components can sound. Let your ears decide, dont take my word for it- listen for yourself..I was ready to get a Denon or Yamaha and then I got to hear them compared to an NAD - and I reconsidered my direction within about 1 minute - but unless you can hear the profound difference when comparing, you won't be able to appreciate completly what I am talking about... Hear for yourself :-)
