|
bj Unregistered guest | Ok Folks, here it is. I have invested in over 3000.00 dollars into a/v receivers within the past month, and I have made a choice. My set up will consist of the following. Marantz 7400 Boston Acoustics vr920 center Boston Acoustics PV 600 (4x) Boston Acoustics vr950 Lets begin the initial review: Sound quality I like the warmth of the Marantz 7400 over the Yahama rxv-2400. The yahama does have more sound formats, but the only one i have used is the "specticle" mode. There does not seem to be any specific way to not choose a surround format on the marantz, i was a little worried the sub was not active listning to regular stereo mode, such as the radio. (confusing when you read the user guide) I check this this morning and the sub is active while listneing to the radio. Listning to all channels seems a lot weaker than the yahama or onkyo. It is not something i do very often but its kinda cool when listning to the radio or mp3, i listen to the radio alot. Remote control is pretty but has some short commings. Marantz, take this tip to heart; allow users to adjust the volume without always pressing "amp" first. If I am using that remote I want to adjust volume from the receiver. The remote should lite up when ever you activate a key, you should not have to hit the light button, batteries are a small price to pay for this convenience. speaker power (does it seem under powered, by my inexperienced ear). This i will test today with a movie. I did not want to disturb my neighbours last night. One thing i did notice is my center has started to affect my tv. I seem to be getting magnetic interference. This did not occure with the Yahama or the Onkyo, why now? don't know. Speaker had to be moved up off the top of the tv set by 5 to 6". IF ANYONE OUT THERE CAN GIVE ME TIPS ON SHIELDING PLEASE FEEL FREE. I will check out Newark Electrec to see what they have. I still need to fiddle with the system, just installed it last night. If you dont like a really bright sound, the marentz 7400 sound pretty good to me. To quote words used by Hawk, smooth and buttery. I think it is a nice combo with the boston vr series. Movies today, afer i listen to the same news cast fifity more times, what a day. |
|
bj Unregistered guest | Just did the movie test, Lord of the Rings, The two towers. HT sounded good, I think I will turn off the HT-EQ option, it takes some of the brightness away when watching DVDs, the next time i watch the same movie for comparison. Nice receiver if anyone has questions send em on. 1. additional info for last post, the sub does drop out during some stereo modes, i dont know why. I will be sending an e-mail to marantz to find out why. I don't believe that the sub should ever drop out; 2.1 sounds a lot better than 2.0. |
|
New member Username: KimeraPost Number: 1 Registered: 12-2003 | nice to hear you found the 7400 to be a good receiver, so far regarding your speakers affecting your TV, i believe the receiver has nothing to do with it, its just your center spkr is not magnetically shielded and AFAIK, there's nothing you can do other than move your spkr a little bit away from the TV re: subs, i would assume your connection from your receiver to the sub is thru the line-level input, try using the speaker-level connection and it might help hope this helps |
|
L25 Unregistered guest | I just set up a 7400. It has shut off in protect mode several times. It gets very hot as reported. The manual says to keep 8" clear on ALL sides and top. That is a bit impractical. I am driving low sensitivity speakers. I have an HSU sub. I set all 5 speakers to small and do a crossover at 80Hz. I have some learning to do, and while my first impressions are good for sound quality, this heat and shutoff thing worries me. |
|
bj Unregistered guest | L25, I am looking forward to a HSU sub once i get rid of my boston pv600. No shut off from heat, I did feel the top of the receiver several time to see if it was hot and it did heat the cabinet however it did not seem too hot.( I do not have 8" all around, more like 4/3" all around, open back glass front) I have the center set to small and my L/R and SL/SR set to large, figured this would work the receiver a little more, but still not too hot. As far as the shielding, I did not expect this to be the reciever other than the power supplied by the receiver, which is good. I did not get the chance to look at Newark Electric today, I have at times come across shielding materials from work. The name is on the tip of my tongue, just cant spit it out. My big annoyance with this receiver is its listning modes. I use basically four, stereo, stereo direct, all channels, dolby surround. I would have expected the sub to be active in all these, it is not. I have sent an email to marantz, no response yet tho. Maybe its is something simple that i am missing. Remote has some low points also. Still like the sound... better than onkyo or yahama. Did not get a chance to try NAD, would only allow 3 days with full refund. |
|
New member Username: VasolaraPost Number: 1 Registered: 12-2003 | I've had the sr7400 a week now. yes, it does get hot (even after turning off the speaker outs since i have an external amp) bj: try changing the bass mix in the 1st page of "speaker setup" if you set to "both" you should most definitely get subwoofer response. |
|
New member Username: ArchivistPost Number: 1 Registered: 12-2003 | bj, Just got my 7400 over weekend. ? not getting any sound out at this point (also no heat). Haven't decyphered.... the damn remote/book - not particularly user friendly (hey Marantz wake up). Expect great things but jeez. My only source so far is Sat Box (component/SPDIF) - TV speakers work but not the Klipsch (es)! Thoughts - no I don't think there's any plug in the Headphone Jack (which will turn off all spkrs). Dave the Frustrated! |
|
FC Unregistered guest | bj and l25, What are the crossover frequencies? (80 the lowest?) Can you select different cross freq for different channel, like HK? Ive bought BW 603, LCR 600, and 4x601 for 7.1, must decide between 7400, Denon 2803 or 3803. Any suggestions? |
|
New member Username: VasolaraPost Number: 2 Registered: 12-2003 | fc: crossovers are 80/100/120 and are applied to all speakers rated 'small' not individually. |
|
bj Unregistered guest | Its not my cross or the mix/both settings, I think its the listening modes. For instance, last night i was listning to the tv and I had bass response for a little while, then i think i started playing around and good bye its not there any more. I opened the mannual 'dear lord help us all' and there in black and white under a section called surround listning modes are what channels are active in particular modes. Well it turns out that sw is not active in several modes. This was weird to me because, i have had bass response in stereo. I believe if you use the amp button, "i have learned to hate this button" and select a listning mode stereo, direct stereo, or multi-channel, you will have bass response. If while under "amp" you hit surround and choose one of these modes you may loose the sw. This is only a theory, i get to test tonight. I still think its damn fool to loose the sub in any listning mode, if there is a signal comming in, the sub should be active. I will let you folks know how it works out.... could also be the autodetect ckt in the sub, but i doubt it. I tried it with a yahama rxv-2400 and it works just fine. I really like the sound of the marantz however give me my four basic listning modes with sub response please. |
|
jh Unregistered guest | Yes, you can add magnetic shielding material to equipment. Try "www.magnetic-shield.com" for Netic & CoNetic magnetic shielding material (there are other manufacturers, but that's the one that springs to mind at the moment). As a rule of thumb, I believe it is easier to shield the thing being victimized (your TV) rather than the speaker, because the magnetic field has dimenished greatly by the time it reaches the victim. So you need less "strong" shielding material. Unfortunatly, that might mean installing it inside the set, which is best left to the pros! I'll warn you though that the stuff is expensive! I'd suggest buying a cookie-sheet sized piece and just experiment by doing things like setting it under the speaker, etc. Magnatism is weird... |
|
bj Unregistered guest | FC, I really like the marantz 7400 howerver something is up with my sw output. The crossover i have set to 120 hz and adjusted the output to taste. I have listened to the DENON 2802 and was not too happy. I like the sound of the marantz expecially without the HT-EQ active, HT-EQ takes away too much detail. My two favs right now are Marantz and Onkyo, Onkyo because it was simple and straight forward, underpowered for a 5.1 system tho. One more thing, you can only change db speaker setup in incerements of 1 db, instead of .5 db like the yahama 2400. I am suprised more ppl are blasting the 7400's remote. Aside from using it with other devices, its a pain in the butt using it with the receiver. you can judge my setup in the earlier posts. Thanks for the recommendation JH, I have seen stuff like that before, but have not had a chance to look for myself again. |
|
Unregistered guest | I find the 7400 runs hot, but manageable. Bigger problem for me (I have a cabinet that I close up when not in use) is that it never completely cools off, but keeps generating heat even when turned off. I guess it is always in standby. |
|
Unregistered guest | Question:when you listen on the sr7400 in multichannel stereo mode to the tuner or cd player, dit the subwoofer than works, yes or no when you have set all speakers (7.1) on large? |
|
New member Username: CargoilPost Number: 5 Registered: 12-2003 | I have the Yamaha and with my speakers the sound is great but I did have a problem with the sub due to the length of the run from the receiver. It would cut off periodically I purchased some heavy duty shielded wire and the problem was solved. Hope you get things up and going I know how frustrating it is to have put so much work and energy into getting just the right equipment and then to have it be not up to expectations. |
|
bj Unregistered guest | I have purchased a NAD 763 and i really like it. I think this is a keeper. When i went back to the dealer they said "that sometimes happens", that pretty much sealed its fate. Now that i have the NAD, i have to say rotel or nad are my two faves. Nice sound, not too relaxed not too bright. If this help those with 7400 I will answer the previous questions: Hugo, it was weird it would work sometimes and not otheres in stereo and multi. This is weird because it is turned off in stereo mode, found this our by reading the mannual, did not like this. However it did work sometimes in stero and multi. It seems the signal was too weak to activate my subs auto on ckt. John, may have been the wire, tho i am using very expensive monster cable, i do have the majority of it lenght curled up behind the sub. I did straighten it out when i was fooling around with the system. I thought the sound was worth the money and i have recommended it to a friend using Canton speakers; however I am looking at getting rid of all my bostons and getting a stereo/sub set up more suited for the nad.-- my maturity level decreases every time i say NAD |
|
New member Username: Larry_dPost Number: 8 Registered: 12-2003 | After months of research, I recently bought the Marantz 7400 and Monitor Audio Silver speakers. I heard them in the store and the combo just blew me away. I decided to order online to get a better price and was just giddy waiting for them to arrive. I recieved them all in the last week, spent a little less than an hour hooking it up, and turned it on. Imagine my dissappointment when the display on the reciever had a mix of Chinese(I think it was Chinese) and English letters for every function. I followed the directions to a tee and didn't even get an OSD(I tried component, s-vid, and composite). What a buzz kill. I unhooked everything, reset the reciever, and just plugged in the speakers and composite to see if I could at least get the tuner to work. Nothin'. I've heard the 7400 has had problems such as sound dropouts and overheating, but nothing like this. Now, I'm giving Marantz the benefit of the doubt and hoping that this was not a manufactureer's flub-up. I'm telling myself that it must of gotten messed up in shipping. I returned the original to Cambridge Soundworks and I should be getting the new one in about two weeks. I'll keep everybody posted. |
|
vt Unregistered guest | bj: How does NAD 763 sound as compared to marantz 7400 and Denon 2803. I haven't decided which one to buy yet. |
|
vt Unregistered guest | bj: Currently I have the Denon 2802 receiver and B&W Series 704 speakers + center speakers. Surround was my previous front tower speaker from NHT. |
|
bj Unregistered guest | The boston vr series are probably not the best speakers around, consider that this is my basis for comparison, I am currently looking at Paradigm. The bostons are slightly muted and unclear and has somewhat overly harsh highs, 89db sensitivity (I think they were very generous with their ratings). With the Onkyo sr600 it was ok, middle of the road the onkyo never really pushed the system, and added a bit to the brightness. Yahama 2400 very bright but good sound a little fatigue after a while, expecially listning to voices "s". The Marantz 7400, was to be the holy grail, mellow out the speakers, it did this very well, and initially i was very happy. The Denon 2802 is the receiver i tested the Boston VR series before purchase and it was similiar to the Onkyo, a bit more clearer and perhaps a little less bright, too long to remember, did not purchase because of price at the time. When I hooked up the NAD, i realized the marantz was a little too mellow and a smooth roundness to the sound i at first appreciated, I now believe is over done, i would certainly use the marantz over the Denon, i like a warm sound; however I like the NAD, it seems to be a nice combination of warmth without overdoing it. My comparison is very subjective because my experience extends only to the items mentioned, and i am writing from memory. The only reason for the return of the Marantz was the sub issue, "if it was a known issue damn it, tell me before i bought the damn thing" (I am speaking of the retailer) To a lesser degree I found the remote to be lacking (NAD remote is better, still kinda dissapointing, i liked the Onkyo remote the best, very simple). I primarily use the reciever for Radio (10%)(marantz was the clearest of the bunch), music (40%), Movies (50%). the mellowness of the marantz was very apparent when dealing with music and movies. I think a lot of my short commings are due to my speakers; however there were significan changes in sound quality as i changed reveivers. I would rank what i have used as follows, i am no expert and after this email I have shot my load, unless you want me to tell you why not to buy Bostons the way I did. 1. NAD 763; clear, slight warmth to neutral sound. 2. Marantz 7400; very warm amplifier, decent price, recommended it to a friend using Canton ERGO speakers ( very bright speakers), "fix the sub issue marantz, if you have not already done so, and leave the sub on, let crossover setup mate the components" 3. Yahama 2400; good sound, did not seem to have the power advertized, nice surround speaker setup, you can adjust to taste after) decent reveiver. 4. Onkyo SR600, my first reciever and a fine first reciver, fave remote, i dont try to control all things with one remote, I do combo dvd/cd player and receiver. 5. Denon 2802, tested at the retailer very bright at the time i though a fine model but too expensive for what i was looking for. Hope this helps good luck |
|
Anonymous | Thanks for getting back to me. |