Body, force, power, excellent design. Looks like new after 15 years and it seems to be stable another 15... Very heavy, 13 kg.

Not so good on tuner. Noisy on switching modes, stereo/dts or tuner/aux etc...

I am using the old Marantz SR5300 Integrated receiver for a 2 channel set up. I am also using a bi-amp configuration. Front left with Surround left / Front right with surround right and set the receiver to multi channel stereo. In the menu I set the surround speakers to "large" and hooked the surrounds up to the mid/bass driver of my speakers. I am using Monitor Audio RX2 bookshelf speakers, but I started with the very affordable entry level Bronze B1 bookshelves. Both of which sound outstanding.

90 watts x2 @ 8ohms
105 watts x2 @ 6ohms

The sound is outstanding. For the price point of this unit especially a decade later is very good. I trust all Marantz to deliver good value and sound quality. Anyone who says the sound quality sounds "thin" needs to get a set of real speakers and probably a real source. Marantz is known for it's warm full sound. And that is exactly what I am hearing. If you can't afford McIntosh Labs to power your speakers, go with Marantz.

I have used Marantz with Monitor audio for 12 years now. You absolutely can't go wrong with Marantz paired up with Monitor Audio. At all price points and stages for both brands you will be treated to an incredibly life-like and large sound stage that is warm and bursting with detail, control and pinpoint tonal accuracy.

I HIGHLY recommend this Receiver and ANY Marantz unit over any of the others such as Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha, Sony, Pioneer, Harmon Kardon, Samsung. For the price point of these "common" brands sold at most retailers you could be into a Marantz.

Another of those trusty salesmen told me that some researchers performed a study of the absolute peak power the Marantz SR6300 and SR7300 could produce in stereo mode, and they recorded 430 watts per channel/480 watts per channel respectively.Nice. I am sure the 5300 must peak close to 400 wpc in stereo mode. Mind your speakers. Runs remarkably cool compared to Yamaha and H/K Can't beat Marantz's 3 year warranty. Sexy looks Built like a tank Sound is perfect : not too bright, but with strong emphasis on midrange Had it for two years, with no hint of problem.

Remote is anti-cool Yamaha doesn't have that annoying pause when in its digital decoders first receive a signal, in DVDs or games, or anything that has digital input, unlike Marantz or H/K Uninformed consumers who think it is underpowered, because they live in a baseball stadium. Doesn't have Dolby Headphone like the 5400. What a travesty. Center channel quiet.I used to think that the center channel was too quiet for a given volume, even with its db setting maxed out. Then I found that this was a good thing. Unlike entry level receivers which compress the center channel, the more expensive ones give you the full dynamic range of digital audio, like the theater(maybe better). Thus, when you increase the volume to bring the center channel to a desirable volume level, the other channels increase in volume proportionately. BOOM! SMASH! There went your 2000 dollar French windows. Can be a bit pricey for certain individuals on a budget.

What a great receiver.Marantz made this receiver,like many others I believe, on consumer feedback. It shows. Not only does it sound good, it looks downright beautiful with the gleaming aluminum (!) faceplate, colorful display and more than enough inputs and outputs. It has 6 channels, is rated at 90 watts (continuous!) front left right and center with 0.05 % harmonic distortion (lower the number, the cleaner the sound) from the same, and is backed up by high current transformers. All at a price in Canada less than Harmon Kardon's entry-level avr 130 which only has 5 channels, and therefore has no DD Ex, DTS ES, or Neo 6, and lower current. I asked a salesman in the store how much current went to the speakers, and he told me:"Maybe 40 to 50 amps..." I found that hard to believe, as the H/K avr 130 claims +/-25 amperes, or about half. He was just a biased salesman, however, not a technician and I, ever the conservative pessimist, decided it must generate at least 30 amps, and not more than 35. But what would I know? Don't be worried about the wattage. 90 continuous blows away a Panasonic/Sony 100 watts- with- one -channel- driven at one paltry midrange frequency receiver. (Its more like 100 watts divided by 5!) It is a deplorable yet true fact that the more you pay for an amp, the more honest the power ratings become. To get a real "100 watts x 5" receiver you would have to pay upwards of at least $1000 Canadian($500 American). The remote is the area where I conjecture that Marantz discovered a way to make the sr5300 more affordable. It is cruddy, a waste of time. At least it has the bass/treble controls on it, unlike many H/K receivers. Therefore you don't have the inconvenience of elevating your posterior from its prone position on the living room couch whenever you want a slight change in tone Don't get me wrong. I am extremely unbiased when it comes to receivers, and I love the deep hard bass of H/K. It's just that H/K has had severe reliability issues in the past. The avr 500 and the avr 7000, among many others, just weren't funny. As a matter of fact I have seen many H/K receivers (avr 7000 for instance, referred to by the member of one warranty repair company as a "...back-breaking problem-prone piece of junk..")sitting dismally in pawn shops, very likely having problems including "popping noises" and various channels not working, ready to collapse the shelf upon which they rest. Imho they run so hot, they tend to melt the solders on various circuits. I have read more than one review that has claimed "Marantz amps don't have the deep hard bass of H/K or Denon without a sub." This SR5300 produced much more bass than my H/K avr 500 could. (Try Circle surround 2 at Tru Bass Setting 6 while playing Grand Theft Auto San Andreas for Playstation 2, with digital input. However, I auditioned the Marantz sr7300 which has more power and current,and cleaner sound as per its Crystal dsp-- a true pro grade amp. As it turned out, the 7300 didn't have the deep hard bass that the sr 5300 did (without a sub), although it did have better bass management. I guess the bass differs from model to model.But it is a small issue,and who doesn't use a sub nowadays? True, the sr5300 doesn't have component video switching like the 5400, and others. But I have discovered through trial and error, that component video switching with most receivers tends to noticeably reduce the quality of the picture. I have had more successful results with a petty audio/video selector that I purchased long ago from Radio Shack. It was a four-way selector, and by using the red/ white stereo audio jacks for two of the three component video plugs, I can now plug my Xbox, my Ps2, and my dvd player to my TV and have one jack left over for satellite etc. Had to laugh at the RS rep who told me I would likely see "Lines, distortion...all kinds of stuff" if I tried to use the av selector for component video switching. Suffice it to say that make sure your amp has at LEAST 50 mhz for hdtv switching. I auditioned a Yamaha rxv730, before deciding on the Marantz. I liked the way the Yamaha had plenty of volume from the center and the surrounds, component video switching, ability to have different sound modes with the Dolby digital bitstream and front speaker a-b/a+b switching all for the same price as H/K avr 130. What value! What sold me on the Marantz was the Yammie was a bit too bright,and had an annoying habit of switching off whenever a loud sound occured in a dvd I was watching, something Marantz and H/K never seem to do. Its remote is more (BFD) aesthetically appealing than Marantz's,however, and to this day I miss some of the Yamaha's features, including mains switching. When I am playing Halo or some Xbox game in Dolby Digital (games which tend to skimp out on using the center chanel) I can't switch straight to 6 ch stereo and get matrixed sound from the center, something I could do with the Yammie.

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Harman Kardon avr 500, avr 125, avr 330 Yamaha Htr 5490, htr 5560,Rxv 530, Rxv730 Marantz Sr7300, Sr5300 Panasonic (Technics) Sadx950,750, sae70, sae75 Kenwood 6050, Sr506, sr507 Pioneer (1994 thing)

Excelent sound quality for music and movies.

The excesive amount of time it took to repair my unit.

This is an excellent amp for both music and movies. Having said that, I had an intermitent problem with my unit that was realy anoying. In the midle of a movie, a very loud sound (almost like a silenced gunshot but continuous) would broadcast out of all the speakers. I took it back to the store where I bought it from and they refused to replace it even though I had owned the unit less than a month. So I took it to the Marantz authorised repair center and had them fix it under waranty. I just picked it up this week after more than three months in the repair shop. According to the people at the repair shop, this is the first time they have had a problem with this model. I was also told that the waiting time for repair work from Denon (owners of Marantz) is usualy this long.

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Harmon/Kardon ? Yamaha ? Denon ?

Dolby Digital 6.1 DTS EX NEO 6 Soft and Warm Sounds for Audio Powerful, Crisp and Clear sounds for Video

NO COMPONENT VIDEO. REMOTE CONTROL

This was my first real hi-end Receiver that was purchased for me by my father in-law. He also purchased PSB Alpha Intro speakers (6 speakers)as well to take advantage of DTS EX and Dolby Digital 6.1. Initially I did not know what to expect from Marantz since I have never heard of this company previously. (I only heard of those Theatre-in-a-box type systems) I was blown away when I first power up the system. We watch Lord of the Rings (Fellowship of the Rings) and the scene envolving the balrog was very clear and crisp, yet powerful since it made me feel that I was actually there. My friend at the time bought a SONY home theatre system (in a box) and we replayed the same scene. It was not a nearly as impressive as the Marantz and you can hear a buzzing noise when the Balrog was facing Gandolf. I then purchased on ebay a RIO MP3 receiver and hook it up to the Marantz system via RCA plugs. The sound and quality was very crisp and pleasing. It was so good, that when I sold my home, I played some classical piano music from my Marantz speaker that later on I found out that it gave a soft atmosphere and made the home more inviting and warm which lead to a sale of my home. As an entry level system, this is very affordable for the quality that it delivers. The only complaints I have with this system is the remote control since it is huge and very cumbersome and that it doesn't do Component Video Switching (Which is a pain, when you try to watch DVD Movies). I am actually looking to trade in my SR5300 for the SR5400 since it has the Component Video Switching.

Well built,Front panel is clean and well layed out . Sounds great, easy to setup.Good value for the money.

Horrible remote.Poor manual. No component video(new 5400 model will have it $)

I almost bought my second Yamaha receiver, until I looked at the SR5300. I like the way it looks and is definitely built solid. Sound is clear and clean and is easy to use setup and control.

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Yamaha RxV490

Great sound especially in music. Excellent build quality. Clean honest power with 5 channels driven.

Cheapo remote. Limited bass managment.

I got this receiver as a Christmas present from my family. It replaced a Yamaha HTR-5440. This receiver blew away the sound of the Yamaha. On music, the Marantz sounds light years better than the Yamaha. It has a nice, warm sound that is never fatiguing. On movies, I could hear much more detail from the surrounds and the center channel. Dialogue came through much more clearly. After doing a little research I found that Marantz is one of the few companies that has pretty honest power ratings. This thing can really pump out 90 wpc w/ 5 channels driven. I was also impressed with the build quality of this unit. The face plate is solid metal and the volume control knob is substantial. A very satisfied audio buff here.

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Yamaha and Sony.

Good value for its power output 90Watts/channel (All Discrete Amplifiers 192kHz/24bit D/A Converters) DD EX®,Pro Logic II®, DTS ES®(Discrete 6.1,Matrix 6.1, Neo: 6),SRS Circle Surround II® (6.1) Excellent Frequency Response Ease of Setup. Good built

No component video I/O Limited bass management Non learning remote, slow remote response, crappy remote. Poorly written Users Manual.

After doing a long research for a mid-range priced AV receivers, I've replaced my aging Pioneer VSX903S with SR5300. I was extremely pleased with the sound quality. Excellent in both music and home theatre performance. The highs & mids are clear and crisp and lows have lots of punch. I couldn't agree more with the other reviews, highly recommended for its performance and great value. My system: - Marantz SR5300 - Hitachi DVD P305 - Sony Wega 32" TV - Athena Speakers - AS-B2 Fronts - Athena Speakers - AS-C1 Centre - Bose AM 5 Mk III - Rears - Athena subwoofer AS P400

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Harmon Kardon AVR130 Yamaha HTR5660B

Solidly built. Plently of clean power. Cleanly designed front plate.

Crossover is fixed. Will make you want to upgrade the rest of your home theater setup. Non-learning remote. No component video switching.

I was going to get a refurb 5200 but saw an great deal on the 5300 (discontinued). From what I hear its has a beefer power supply and better remote than the 5200. It has performed great in stereo and surround sound. I did notice that I did get better sound using analog sources (except for DVD). I think my old stereo-only Marantz sounds a little better for stereo listening, but the 5300 is not far behind. The remote isn't learning but I find it can control everything I have (and all the functions).

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Marantz SR63

Price, sound quality, seems very solidly built, especially for this price.

Somewhat large, but that doesn't matter to me. The remote looks cheap and is kind of cluttered, but that can be solved rather easily.

I replaced my Pioneer VSX-D608 with the SR5300, and it is worth every penny. You can pick one up on Ebay for a really good deal since they discontinued them. Like many of the other reviewers, I wanted a receiver mainly for music, and limited video. Right out of the box, this thing completely destroyed my old Pioneer. Don't worry about the 90w rating, b/c this thing has PLENTY of power to drive my Paradigm Studio 60's (we had a party the other night and 4 houses called the cops to complain, seriously.) I still haven't used it for any DVD viewing, but as I said earlier, I bought it mainly for music. The highs are silky smooth and the bass is nice and punchy. This receiver may not sound as good as some of the higher end components, but if you are looking for something in this price range, I HIGHLY recommend this piece.

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Pioneer VSX-D608