Looks, sound (at low listening levels)

big lack of drive dissapointing class a mode

This amplifier is probabarly brilliant for any one who listens only to classical music at moderate levels and dosent use the bass and trebble comtrolls. but if like me you own any records wich include a bass line, and you like loud music from time to time then dont go for this amp. It suffers from a lack of drive, yes it can produce rich, deep bass infact it does sound amazing but as soon as you crank the volume it begins to struggle and clipping sets in wich is very annoying. there is a slight hum that cam be heard but dosent bother me at all, also anyone who thinks they can hear any difference between the over rated class a operation and norman a/b mode at all, what so ever are kidding them selves. but its not all bad, (allthough most of it is) the amp is well built and its masculine good looks will impress. The sound is fluid and clear the trebble and midrange are allmost flawlwss and the bass can go so deep its like a submarine. But like i said it will distort easily and ruin the whole expiereince if you like your music a bit loud or have a large space to fill.

Budget price for high end like quality. Sturdy built (14,3 kg). Good control over LS (B&W DM 604 S3)

Design could be better and more intuitive, but that's not really important isn't it?

Very Short: it is a sublime integrated amplifier. I come from Luxman but i love this Marantz. I bought the KI version. It sounds sweet, detailed and images like a rock. Warning : This amplifier needs to be warmed up for some 10 minutes otherwise the sound is stiff, not open.

Similar Products Used:

Luxman A384, PM 7200.

Good with all types of music. Operates in Class A. Sweet natured. Very detailed.

Slight lack of drive. Basic controls on remote. Tape loops (2) can't be used with in 'direct mode' that removes tone controls from signal path.

This is an amp well worth listening to if you're seeking a budget amp. It's big and ugly for sure, and you need to be aware that it runs warm (not hot) so you'll need the space for it. That said why am I so enthusiastic about this amp? It's very sweet natured which makes long term listening a joy. The downside is what has been described has a 'lack of drive' and this to an extent is true but not enough to undermine it's positive reputation. A matter of personal taste really. The old hifi cliche 'musicality' really is applicable here. No matter what kind of music you throw at it the Marantz will adapt itself and deliver it with style. This is also a very detailed amp that trashs my old Cyrus 2/PSX when it comes to nuance and detail. Unusually this amp can be switched into Class A mode. This has proved controversial with correspondents to hifi magszines claiming they can hear little or no difference. However long term listening does reveal the advantages of class A. The spacious soundstage soon proves to be an obvious choice with most recordings. In class AB this is a good budet amp but in class A it becomes something much more. As always you should try before you buy but after six months I'm still enthusiastic about the Marantz, still rediscovering my albums and CDs. Which reminds me, one thing I nearly forgot, it has a very good phono stage for those of you still listening to the black stuff. It won't outrun an offboard phono, I use a Musical Fidelity XLP myself, but it is very good.

Similar Products Used:

Cyrus 2/PSX Arcam Delta 60 Cyrus One Arcam A65

warmth depth natural sound, detailed without sounding mechanical deep bass colourfull gentle refined

in direct comparison with rivals: less accurate less dynamic less punchie

I posted this review already by the Marantz pm7000 reviews in the category integrated amps, where I didn't find the pm7200. Surprised to find it here. Well it is an integrated amp. Having a budget to spend about $500 up to 600, you cannot go wrong: any brand will do just fine. The differences in sound are marginal. You will soon get used to the sound and end up liking it a lot. In 90% of shortcomings of sound (bad recording etc.) the tone control will be sufficient. My advice: buy the best looking amp. Having said that I wouldn't follow that advice (although I'm dead right), because I want to listen and find out for myself. So I did. I compared 3 Amps: Marantz PM 7200 $499 (played in AB, not in class A) NAD c352 $599 Rotel RA-02 $599 I conected them on my Marantz cd 5000 cd-player (I wrote a terrible review about this player on this site) and Dynaudio audience 52 speakers. I used the sound of a Sony headphones, plugged in the cd 5000's phones-socket, as an inaccurate reference to adjust my perception of Marantz cd 5000's sound: clean, delicate (easy to distort), good stereo image tight but lean bass, at times too bright and remarkable (for the money) depth. As expected: the differences were small. With most cd's the differences were very little, with few cd's the differences were more obvious. And with some there weren't any differences at all, at least I couldn't hear them. So pay in mind that the sound differences I've written down are a bit exaggerated . The Rotel RA-02 came the closest to the headphones sound, although the sound was even cleaner, faster and tighter, but unfortunately also brighter. The bas sounded equally lean but faster and punchier. The NAD sounded bigger, more dynamic and confident; the delicate cd 5000 sound transformed into a more stable sound, even at high volumes. The Rotel sounded strained, nervous and distortedat high volumes, but obviously the cd 5000 is to blame for this. The NAD also has a bigger and stronger bass which suits the cd 5000's lean bass. The low midds are a bit dark coloured, so you can call the NAD a warm performer. Still the sound is more open and detailed than Rotel's, sometimes a bit clinical which is a strange contradiction to warm character this amp also has. The Marantz PM 7200 surprised me completely by getting rid of the roughness and brightness of the cd 5000. It sounded not as tight, fast and precise as the Rotel, nor does it have the dynamics and the powerfull bass the NAD has, but the music flows with more eas. The delicacy of the cd 5000 remains without distorting at high volumes. I mentioned that the NAD is a warm performer, well the Marantz is even warmer without colouring the midds and that puzzled me; it looks like the Marantz brings out the warmth of the recording itself. The sound is almost as detailed as NAD's, but to my ears more natural (to other ears perhaps too smooth). There is no real winner here (as already said in the beginning: the differences are small), but the Marantz is definitely the best match with my cd-player (and the cheapest too!) The Rotel obviously needs a better source and appears to be the most neutral, precise, fast and punchie amp. The NAD will be liked by a majority of listeners for its speed, strong bass, superb dynamics and detailed sound, probaply this amp will outshine the Marantz when a better source is used. The Marantz is the most forgiving and gentle amp, but also the most natural and warm sounding. At times this amp is a bit excentric: the colours and tones this amp produces are from a different league (not better, but very special): so sweet, refined and warm. I didn't use the class A mode in this comparison, later I found out that there isn't any difference in sound between class A and AB... maybe I heard a slightly warmer sound through heaphones. This amp runs very warm, so it needs some space, but there isn't anything to worry about. A slight buzz is noticable when you're near the amp. You can hear the buzz also through headphones in the left channel when both speaker buttons are switched OFF, running the amp in AB. This buzz dissappears when one or both speakerbuttons are switched on. (so when you use only use one pair of spakers, you can switch OFF speaker button one and switch ON speaker button two.) Or you can listen in class A and this buzz will not appear at all. This buzz is not what you'll expect from a $499 amp, but it doesn't really bother me. I love this amp for its sound, power and good looks too.

Similar Products Used:

Rotel RA-02 NAD c352 Pioneer A 7500

Power and subtlety.

Slight lack of attack.

Big Heavy Amp with lots of finesse. Marantz has class B and A funnction. As a class B there is lots of power and no lack of finesse, but turn off the amp and switch to class A and a limpid liquid and classy sound takes over. Across the musical board, sounds are very musical and subtle. The amp is very forgiving and even compressed albums such as the best of U2 sound OK. If you like raw attack this is not the amp for you though. Nevertheless it would be hard not to like the overall performance and for the money it is hard to beat it

Similar Products Used:

Musical Fidelity, Arcam.