HELP!!! Denon PMA-720 + DAC Bushmaster MKII or Marantz PM-6005 with Built-in DAC??

dakchi

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Hi,

I would like to setup an hifi system with my speakers Monitor Audio RX6. The source will be a NAS (Synology) that will store FLAC files and send them to the amplifier through an Apple TV3. It seems that this is a good way to keep a reasonable good quality of the sound. I was about to buy the amplifier Denon PMA-720 when I noticed that it does not have an optical input. As a consequence of that, I will have to buy a DAC that will make the link between the ATV3 and the amplifier. I heard good feedbacks about the Beresford Bushmaster. So I'm thinking of buying one for that purpose

BUT

when searching for an amplifier that has an optical input, I found the Marantz PM-6005 that seems to be a very good amplifier with a Built-in DAC. It is supposed to be a better amplifier than the Denon, hence my question: which configuration do you think will be better?

Thank you for you help
 

Ben123

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Its probably an unlikely combo that people would have compared to be honest. I have one of the older beresford dacs and have been happy with it for many years through a pm7000 amp.

i believe there is a WHF pm6005 review in the pipeline according to the following thread.

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/marantz-pm6005-review

Personally if you cant demo i would wait for a few user reviews to appear before parting with cash.
 

slice

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I had the Beresford Bushmaster Mk1. I was very pleased with the sound, I used it to feed into a Marantz PM6002. However, the switching between the inputs on the beresford has become faulty and to be honest I got fed up of the faff of getting up and toggling up to 4 presses to select the right output (no remote), so it's now in the attic. Given the new dac in the pm6005 is the same as the one in the new 6005, convenience of one rather than 2 boxes and probable decent quality would make me coose the Pm6005, The is a good review in the current issue of HiFi Choice.
 

dakchi

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Ben123 said:
Its probably an unlikely combo that people would have compared to be honest. I have one of the older beresford dacs and have been happy with it for many years through a pm7000 amp.

i believe there is a WHF pm6005 review in the pipeline according to the following thread.

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/marantz-pm6005-review

Personally if you cant demo i would wait for a few user reviews to appear before parting with cash.

I don't expect to find someone who has this combo. I guess that the question is : is a good amplifier with built-in DAC better than an OK amplifier+an external DAC? I only listen to FLAC and MP3 files. Another option is to have a network player with built-in DAC

I have listened to the Denon and the Marantz. Denon seems to be good for music like Jazz or electronic. It gives a warmish sound which is exactly what I'm looking for. Marantz is more detailed. It separates well every instruments. So I'm wondering if the Bushmaster DAC will improve the lack of details in the Denon
 

Ben123

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slice said:
convenience of one rather than 2 boxes and probable decent quality would make me coose the Pm6005.

Id agree with the above comment - the beresford definately increases the faff factor and i too am looking for convenience. About 2 weeks ago i (rightly or wrongly) sold my PM7000, it really is a legendary amplifier i probably should not have got rid of but its such a massive amp i wanted some space back. My beresford has been demoted to headphone amplifier duties while i look at another system. I also have been looking at amp/dac combos such as the mcr-603/510/610 and the NAD D3020.

I would rule out the D3020 as i dont think its powerful for your floorstanders.

I would say the marantz MCR-6XX/5XX would be suitable for what you need at a competitive price point. I believe a few people run them with floorstanders without a problem. If i had floor standers i would still like to hear if it really can power floorstanders. I run stand mounts so its not so much of an issue.

Your particular problem is that with the exception of MCR-603 a lot of DAC/AMP combos are realtively new to the market. so reviews seem to be few and far between. People already have amplifiers and dacs so the uptake will be slow.

if possible i would bide your time until a clear winner emerges - i still think the MCR-XXX will be a tough one to topple though.
 

Ben123

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dakchi said:
I guess that the question is : is a good amplifier with built-in DAC better than an OK amplifier+an external DAC?

I'll try to answer your quetion in a less wordy way:

I dont know.

Until more people decide they are fed up of all the boxes and faff and make a conscious decision to go to one box solution we're non the wiser.

Trouble is one box or combo solutions tend have a "downgrade" stigma attached, but thanks to the MCR-6xx people are realising one box solution can give near or on par performance with seperates.

I know there are magazine reviews of combo products but i always wait till real hifi users have reviewed the product before parting with cash.
 

dakchi

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Hi,

I just had a demo of the Denon and Marantz with the MO RX6. The Marantz was pretty new, so I guess it needs some time to show its capabilities. From the demo, It's clear to me that the Denon is much more powerful than the Marantz. The sound quality is more or less the same. But everybody is telling me to take the Marantz because Denon is not good in Hifi :shifty: . I guess these are the pro's and con's of each amplifier:

1) Denon is more powerful and has an sub output and a preout. It does not have a digital input which obliges me to buy a DAC

2) Marantz is more recent and has a digital input (No DAC needed). I will mainly listen to FLAC and MP3 files. All the reviews I have seen so far are very positive about this amplifier. But it doesn't seem to have enough power to drive the RX6 (will this change with the time?) and it does not have a sub output or preout

I'm lost. Can anyone help me take a decision?

Thank you
 

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