Marantz or Cambridge-Audio Amp & CD setup?

[admin_exported]

Hi,

I am thinking of getting one of these two set ups...

*Marantz PM6002 & CD6002
*Cambridge 540C & 340/540A

...and wondered what people thought of them and if anyone has these to compare? I listen to a broad range of music including stuff like Deep Purple, The Who, David Bowie, Satriani, Pink Floyd, Queen, Dire Straits, Classical, Blues etc.

Thanks

Alex

 

[Clare Newsome]

Hi Alex, and welcome to the Forums!

All the kit you mention is great starter-system stuff, but the Marantz pairing is the best of the lot: in comparative tests, it's come out ahead of the Cambridge Audio 640 range, let alone the 340/540 ranges.

However, the quality of your overall system will obviously also depend on your speakers - what are you planning to use?

 

[stufran]

Alex

I recently bought a CA 640C CD player & 640A amp which I have teamed with a pair of Kef IQ3 speakers. I audtioned both the Marantz & CA systems with the IQ3s (I already had the IQ3s) & preferred the overall sound of the CA set up. Our musical preferences are similar in that I listen to Purple, Floyd, Whitesnake etc etc while the one capable of multi tasking listens to a wide variety of stuff from classical, Kate Rusby, Amy Winehouse, The Killers, Arctic Monkeys & other rubbish which make your ears bleed.

We went for the CA set up as we felt the overall detail was better across the broad spectrum of music we listen to although to be honest there was three quarters of ****** all between them & given the proximity of price & build quality the final choice is very much subjective. I have to say I am really enjoying the system both through the speakers & 'phones & to my uneducated ears I believe that you would have to spend considerably more to achieve a discernable step up in quality.

My advice would be to put yourself a reference disc of all your favourite tracks together & spend a very pleasurable afternoon listening. I think that Richer Sounds is the only place where you can listen to both systems although I believe Richer have only got sporadic stocks of the Marantz kit. (Don't hold me to that though as it's anecdotal).

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Clare,

Thanks for the speedy reply. I was leaning more towards the Marantz from internet reviews but after a vist to Richer Sounds they said the Marantz was only for Classical and Jazz? What exactly does this mean in terms of sound? I mean I'm not going to be blasting the system at full volumn (This is only for my bedroom). I have asked Sevenoaks if I can listen to some samples next weekend so hopefully will have a better feel for them then.

I will be using the speakers that came with the Sony Hi-Fi I bought about 5 years ago (bellow), but will eventually get some others. Do you have any idea what these are like because I've only ever had these speakers so they are my only reference point.

[/URL] " align="bottom">

Regards

Alex

 

[Clare Newsome]

Not familiar with those speakers, Alex, but i'm betting you can do a lot better, and without spending a fortune: try and hear Monitor Audio Bronze BR2s (£200) when you have your visit to Sevenoaks.

And i'm afraid Richer Sounds staff you spoke to are speaking rubbish re the Marantz only being good with classical and jazz. They were obviously steering you towards Cambridge Audio as it's exclusively distributed by Richer, and therefore there's more profit margin in it for them.

Good luck to them, and all that - and as mentioned, CA kit is great - but they're not exactly unbiased!

 

[stufran]

Alex

Clare is spot on with her comments - I actually preferred the Marantz when listening to rock & if I had been buying solely for my preferred tastes would have gone with the Marantz. I have to say that I pre-empted any pro CA comments from the Richer staff by stating as soon as I walked in the shop that I expected them to be biased as the linkage between CA & Richer is well known ! I have to say that if Richer are giving, what appears to be biased advice to customers, then they will inevitably dilute their status in the market place.
I guess the message is really that you should trust your own ears & buy what you like.
Finally, (on the pro Richer front) I got the CA 640A & C with a pair of CA S30 speakers for £500. This offer was still being advertised in the June issue of WHS&V. I haven't listened to the system through the CA speakers but they are 5 star WHFS&V units & would presume given that they are built by CA are a good match for the CD player & amp.

 

[gpi]

[quote user="Anewby"]
Hi Clare,

Thanks for the speedy reply. I was leaning more towards the Marantz from internet reviews but after a vist to Richer Sounds they said the Marantz was only for Classical and Jazz? What exactly does this mean in terms of sound? I mean I'm not going to be blasting the system at full volumn (This is only for my bedroom). I have asked Sevenoaks if I can listen to some samples next weekend so hopefully will have a better feel for them then.

I will be using the speakers that came with the Sony Hi-Fi I bought about 5 years ago (bellow), but will eventually get some others. Do you have any idea what these are like because I've only ever had these speakers so they are my only reference point.

[/URL] " align="bottom">

Regards

Alex
[/quote]

Don't agree, sounds fishy to me. Alex, good as Sony speakers are, those you have will be pretty standard fare and can be bettered very easily for a reasonable outlay. You are in for a treat...

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the info guys, very healpful. I guess my next question (being totally dense about speakers) then is what makes a good speaker a good speaker?

Alex

 

[Anonymous]

It's funny you were told about Marantz being only for jazz and classical. I was told the exact same thing.

Not good customer service !

 

[Anonymous]

It would take forever to tell you all the workings of a good speaker - especially seeing as there are many ways of doing the same job. Go to rotel.com, get a sign-in password and you can download their audio encyclopedia for free (over 200 pages normally £30), this will give you quite alot of info on all manner of subjects from speakers to power supplies.

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry Alex For using your post,

Dear Clare,

I currently was thinking of setting up Cambridge Audio Azur 640A V2 + Marantz CD 6002 + Wharfedale Diamond 9.1.

Is it a good match in your opinion, I listen to pop; classic; & Jazz music.

Will wharfedale Dia 9.1 tame down the brightness characteristics of cambridge audio amps as reviews on WHF mentioned that CA sounds bright ?

I decided on Marantz CD 6002 for my setup because of my tight budget and i particularly like its WMA/MP3 playable functions of course it is a 5 star review cd player

CA 640A V2 because of it's power capabilities for future floorstander speaker upgrades.... and 5 star review budget amp....

thanks Alex

Thanks and best rgds,

Alvin

 

[plastic penguin]

tayalvin:

Sorry Alex for using your post.

Dear Clare,

I have a setup consisting of Cambridge audio 640A V2 + marantz CD 6002 + Wharfedale Diamond 9.1

Is it a good match?

I often read WHF review that Cambridge audio will sound bright if partner wrongly... furthermore i noticed Cambridge audio amp will partner with it's same brand in cd player... is it because to avoid wrong partnering with other brand CD player?

but in your previous comment in this post, you mention marantz is the best match...

Of course you recommended monitor audio Bronze BR2 speakers here, I guessed reason is to tame the brightness characteristics of Cambridge audio because of the good bass charcteristic of these speakers correct me if iam wrong

Can you explain your choice on marantz cd players matching cambridge audio just for my knowledge ....

Thanks, & Best rgds

Alvin

What do your ears tell you about the set-up?

 

[plastic penguin]

Anewby:Hi,

I am thinking of getting one of these two set ups...

*Marantz PM6002 & CD6002
*Cambridge 540C & 340/540A

...and wondered what people thought of them and if anyone has these to compare? I listen to a broad range of music including stuff like Deep Purple, The Who, David Bowie, Satriani, Pink Floyd, Queen, Dire Straits, Classical, Blues etc.

Thanks

Alex

As most of the regulars will testify, I'm not a fan of Cambridge. On the other hand, Marantz is superb (IMO) and given the right circumstances, I'd have a Marantz system without question.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi ,

It sounds detail ; clear ; enough of bass when i listen to pop songs... but certain fast tracks i have to lower the volumes... to enjoy better....

 

[plastic penguin]

tayalvin:

Hi ,

It sounds detail ; clear ; enough of bass when i listen to pop songs... but certain fast tracks i have to lower the volumes... to enjoy better....



In that case I would avoid MA BR2's. They just may exaggerate the problem.

My original point was if it sounds good to your ears then you have a result, regardless of mixing 'n' matching and whether an item or combination of items has a rave review. I would personally ditch the Cambridge if you finding it a little brittle at high volumes. As always, this is my personal take. . . .

 

[pauldownton1979]

ive had th ca 540 cdp + amp before team the with ms 902i speakers on nexus stands. if you go on rs web site you will find graded pair ( cdp + amp) for less than £300 plus speakers and stands - no more than £450 for the lot. unbeatable at the price. the 902i's make it , they should retail at double what they do, give them a listen. forget br2's,

 

[the record spot]

My Marantz SA7001-KI CDP does rock no problem. Zeppelin, Purple, Yes, Whitesnake, ZZ Top, Little Feat, Genesis, Nick Lowe, Elton, The Jam, you name it, it does it. Don't fret over the Marantz kit. Excellent brand and the guy in Richer Sounds is talking out his tree.