Marantz PM 6005: Wot no network streaming? :-(

[MajorFubar]

As I alluded in the review thread, does anyone but me think Marantz has missed a trick by not including network-streaming capabilities with the PM6005? It's got Airplay and a HD DAC, and until the recent WHF review prompted me to investgate it more fully, I didn't give a second thought to the possibility that it couldn't stream audio from a home network (same as the 610 can). In fact it was very nearly on my radar as a possible upgrade to my PM-66KI (though speakers are first).

Maybe Marantz were worried that including network-streaming would tread on the toes of the NA7004. But the NA7004 is long-in-the-tooth, it doesn't even do gapless by all accounts, and is just another box to find a place for, where potentially for many users it wouldn't now be needed, seeing that the PM6005 has a built-in DAC (unlike its predecessor).

I thought the PM6005 would basically be a "grown-up" '610 without the CD and radio but with a more "audiophile-grade" amp section (interpret that as you will). Clearly it so easily could have been.

What a pity.

 

[ela-ted]

I can't see any reference to AirPlay in the specification. Two RCA inputs are marked 'Network' clearly expecting you to stump up for a separate streamer. I guess if you start adding in other functions, it stops being separates! That said, I would say there is very much a market for a grown up 610 to take on the Unitiqute2/Arcam Solo Mini market in the £750-1000 range.

 

[Frank Harvey]

The PM6005 doesn't have AirPlay. If they'd have included streaming capabilty, it would never have been released at £379 - probably nearer £600 or more. The NA7004 is discontinued and no longer available.

 

[Cypher]

I think it's strange it has a coaxial and optical input but no USB.

 

[MajorFubar]

Of course...how daft of me...it doesn't have any native networking capability so of course it can't possibly have Airplay. Was sure I read somewhere that it did, but even if I haven't dreamt it, that must've been wrong

What a complete and utter missed opportunity, imo. I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

 

[MajorFubar]

I think it's strange it has a coaxial and optical input but no USB.

Being 'nearly there' seems to be a Marantz trait. The MC-R610 has two USB slots for pen-drives but no direct computer input, which would have enabled a PC or Mac to see its DAC as an external sound-card. In lieu of that though, it can at least stream audio from network storage devices on its local LAN.

 

[daveh75]

I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

I'd guess that depends on how robbing Apple are for licensing Airplay.

 

[davedotco]

I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

I'd guess that depends on how robbing Apple are for licensing Airplay.

Clearly not 'robbing' enough if Marantz can put it into their micro systems........ :?

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

 

[MajorFubar]

I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

I'd guess that depends on how robbing Apple are for licensing Airplay.

True, and certainly for me that is an unknown. But when you think the Denon Piccolo has it for £260, I think it's fairly safe to assume the Denon isn't for example a £60 micro system with a £200 licence. But the lack of network streaming is the biggest show-stoper for me rather than Airplay. You would think Marantz knows what it's doing though, so presumably people like me who consider it to be important are not part of their intended demographic.

 

[MajorFubar]

Sorry DDC, cross-posted basically the same thing

 

[Cypher]

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

What's wrong with a nice integrated amp at this price and with a built in DAC ? Most reviews are very positive........maybe people expect too much.

 

[davedotco]

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

What's wrong with a nice integrated amp at this price and with a built in DAC ? Most reviews are very positive........maybe people expect too much.

Nothing whatsoever, it is what the market wants at this moment in time. Marantz have to supply what people want to buy, if they want to stay in business that is.

But with music playback in the home changing rapidly it does not move anything forward in a user sense. In that respect the MRC 610 system with all its features is a far more inovative piece of kit, quite exceptional for the money.

The product that I think many enthusiasts are waiting for is an amplifier with all that functionality built in along with a better overall sonic performance. One or two manufacturers have tried this, Yamaha, Onkyo for example but it would probably take a similar product from a market leader like Marantz to really make it clear that this is the way forward.

 

[Johnno2]

I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

I'd guess that depends on how robbing Apple are for licensing Airplay.

Clearly not 'robbing' enough if Marantz can put it into their micro systems........ :?

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

If its anything like the 6004 it will be nicer sounding amp than most others in this sector, according to WHF its got an improved sound !

according to another review it was compared to some 2000 grand monoblocs, of course apart from the lack of power and not as much 'warmth', the little marantz had a clarity in the highs that was very close to the reference amp ,'that could not be ignored' ,

 

[davedotco]

I don't think adding Airplay and network-play would have added much to the price tbh; or at least I can't see why it should have done.

I'd guess that depends on how robbing Apple are for licensing Airplay.

Clearly not 'robbing' enough if Marantz can put it into their micro systems........ :?

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

If its anything like the 6004 it will be nicer sounding amp than most others in this sector, according to WHF its got an improved sound !

according to another review it was compared to some 2000 grand monoblocs, of course apart from the lack of power and not as much 'warmth', the little marantz had a clarity in the highs that was very close to the reference amp ,'that could not be ignored' ,

I am familiar with the 6004 but have not really heard the 6005.

It was a perfectly capable amplifier at it's price point but offered no more real capability than other brands at comparable prices, it is 'voiced' to sound like a Marantz and that is the only thing that differentiates it from the competition.

In my personal hi-fi universe it lacks the all round capability that I would expect from a serious entry level hi-fi amplifier but then it is roughly half the price of the cheapest stereo amplifier I would actually consider for my own use, so hardly a fair comparison.

 

[MajorFubar]

it does not move anything forward in a user sense. In that respect the MRC 610 system with all its features is a far more inovative piece of kit, quite exceptional for the money.

The product that I think many enthusiasts are waiting for is an amplifier with all that functionality built in along with a better overall sonic performance. One or two manufacturers have tried this, Yamaha, Onkyo for example but it would probably take a similar product from a market leader like Marantz to really make it clear that this is the way forward.

Yep I'm one of those users, and until I properly looked into it I thought Marantz had delivered. Shame they haven't, when the capability to do so is already in-house. Leaves me wondering why they've bothered to incorporate a HD DAC other than to tick a box on this season's list of must-have features.

 

[Covenanter]

Maybe it's aimed at people like me who aren't interested in streaming.

They also have a new PM8005 which if I have read the specification correctly doesn't have the DAC either. They must have decided at various price points what facilities they should offer. Whether they have got this right or not will show up in the sales figures.

I suspect there will be a NA8005 soon.

Chris

 

[cannibal_ox77]

Maybe Marantz were worried that including network-streaming would tread on the toes of the NA7004. But the NA7004 is long-in-the-tooth, it doesn't even do gapless by all accounts, and is just another box to find a place for, where potentially for many users it wouldn't now be needed, seeing that the PM6005 has a built-in DAC (unlike its predecessor).

I'm sure the NA7004 does gapless following firmware upgrades. Its soon to be replaced by the NA8005 anyway, which doesn't look on paper to have much new functionality and will probably come with a big price tag. The PM6005 is what it is, the latest update in the 6000 series apparently with even better sound and with the added bonus of having a DAC at no real extra cost, why would it offer any more at £379?

I thought they might bring out an 'NA6005' priced more in line with the rest of the 6000 series (as an alternative to the cd6005) alongside the more premium NA8005.

 

[Blackdawn]

The lack of a 'proper' usb digital in is a bigger omission in my view, but then the 6005 is really just a 'me too' product anyway.

it hasn't moved anything forward at all, just another integrated amp like all the others, just with this months latest 'must have', an onboard dac.

What's wrong with a nice integrated amp at this price and with a built in DAC ? Most reviews are very positive........maybe people expect too much.

Nothing whatsoever, it is what the market wants at this moment in time. Marantz have to supply what people want to buy, if they want to stay in business that is.

But with music playback in the home changing rapidly it does not move anything forward in a user sense. In that respect the MRC 610 system with all its features is a far more inovative piece of kit, quite exceptional for the money.

The product that I think many enthusiasts are waiting for is an amplifier with all that functionality built in along with a better overall sonic performance. One or two manufacturers have tried this, Yamaha, Onkyo for example but it would probably take a similar product from a market leader like Marantz to really make it clear that this is the way forward.

People who are complaining that there is no internet streaming and other bits basically want a stereo receiver or AV receiver not an integrated amp. I wouldn't say Yamha and Onkyo are not market leaders in terms of receivers and amps. I think Marantz has done well with the PM6005. Like the Onkyo 9050 Cambridge Audio 351A /651A it now has a DAC on board. More of a case of not falling behind the competition rather than moving things on.

I agree the MRC 610 system is more forward thinking for the modern day home - people who don't want lots of seperate boxes all over the place. For the majority this will be perfectly good.

 

[MajorFubar]

The PM6005 is what it is, the latest update in the 6000 series apparently with even better sound and with the added bonus of having a DAC at no real extra cost, why would it offer any more at £379?

It entirely depends on your marketing philosphy. I'm pretty sure they could have included Airplay and streaming for the same ballpark price, but they chose not to presumably because as you have implied they calculated that they didn't need to. It just goes to prove that the HiFi market is much more pedestrian than such as the mobile-phone market, which is driven by completely different forces. In that market, competition is fierce and if you dawle-around wondering whether or not to include a potentially-killer feature on your handset, someone else will do it ahead of you and steal your sales.

 

[Vladimir]

I'm with Dave on this. IMO without the USB support they shot themselves in the leg. But they did their research, I guess. Maybe people at that price range don't care for PC USB audio and all have coaxial and CDP's.

 

[MajorFubar]

People who are complaining that there is no internet streaming and other bits basically want a stereo receiver or AV receiver not an integrated amp.

Who here mentioned internet streaming? I don't want a receiver, AV or otherwise. I want an amp such as the PM6005 to be able to stream music from my NAS, which is not an unreasonable expection seeing that it clearly could have done, I'd wager for the same ballpark figure. Same as Dave's suggestion for USB support, which is definitely another nice-to-have they could easily have delivered within budget. I think what we've established really is that the only reason it doesn'thave these features is because in the HiFi separates arena there aren't the cut-throat do-or-die marketing-forces driving technology forward.

 

[manicm]

MajorFubar, which other 45w amplifier contains a built-in streamer for 300 quid (WHF's 'tested' price)? And whatever you may think this will probably sound better than NAD's 3020D which will stream from bluetooth but not from a NAS.

Lower your expectations at this level.

 

[MajorFubar]

MajorFubar, which other 45w amplifier contains a built-in streamer for 300 quid (WHF's 'tested' price)? And whatever you may think this will probably sound better than NAD's 3020D which will stream from bluetooth but not from a NAS.

Lower your expectations at this level.

I don't know, I haven't researched the subject if I'm being really honest, but to turn what you've said on its head and look at it another way, the fact that they chose not to include such desirable features completely examplifies what's wrong with the HiFi industry, imo. No cut-throat drive to push boundaries forward, where if you don't then someone else will. It's 18 years younger than my PM66KI and has nothing over it beyond a built-in DAC, which appears to have only been added as a me-too afterthought. Can you imagine using an 18 year old mobile phone.

 

[Cypher]

I think the PM6005 will do fine without all these features like airplay and bluetooth. Not everyone needs those things. I have a DAC already so I don't even need the PM6005 DAC, but it's a really nice bonus.

I also think the amp will sell well because of the soundquality. I think that's the most important thing.......

The upcoming Monitor Audio Airstream A100 amp doesn't have a USB input also. But it has airplay........maybe an amp for you to check out, or the NAD D3020

 

[MajorFubar]

I think the PM6005 will do fine without all these features like airplay and bluetooth. Not everyone needs those things.

It probably will do well. But just because not everyone needs those features doesn't mean they shouldn't be on it. There's obviously just no incentive to include them because there's not enough cut-throat competition. If the mobile phone industry had moved as fast as the HiFi separates industry we might just about by now be able to buy phones that send texts.