Marantz PM7004 + B&W CM1: other speaker suggestions?

[admin_exported]

My dealer suggests Bowers & Wilkins CM1s for my Marantz PM7004.

The CM1's have been launched several years ago. I have the feeling that they may be a bit outdated and maybe there are better speakers around for the same price?

Do you have other suggestions (for the same price) or are the CM1s indeed an good choice?

Suggestions welcome!

 

[Anonymous]

dynaudio dm 2/7 or excite x12 (a bit more expensive).

 

[Anonymous]

Owned the cm1's 3 weeks now, running in sweetly at the moment. Amazing bass for their size. Don't sound or look outdated . 🙂

 

[HDNumpty]

I've had some CM1's for almost 6 years now and I'm very pleased with them. I used them with a Marantz PM7200 (? the big gold one :rofl: ) and now my Cambridge 840a and they sound great. They will probably withstand an upgrade to a more expensive amp when the time comes.

The only thing I would question is why is the dealer recommending these? A cynic might say "because the mark-up is higher than xxxx speaker"?

 

[Ben123]

I demo'd B&W 685's, MA RX2, Neat Motive 3, CM8's and of course the CM1's for about 3 hours

I walked away with the CM1's and love them! I demoed them all with the marantz ki-pearl lite amp and sounded pretty good if a little bright. On the end of my old but capable marantz pm7000 it sounded very good and very balanced yet powerful 🙂

There is nothing outdated about the cm1's in my opinion

 

[Anonymous]

@Ben123 - Can I ask what it was that made you choose the CM1s over the B&W 685's ?

 

[ID.]

Interestingly (or not...) I chose the 685s over the CM1 because of the bass and sense of scale, but I was very close to getting the CM1s. Treble detail and midrange clearly superior to the 685s.

As for scale, turned out the 685's bass didn't really work out too well in my living room and I ended up upgrading to PMC DB1i (also for the greater flexibility the smaller size affords), so maybe I would've been better off with the CM1s in the 1st place. Gorgeous little speakers.

 

[Anonymous]

I demo'd B&W 685's, MA RX2, Neat Motive 3, CM8's and of course the CM1's for about 3 hours

I walked away with the CM1's and love them! I demoed them all with the marantz ki-pearl lite amp and sounded pretty good if a little bright. On the end of my old but capable marantz pm7000 it sounded very good and very balanced yet powerful 🙂

There is nothing outdated about the cm1's in my opinion

Is the Marantz KI pearl lite bright? All Ive heard before is that its very warm but maybe this marantz is brighter? hmm..

 

[Ben123]

Hi Kirk,

Well im aware how highly regarded the 685s are that many people on this forum own them. However, i really werent impressed with the 685's at all. Its worth noting the 685's were the cheapest speaker i demo'd but still i was expecting so much more.

In fact i really wanted to like the 685 to the point i almost bought them blind (very glad i didnt). Its also worth noting i only care about music performace and not AV. Maybe the 685 would be a a better option for home cinema i honestly cant say.

When you pick up the CM1's the first thing you notice how heavy they are. One thing i have recently learnt is that cabinet construction makes a difference. The 685's are quite light by comparison.

As for sound it was a no brainer really. I could go on forever descibing what i heard but keeping it simple the CM1's were better at everything. I played banging electo house music, and then switched to acousic material (mainly nora jones) and both sounded simply awesome. Vocals are crystal clear and bass is deep and well defined. At the end of the demo i asked for the 685's to be put back on but still didnt like them so went to the cash till and placed my order for cm1's.

I have had the CM1's for 3 months and everytime a visitor comes round i get to listen to my system and watch their jaws hit the floor. Everyone thinks im running a sub!

Please do go and have a listen to both though if you can before parting with cash. 🙂

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To Surferpat,

Yeah i would say the pearl lite sounded bright. There were 2 salesmen in the shop and both agreed it was a bright amp if that helps. Marantz have a reputation for a warm sound which was why i bought the pm7000 many years ago. However, in recent years they may have gone away from this sound, im not sure. Hopefully others who own this amp may be able to comment.

The next amp i want to listen to is the cheaper pm7004 as i really want the Home theater bypass function, but i havent found an amp that i like the sound of over my pm7000 yet.