Micro HiFi

[admin_exported]

Hello all...

Merry Christmas to everyone! Well, my job has taken me to a new country on a long term asignment. It's driving me nuts that I am not able to listen to my beloved HiFi here. Enjoying music on an E71 via CX300 is not really my idea of HiFi.

I have been using an Onkyo CR515 backhome as my bedroom system. So naturally I was inclining towards picking up one. However the local dealer here mentined about getting me the Marantz CR502 and LS702 matching speakers.

http://www.cyberselect.co.uk/photos/marantz_MCR502_large.jpg

http://machinesthatgobing.com/audio/marantz-m-cr502/

This one definitely looks cute! Can anyone comment on how this one might sound compared to the much acclaimed Denon DM37(haven't heard) or the proven CR515? A side by side comparison seems impossible for me right now.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Anonymous]

The new Marantz M-CR 502 looks interesting, I like to hear more about it.

I'm looking at Onkyo CS525 & CS325 , Denon DM37DAB, and the Yamaha CRXM-170. Best offers I've seen in last week for these were CS525 £149 w/o speakers, CS325 £149 with std speakers, DM37 £168 w/o speakers, DM37 £234 with std speakers, DM37 £299 with MA BR1 speakers, M170 £119 w/o speakers.

I like the M170's build quality, but it don't do MP3. The DM37 is for me the best build quality and the smallest unit, without a big heat sync sticking out the back.

DM37 also gets great reviews in the press and on forums, but the DM37 with std speakers sounded the worse to me, by a long way - albeit in Currys, but this was against the CS525 with std speakers and CS325 with std speakers, and to be fair suck on a shelf in Currys in perhaps closer to how the majority of buyers would use them.

I hope it's the std denon speakers that were the problem, but quite how the CS325 sounded better wasn't something that made sense to me. I tried turning optimisation on and off, and playing with neutral or other tone controls. If the What HiFi award for the DM37 is for the system with std speakers then I disagree with them (based on a far less than ideal comparison in Currys) - if their award is for the unit only then I can see that fitting in with the users opinions.

I'm gonna go and have a proper demo, with some more suitable speakers and will see how I go. But the M170 with Q1010i's or the DM37 with BR1's are my two main shortlisted candidates, question being will the extra expense give me a sound I want to pay extra for.

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you 3dHeli. That was indeed helpful, especially since I haven't seen or heard the Denon yet. I'll try to get an audition of the systems you mentioned and let you know how it went.

 

[Anonymous]

Any idea if the Denon DM37 with 30 wpc @ 6ohms OR Marantz M-CR502 with 50wpc @ 6ohms be able to drive a pair of Jamo E 750 floorstanders with 89db sensitivity?

I heard these speakers won EISA loudspeaker award during 2004-05. I could pick these up sealed box for real low price. Any comments?

Thanks!