NAD/Marantz Combination - advice please

[Paulq]

Am looking at one of the following combo's for my new place:

Marantz
CD6002/PM6002 vs NAD C525BEE/C325BEE Amp and wondered if anyone had a
view as to the better set up? I listen to predominantly rock music and
like a full, weighty sound but not so much that it lacks detail. Am
swayed towards the NAD due to the front mp3 jack for my ipod but it's
not a deal breaker if the Marantz is significantly better. Speakers
are B&W 686's.

Appreciate it's very subjective and my main concern is the cd as
I reckon the amps are broadly similar - is there a better NAD amp to compare with the CD6002? Would really appreciate some
views though.

Cheers
Paul

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Paul I am slowly but surely hearing more hi fi kit and would suggest you ignore both of these combinations and instead look at NAD C352 amplifier which is definitely much better than the Marantz, more weight and power, more punch and as for the cd player, well I have a really good cd player Sony XB930 but have heard a few of the NAD cd players and although I haven't heard this one, the NAD C542 cd player is spoken of very highly.

You can pick up the NAD C352 for about 200.00 on ebay and the cd player for less than 150.00. I do like Marantz to but the NAD seperates are superior and in turn you make a sacrifice in terms of looks.

 

[Paulq]

Thanks for that. I know this sounds really stupid but one of the main reasons I mentioned the NAD amp above was the mp3 jack as I use my ipod most of the time. I am aware that I can get a 3mm to phono plug but with everything connected then I don't have enough jacks on the back of the amp to hook it up that way. That particular amp just seemed to tick all the boxes but I have not yet heard it.

Is there anything fundamentally inferior to the NAD set up I mentioned earlier? I am not gonna look at it of it's going to sound awful but am curious to know what I can get for a budget of around £450.00/£500 or less if possible. Which of the new NAD Amp/CD rigs are worth considering?

Thanks again for your help I do appreciate it.

Paul

 

[matthewpiano]

The NAD C325/525BEE combo will thrash the pants off the Marantz duo. In my opinion the C325BEE is considerably more talented than the Marantz PM6002 with a much more sorted sound across the frequency range, and much better drive. The C325BEE is a cracking amplifier.

 

[Anonymous]

Ah fair question Paul, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that NAD
combination, it's just a question of do you want to look new or second
hand, if the answer is the first one, then that is a great combination,
it's just the alternative is a step above. However I agree with the above poster, it's a great combination the NAD one you mentioned and it will indeed thrash the marantz duo.

Bottom line, you will be very happy with it

 

[Anonymous]

http://www.hifi4less.com/product.php/1199/nad-c525-bee-cd-player

http://www.superfi.co.uk/index.cfm/page/moreinfo.cfm/Product_ID/2834

410.00, so within your budget

 

[Paulq]

Well I tried them both and thought the Marantz combo was better in every area for me - just reinforced that it's all about personal preference really. The NAD combo was a very nice piece of equipment but, coupled with the B&W 685's, I just didn't 'enjoy' the sound as much as I do with the PM6002/CD6002 set up.

Been an expensive weekend as had a bit of an 'accident' with the CD6002

. Ah well.

Thanks to all who replied - am very happy.

Cheers

Paul