Marantz AV: Marantz NR1501 vs sr5004 etc...

My buddy just purchaed 1501 2 weeks ago so I can give an opinion.

His 1501 is used to drive B&W 6 series towers and there was more than enough juice and overall sound was pleasant. Having said that, the metal dome tweeters of B&W gave me a headache after a while & music did lack some "air" compared to my system. But this reason could have been easily his source (PS3 & low quality mp3's)

If space isn't a restriction, I personally would go for 5004 (i'm eyeing out the 6003/6004) strictly because you get more wattage.

Also, he said his 1501 sound much better than his 2 channel NAD 315...hope this give you a better idea

Thanks Bonger. I do have the 5004 in one of my rooms (or is it the 5003? I bought it one or two years ago). Very pleased with it as a home theatre receiver that can play music nicely in a pinch. the 1501 seems a sharp departure for Marantz. Do you happen to recall whether it was clearly a class D amp or regular A/B?
Art

If you purchased 2 years ago, you have 5003 as 5004 just got released.

I dunno if amp is class D or a/b...just check Marantz's website I guess.

Again, I liked the brief time I spent with the 1501...but I would not change your receiver to 1501 just to save space. Class D or a/b...Marantz HT's are very musical.

I owned SR5600 predecessor to 5003/5004 and was surprised at how close 2 channel approached the quality of my tube amp.