2. home-theater
  3. 1418505372

your Thoughts on AV8801?

Hi all,

I am very excited as my wife said i could finally update my old Pre/Pro my Yamaha Rx-z7 Receiver i was using as a pre/pro with my parasound A52 and 2125 amps along with my Def Tech 7002, CLR 2500 and Infinity rears and rear center along with Def TEch Trinity Sub..Sounded great..and i liked some of the DSP modes but not all of them.. But i always felt i could increase the sound quality with a true peamp processor and get better sound on music especially while still getting the same or better sound with movies.. i have read alot of reviews on both the marantz av8801 and the new Yamha CX-a5000 pre/pro.. and i had always owned Yamaha in the past including some of their older flagship receievrs..(the Marantz is actually made in Japan, impressive for newer stuff nowadays! its a rarity) I strongly considered the cx-a5000 against the 8801.. i decided to buy the 8801 and i got a smokin deal on it brand new from auth dealer with full warranty for 2399.00... it will be here by UPS on tuesday..as i figured i would try something different.... i have no need for atmos at this time so those were the only two i was considering.. The marantz actually reminded me more of the old Yamaha flagship recivers i have bought in the past in regards to its build qulaity etc HDAM's.. it looks like the newer Yammie's are stripped down.. even the new pre-amp looks like it is somewhat stripped down inside the chassis... anyway.. looking forward to other Marantz 8801 owners on how much they like their Marantz 8801... I am sure the new Yammie cx-a5000 is great as well...hopefully i won't miss the DSP's very much as i feel the Marantz's more musical sound will obviate the need for it ... what a fun hobby we have comparing all of this stuff....
audiomike1
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,677 posts
 
" i have no need for atmos at this time so those were the only two i was considering.."

Same here and both are quite good. I have used both and kept the Marantz for two reasons: 1. I have no use for all the Yamaha's DSP modes and 2. Marantz' Audyssey XT32 was more effective and reliable than Yamaha's YPAO.

I could live with either.
kalbi23
58 posts
 
I was in your shoes as well. Lucky for me, I was able to do a side by side comparison for about a week with the cxa5000 and 8801. I felt the 8801 was more dynamic for movies and cxa5000 better in 2 channel. Two factors made me decide on the cxa5000 over the 8801, the yam ran a lot cooler and you can do HDMI switching without having the unit on. But, both are very good units, can't go wrong with either.
audiomike1 OP
21 posts
 
Interesting thoughts.. i do see the 8802 being released.. i will probably upgrade again in another 5 years or so.. i have had my Z7 since 2010... i am sure by then Atmos/Auro 3d will be a mature format and 4k blu will be closer to a reality.. maybe the 8804? LOL.. this is a crazy fun hobby but just too costly to upgrade every 2 years.... besides these things are so good as it is... how many more channels do we need , 20? lol... anyways.. glad to haer your thoughts.. i even got a tripod so i can measure the audeysee stuff.. on my Yamaha i never could get YPAO to work correctly so set it to manual and the Flat setting....

I understand there is an Audessey Flat setting as well that you can use along with the XT32 , which is supposed to be very precise .. this should be fun hooking everything up.. I have never owned an actual Pre/Pro with no amps in them.. this thing should theoretically be able to drive my Parasound's to full power.. not that i would do that, my neighbor's wouldn't be happy but i am sure i will still get more out of them than what i have now....
audiomike1 OP
21 posts
 
Does anyone have any good recommendation the best way to hook up my Oppo 105 to the Marantz? I was going to keep using the dedicated stereo unbalanced out to the CD input stereo analog on the 8801.. but in some of the other forums, some are saying to get a more "pure" sound and to really take advantage of the 105 i would need to hook the dedicated stereo out to the 7.1 FL/FR input on the Marantz? ANyone ever heard of this? I would imagin i would still hear an upgrade form my Yam Z7 CD input going into the Marantz 8801 CD input , regardless and still be using the Oppo's DACS.... What do you guys think?
avgoround
287 posts
 
Personally, id get some used anthem n forget about it, likely! i see ZERO need to spend high dollars for any pre/pro these days, when you can get many hd Dolby /DTS Master equipped pre or receivers as pres for pennies, used! And most all of em can't compete with bypassing the processor fer 2 channel purity, direct to a dedicated 2 ch pre for music, anyway! But that's just me.-plus these things drop in value faster than grass grows!! So id consider...cause you will not see a big av sound difference in brand new pres vs 5 year old used units, i say
unless you need 4k pass-through, theres simply a hundred options for high performance movie sound and video switching on the cheap! but dont let me rain on ur parade. i just dont see it, personally
More to discover