Denon or Marantz? Home theater beginner.


Im new to home theater.

Here is what im looking at getting for speakers and want to know what would be a good receiver to get. I am 90/10 Movies to music.

Speakers:
Paradigm Monitor 9's, CC-390, (2) DSP-3100s
or
B&W 683's, HTM61, ASW610XP

Ill have a HTPC (HDMI), XBox 360 (HDMI), and Comcast HD Box (HDMI) connected to the receiver and then 1 main HDMI to the TV. Do I need upscaling? Will the output be fine for what speakers i'm getting?

I wanted to know which of these 3 would be the better way to go?

Receivers:
Marantz SR7002/SR8002
or
Denon 2310CI/3310CI

Any help is greatful!
Thanks,
Chris
schwegs99
Unless Marantz has dchanged a few things in the past couple years, their video section did not upsample video resolutions over HDMI. I recall 480p being their standard when I was shopping. I wasn’t thrilled with their service and support dept. either.

I settled on Onkyo 805. I didn’t want a digital amp section, and I did want a good sounding unit for stereo listening opportunities. Some of their sales info however was nearly misleading if not in fact. Additional zones past the main one are all analog only. No digital connections are conveyed into the second or third zones.

It also does not convey info onto the screen if HDMI is used as the interface. With component, S Vid, and RCA (composite) it will. Of course one can go into the menu and that will appear very well indeed, regardless the interface in use.

Despite these subjective shortcomings, the 805 does a great job sonically, and with video. It does require adequate cooling though and some other receivers do too… so bare that in mind when shopping.

J River, among other online dealers sell new and closeout models all the time. Check the Onkyo usa website for authorized online dealers, or any other maker’s site for that info.

I wanted new at that time, with no aspirations of adding to or stepping up from it…. That idea lasted about 2 months. It is now only partially a processor as outboard amps are now connected to it. So do think about this a bit…. It seems new receiver line ups come out twice a year. Buying new is nice and all that… but if you are the sort that usually can’t leave well enough alone, perhaps buying a recent pre-owned & more upscale unit may be the ticket for you. You’ll get more for your $$$ that way of course and overcome the depreciation of new all in one fell swoop.

AS for speakers the more efficient and easier impedance curve they have the better. Much depends here on room size and listening levels though. I have a Sony 110wpc 10 yr old HT unit which drives speakers of 85 & 87db and both reputedly are 8 ohm units… in a 14 x 12 room and it can be made uncomfortable very easily.

Good luck.
Of those you mention, my favorite is Marantz, the 7200 has amplifiers that sound great and the receivers are also usually good. Denon and Onkyo is not bad, you try to compare their performance, features, watts to locate one suited to your needs more.
onkyo. sound quality is equal or better then denon/marantz plus onkyo service is much, much better.
I have had a Denon for 10 years and used it on a daily basis. Flawless, high quality build. I strongely recommend it for its quality
Thanks everyone.

More info for everyone:
My budget is around $2000 for speakers and then $500-$1K for receiver.

My room is 18ftx15ft with cathedral ceiling that's about 18-20ft high.

What Def Tech's are the ones to buy?

I really like the Denon 3310 for the price and options. If I go with the Paradigm's, Paradigm recommend to match it with the Denon 3310. Now the dealer with the B&W's told me to match it with an Intega or Onkyo.

I think im going to lean towards B&W, seems everyone is recommending them because of the smooth and warm sound they produce. The only thing holding me back is Paradigms price point being at better.

Thanks again to everyone.