Seems to me that it's always the sum of the parts... a great set of converters in and of themselves won't make a piece sound great. It's the whole build - both the analog and digital stages, power supply, and even board layout that ultimately contribute to the sound. I think everyone's right about the number of both interior and exterior variables as well - it's really tedious to make sure you're doing accurate apples-to-apples listening comparisons, particularly if you're including any kind of DSP. For me it's been a matter of "trust your ears and take your time." At the end of the day, thank goodness for real audio dealers that will let you audition a piece in your home system so you have some kind of valid reference!
I bought the Marantz AV 7005 pre/pro a couple of months ago and have been pretty happy with it so far. It sounds good - very clean and quiet - and operates flawlessly. It's definitely no match for a comparably priced stereo preamp in terms of sound quality but given all of the I/O and audio/video signal processing built in, I think it's a fair value.
I did have to install a small exhaust fan in my rack, though, as it runs pretty warm. That's been the only concern so far, and successfully resolved. I can't speak to the Integra vs. the Marantz in terms of sound quality because I never had a chance to A/B them through the same system, but given the reliability issues with the Integra I think I made the right choice. Hope this helps.
I bought the Marantz AV 7005 pre/pro a couple of months ago and have been pretty happy with it so far. It sounds good - very clean and quiet - and operates flawlessly. It's definitely no match for a comparably priced stereo preamp in terms of sound quality but given all of the I/O and audio/video signal processing built in, I think it's a fair value.
I did have to install a small exhaust fan in my rack, though, as it runs pretty warm. That's been the only concern so far, and successfully resolved. I can't speak to the Integra vs. the Marantz in terms of sound quality because I never had a chance to A/B them through the same system, but given the reliability issues with the Integra I think I made the right choice. Hope this helps.