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Anthem AVM/20 upgrade to Integra or Marantz??

Greetings all,

I've enjoyed and stretched out the life of my Anthem AVM/20 paired with a Lexicon CX-7. My sources are Oppo, AppleTV, Roku, vinyl, and cable if you are interested. These are all being driven through Revel Performa M22 monitors, C32 center and B15 sub and Revel in-ceiling for surrounds. The speakers are in a 7.1 setup in a formal living room, not dedicated HT.

I need HDMI compatibility in my Pre-pro at this point but I don't want to lose or compromise the sonic quality I've had with the Anthem. Given that another, newer pre-pro from Anthem that isn't north of 5k isn't in the near future I'm looking to either Integra or Marantz as sonically they seem to be given top billing.

So here is my issue: I *love* 2-channel and I don't want any sonic compromise at all in soundtage bredth and depth, tonal accuracy, and sheer emotional involvement in the music. In fact, I want *better* performance than my AVM/20 currently offers.

So,will the Marantz AV7005 or Integra 80.3 do the trick? I've read Kal and Michael Fremmer's reviews of the AV7005 and they are excellent. Michael even bought the review sample and I think Kal has the integra 70.2. However the Integra offers the newer Audyssey room correction. The Anthem is just such a well put together piece that I am afraid that my upgrade will be a sonic downgrade. Are my fears justified or not?

Looking for some sage advice and guidance! Many thanks to all in advance.
internetmin
internetmin OP
258 posts
 
Perhaps the better question would be if I want to upgrade my Anthem AVM/20 in an under 3k processor, what would be the best fit for not only multichannel but also fantastic 2-channel? :-) I'm not married to either Marantz or Integra, but those are the two that keep coming up. There is an Anthem AVM40 trade-in but the lack of ability to decode the HD codecs natively and no room corrections ruled that out in my mind.
sjc1204
4 posts
 
I'm struggling with a nearly identical choice. Integra seems to have a lot of status which might come from availability limited to dealers. I have read some negative anecdotes around warranty based repairs.

I keep hearing about the natural sound offered by Marantz and the look of the Marantz is so much more elegant.
gmocnik
4 posts
 
while the integra stuff gets good reviews, my experience has been less than satisfying....bought the 80.1, after afew months noticed it would not pass a 1080p signal...weeks of back and forth with integra..they took the unit back and sent me an 80.2 (for a small upgrade price)....after nine months, the front panel locks up on the 80.3...local dealer says "its a known problem"...after weekes of back and forth...integra says send it back and we will upgrade to the 80.3 for $350...ok.....it has been three weeks since i sent the unit back ups over night...

last night...dealer calls and says 80.3 back ordered until late february....i am done with integra....

is an anthem dv2 the next step up in peformance and quality???

on a seperate customer service note...i also have the revel speakers you mention...they were in the room when i bought the house two years ago (so the speakers are at least 8 years old)...a woofer went out (my diagnosis) on the ceneter channel.....called revel tech support....AT NO CHARGE they sent a full set of drivers and recommended a shop if i did not want to do the repair...thats service...
internetmin OP
258 posts
 
Thanks to both for your input. Everything I'm reading ironically is pushing me to the Marantz even though its a slightly older unit and doesn't' have the latest Audyssey (though MultiEQ Pro had advantages over the XT32 version).

I was reading on one review of a user of Krell and Anthem AVM20 who upgraded to the Marantz and loved it. So, I know you'll always find those types; but given the age of the Anthem AVM20, the advancements in D/A converters, etc. if a $1,500 preamp today truly trounces a $3,000 preamp from 10 years ago. My gut is telling me "yes" more and more.

Additionally, the integration of AirPlay, which is now a free upgrade is also a nice to have feature as I do tend to like the Apple ecosystem and also love to have the flexibility of DLNA as I do have a prototype server setup for sending FLAC files over the network.

I have also thought about the Anthem 50v but at 5k am I getting that much more for audio quality?? It appears that there is now only one major difference (at least on specs) between the D2 and the AVM50v if I recall correctly and it was something to do with the analog input or output. Listen, I love my Anthem, but I just can't afford 5k for a preamp at this point.

Finally, let me confirm what you said about Revel and Harman support. They rival Apple with their rabid (in a good sense) focus on customer service. Questions about my Revels and an issue with DC Offset with my Lexicon were handled in ways I just cannot begin to explain. Just the highest, highest praise for Jason and the team over at Harman tech support. You are not just buying a stellar product, you are getting incredible, personal support after that for as long as you have the product. I do have to say that Anthem tech support has been A+++ as well.

So, if I'm to summarize here, from an audio quality perspective, I basically should here no real difference between the Marantz and the Integra in terms of audio quality and processing in both two channel and multichannel.

The Marantz at that price point is looking better and better all the time. I do truly appreciate and welcome any other thoughts and comments on this! It's our hobby and we love it, breathe it, and take any opportunity we can to talk about it :-)
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