Marantz AV7706 11.2Ch 8K Ultra HD AV Surround Pre-Amplifier with HEOS®

@nevada_matt Fair enough! It's definitely not cheap, but figured it's at least a quality alternative to throw into the mix.

Of the 3 receivers Onkyo is on sale at 20% off on Amazon (which also has a 30 day return policy).

The Onkyo comes with Dirac, with the Marantz you have to pay for either the dirac upgrade or the audyssey upgrade so you save even more money with the Onkyo.

The Sony is a great piece but costs around $1000 more than the Onkyo.

Finally the Onkyo has homefield advantage with the Klipsch integration which is a big plus to have the room correction tuned to your speakers.

Joint video about Onkyo from klipsch:

https://www.youtube.com/live/FtBeI3e6NyY?feature=share

Yeah, ARCAM might be something I would look at if I needed an audio preamp.. but it is twice the price of the denon and marantz or onkyo..  I don’t like movies THAT much…

  ;-p

Another one to throw into the mix is the Arcam AV40/41. I've had mine for two years and have nothing but good things to say about it. It beat out Marantz and Denon no pure sound quality (HT and music) when I was in the market and auditioned.

I've used it for HT purely and have a separate 2-channel system.

Denon AVR-X4800H?

The Sony is interesting with the 5 year warranty and support for wireless rear speakers.  But the, 2,  subs are not individually controllable as on denon, onkyo, marantz, though the onkyo has only 2 sub outs.. and all of these have but a 3 year warranty.  But will I ever use 4 subs.. shrug, for HT I only have 1 now. Though it does get a bit boomy.. though less so since I started with room treatment panels.

But the onkyo does have the klipsch integration for, most, of the speakers I have on the HT system…

bleh.. choices.. sometimes too many..  I need to create a spreadsheet to keep em all straight..oh well, at least I have time since the current onkyo still works.

Thanks kota.

Those were not even on my radar..

I’ll check them out.

+1 @kota1 

OK, the 7706 is a processor, not a receiver.

BTW, I have a Carver AV 505 powering my height channels that aren’t active, great amp! Same pedigree as the A series you have using trickle down tech from the Lighstar.

For a receiver I recommend the Marantz AV50 (with the Audyssey or Dirac upgrade), the Onkyo RZ50 with Dirac or the Sony 5000ES.

You can’t go wrong with any of them, I think the online dealer Audio Advice carries all 3 lines and you can call for details. Onkyo and Klipsch have the same corporate owner so that might be a plus.

Single unit solely for HT.

I have my separates for music.

Carver 4000t, sublime audio active crossover, Carver A760x (lows), Carver RAM285 (on order) mids/highs, Tekton Double Impact SE (bi amp, single berylium tweeter), Carver Silver Seven 900 to Magnepan 1.7i (maggies on order, eta, late May), 2x tekton 2-10 subs.  
 

For HT I currently have 2014 Onkyo, klipsch theater speakers with with 2 self powered surrounds (not klipsch) on a klark technics wireless connection..

So yeah, only need a newer HT receiver solely for upgrading codecs and video out (8k, with upsampling for what can be).

Thank you.

Are you looking for a receiver or separates?

To clarify:

I have an entirely separate system for 2 channel stereo/music.

I am just looking for an HT receiver with all the current theater codec and video standards that will last me another 8-10 years as my onkyo has to this point.

My initial pass with regard to features/specs and price led me to the Marantz.

But, I don’t know what I don’t know, which is the point of asking here.

Answers and suggestion from the combined wisdom of users of this forum regarding an HT unit is my goal..

i appreciate the replies.

Don’t have the 7706, but do have the 7704. The MultEQ app is phenomenal. I have multiple settings/preferences that can be saved and uploaded for different sources and/or material (streaming, Ultra HD Blu-Ray, sports, etc.). Settings include crossover, dynamic EQ, speaker levels, high frequency roll off, midrange compensation, frequency range cutoff for room correction. I would assume this is offered by Denon since they own Marantz and also utilize Audyssey if I remember correctly.

In terms of sound, great separation of instruments and effects. Aesthetically, I also think it’s one of the better looking HT preamps on the market as well. 2-Channel is my love, but in reality I use my living room 5.2 more than 80% of the time with the spouse - so to me, worth the money given the amount of use. 

I own the Marantz 7702 and would recommend the 7706 for both HT and 2 channel music. I have compared it to four different dedicated two channel preamps thinking I could improve two channel performance. The Marantz was my preferred two channel preamp as well. I use the XLR connections. If you want to get the best performance get the paid upgrade to Audyssey ($199) and the calibrated mic. Night and day difference and I prefer it over ARC room correction. You can see my 9.2.8 HT in my profile. I have a setup for both atmos and auro-3d.

I also have an Onkyo receiver in the man cave, I prefer separates for the best SQ.