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Musical Sound Quality of AV Surround receiver vs. pure Stereo

Running Linn LP12 turntable, Bluepoint No2 stylus, with Jasmine phono pre-amp, Marantz sr5008 with B&W 685s2 on LR fronts with 686 S2 LR surround,  Paradigm CINEMASUB Cinema Sub 300W Speaker.

3 questions; 1) While I canceled out the center channel (using Marantz Audyssey setup), I am playing 99% from my turntable and CD player (Yamaha w/ DAC built in). The depth and spacial separation of the music is uncanny, but difficult to phase given it is being played in a digital (Music setting) format from one of the settings on the Marantz receiver. When I switch to pure stereo, the volume has to be turned up and the depth of the soundstage just isn't there. Would upgrading to a more powerful and musical integrated amplifier help (i.e. Anthem  Anthem MRX  720?) help with its killer room correction or 2) Do I look for a 2.1 integrated amp or tube amp to compliment my B&W 685S2's and sell the 686's or 3) do I just bite the bullet, look at a traditional good integrated amp or tube amp for around $3K with $3K Audio note AN-K speakers. Traditional sound....

Thanks, I am new to this group and have read a number of discussion threads. Obviously, a lot of you are infinitely more knowledgeable than I am, so any and all replies would be greatly appreciated. PS No man cave, this system is in my living room, so the wife is a little particular about too much gear ! Thanks everyone.
phill55

Showing 3 responses by soix

soix
10,016 posts
 
@phill55 -- The Hegel has line-level outputs, which is all you'd need to connect your subwoofer.

The difference in amps, contrary to what some say, is quite minimal.

I'm just going to flat out disagree with @secretguy here.  If you at all care about 2-channel sound reproduction, you'll hear a big and meaningful difference between a $3500 highly-regarded, dedicated stereo integrated amp like the Hegel and a $900 mass market audio/video receiver with your speakers.  And if you do decide to upgrade speakers in the future, the H160 is good enough that it will let you get more out of them as well.  Oh, and no switching cables required to change between multichannel and stereo -- just push one button.  Nice. 
soix
10,016 posts
 
The sub looks to be self powered so no concern there.  The first question you need to answer is if you like the 685s enough to keep them.  If yes, then almost any decent integrated stereo amp should yield a significant improvement over your AVR.  The Outlaw should work fine and is a good amp for the money, but it's not up to the standards of the Hegel IMHO (or probably the Krell either, but I'm not familiar with that unit). 

If you're upgrading the speakers, wait until you figure out which ones before upgrading your amp so you make sure they work well together.  A lot of people like Audio Note speakers, but they're quite different from B&Ws and there are lots of other great options out there.  Hope this didn't just confuse things further. 
soix
10,016 posts
 
If 2-channel is important to you I think an integrated amp with a HT bypass is an optimal solution. Neither the preamp nor amp sections from your AVR are doing you any favors, so an integrated elegantly solves both issues in one box. I'd recommend a Hegel H160 as it has a HT bypass, is a big improvement for stereo over your Marantz and has the juice to power your B&Ws, and there are a few available now for around $1500, which is less than half of retail.

It sounds like there could be a settings issue possibly affecting your stereo performance. Regardless, the H160 will bring your 2-channel performance to an entirely different level while still allowing you to use the Marantz for sourround processing and amplifying the rear channels. BTW, with this setup the Marantz is completely out of the playback chain for stereo listening, and you can switch between stereo and surround with the push of one button -- in case you're not familiar with the HT bypass function. Anyway, hope this helps and best of luck.
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