we are a dealer we have had the anthem avm90 in our reference theater as well as a top of the line Marantz and audio controls maestro series
the NAD m17 is an excellent processor with its main advantages are completely upgradable board based design and the superb blue sound streaming system sonically the avm90 and NADm17 are both equally good however
the Audio Control Mastro x9 was in a clearly superior sounding processor over the avm 90
the audio control uses all ESS9038pro DACS one per channel these same DAC chips are used in many 15-20k audiophile stereo DACS.
so unless you are going to spend 20k on a storm or Trinov the Audio control is the best processor out there.
Dave and Troy
Audio intellect NJ
former anthem dealer.
Nad Audio Control and Trinov dealers
|
@audiotroy
I sort of sense the same thing these models were comparable and the nad probably scores more highly because it’s easier to use.
Marantz processors are horrifying complicated.
If you have more than seven channels, a maestro or trinov would make sense probably because it can handle all that but with only 5 to 7 channels you don’t need all this special processor capacity, you just need good sound quality and then you have the huge issue of the source and we know the source issues are that it’s all compressed and sounds crappy. Systems like kaleidoscope can be nice for movies but the problem is most of what people are watching are from streaming sources and that’s ultimately the problem here I Believe.
They need to solve the compression source problem and until they do everybody’s limited in the home theater area.
|
we have a 9.2 setup in our reference theater and the Maestro sounds amazing
|
@audiotroy
Do you stream or are you playing Blu-ray? What is your source? thanks
|
Just a thought. I have had 4 Anthems - the latest is an AVM-70. There is no doubt that they sound the best in my opinion, but they fail, and don't really function smoothly. I purchased an Onkyo for my girlfriend and I was amazed at how seamless it worked. Had Dirac built in. Hooks up with ARC no problem. Bluetooth, no problem. Wireless, no problem. Doesn't sound as good as the Anthems - but I would rather have something that works and doesn't stop working. I only bought the Anthems because my dealer was so fantastic - but they need some new software writers. I might look at the Integra next time. Never looked at NAD because they had lots of manufacturing issues in the past (cold solder joints), but maybe that has been resolved.
|
|
I have owned the Audiocontrol Maestro X7, Marantz AV8802A, McIntosh MX122, Outlaw 976 in my main HT/Audio system. I do 5.1. Of all of those I I give the edge to the Maestro X7. However, I came across a great deal on the Krell Foundation UHD 4K and decided to pull the trigger. I bought it used. I have found the Krell to be a cut above all of the others for movies and music. Very simple setup (that's the one knock I had on the Maestro was it was more complicated than all the others), and easy to integrate. The Krell will not be going anywhere. I have finally found my HT Processor that truly shines for both music and movies.
You should be able to find the Krell for around 3.5K on the used market. I would recommend this above all the others I have mentioned. The only knock on the Krell was it doesn't have a true "5 channel/All channel stereo" mode for music listening. It offers a "Party" DSP mode which comes close but is not a true All/5 channel stereo...
Good luck!
|
Skip the Anthem, for two reasons. It doesn’t handle 2 channel surround correctly and the room correction isn’t all that. It doesn’t do a great job of integrating the loudspeakers and doesn’t allow you to manually adjust either. The latter is only useful for EQ geeks like me who know exactly what they want.
Consider the Marantz units with advanced Audyssey long before Anthem. Haven’t heard NAD.
Also, maybe it's just me but previous gen Anthem processors sounded better, plain and simple.
|
Marantz processors are incredibly complicated and the independent channel capability is very limited. The interface is also quite disappointing. I have owned a Marantz processor and it's sitting on a shelf collecting dust. I think the sound was pretty good but it was a pain to work with and required a lot of Power cycling because the arc connectivity got corrupted all the time. My dealer recommended I use the optical connection, he does this a lot.
|
Never had a ARC issue with either of my Marantz receivers. Also do not think they are difficult to setup, but it is time consuming. But unless you change something you only set them up once.
What I have found with EARC/ARC is that is very cable dependent. Never had any issue with BlueJeans HDMI cables. But have had sync issues with other cables.
My new Marantz receiver has a web browser interface. I use that for doing any and all adjustments. It's nice being able to adjust things from my phone.
The sound is always good, but don't have a whole lot to compare it to. If a dog barks in a movie, both my dogs go nuts, same for door bells. They think it's real sounding enough
|
We stream and the sound is excellent we use abn nvidea streamer
One other point audio controls customer service is superb
|
I've had the Anthem cinema 60 and traded it in fir the Anthem mrx740. For me the Anthem's sound, especially for 2 channel is hands down better than Marantz for my set up. Marantz Heos app was a nightmare, and ARC gives u much more control than Marantz's room correction. ARC does a great job especially if you have an multi use room that you can't make look like a recording studio. And Anthem is made in Canada.
|
@audiotroy
abn nvidea streamer? Can you please post the link having trouble finding it. I use an Apple TV 4K which is fine but wonder if there's anything better out there.
heos from Marantz I agree is absolutely horrifying and I guess they got to do something
|
Never owned Marantz but owned a couple Denon, a couple Onkyo and a couple Yamaha over the years. Moved to an Anthem AVM 60 years ago and was blown away at the improvement in audio quality and channel separation. Have not had any issues with it. Now also own an MRX 1140 and no issues there either. No issues with ARC Genesis. Fought with Dirac on a different unit for weeks. Talk about buggy and difficult. Have heard a couple NAD 2-channel rigs and was impressed. Haven’t heard any of their HT offerings.
|
nad processor I’ve had experience with has an interface that’s very easy to follow and not glitchy. Although still most interfaces have their quirky qualities because the people developing them have no insight into what mere humans experience when faced with a learning curve.
As for the interface related to DSP, it’s terribly horrifying it should be a lot easier it’s not like it’s doing terribly complicated things. You can only save 3 DSP settings on a nad processor and that’s really disappointing.
Again the real problem is just the compressed streaming Quality that’s offered and that’s inherent in the environment and that’s going to limit progress creating better processors which probably could sound a lot better where not for the terrible compression movie soundtracks that exist. you would think with 5G and better bandwidth on pipes compression would be less of an issue but it remains the single worst issue facing quality sound for people who stream.
|
I have had several Yamaha going back to 2070's with dolby surround back in the 1990's, Marantz (agree with you), Denon, reasonable but still with some of the issues of Marantz, Onkyo then another Yamaha separates. Then Datasat, good but the Dirac could be painful and amps were noisey. That was 1992 to 2015, 7/8 processors over 23 years.
In 2016 I got a Trinnov Altitude 32, even then the set-up (whilst you can make it as complex as you like) was far easier to get a fantastic sound and tweaks via ipad are more straight forward than most would have you believe. Its 2024 and I still have the same 32 in my main room and its just being set up for wave forming. An 8 year old processor that's a 10 year old model. It was not cheap, but I've spent less per year (especially adjusting for inflation) than I did with the others where I was always trying to 'tweak' more out of them. Never even think of that whilst watching the Trinnov, just notice the difference when the next free software update comes in.
I also have a 16 in the front room (where I use wireless stage XLRs to connect to the rears). I do run 9 speakers in the lounge by the flat kefs I use for surround and atmos sit behind curtains front and rear for very AAF situation. If you are considering going to the $10k end. Think about a S/H ex dem Trinnov and I'd anticipate you will still be happy with it in 2032+.
|
|
Ok I had to login so I could post on here. Audiotroy the Anthem AVM90 has 9038 dacs on all channels.
Audio Science review also rated the AVM90 about the same as the Marantz. Andrew Robinson and Gene had arguments over which one of these sounded better.They are both rated as high as possible by all the people that review prepros. The Anthem AVM90 has been said to sound better than the Marantz by a lot of people that have owned both pieces.
Trinnov is better but sound wise not by much. This is from people that owned both.
I own it and have heard lots of gear. And as a pre it is as good as most strictly pre's on the market. Those that have heard the STR pre and amp say that the AVM90 might sound better with the STR Amp. I have heard the NAD and it's not in the same league. Older technology.
Sorry to chime in but I figured you needed the entire story. I haven't had one issue with my AVM90 either. And the virtual inputs are awesome to setup.
|
@audiotroy
Above for your info. It's interesting good stuff
|
