Marantz 2270 + B&W DM2000: What subwoofer?

Funkymojovibes,

There is no model # for this "particular" set of Altecs. As I said, a friend made these for me. I was unable to find a vintage speaker that I liked so these "worked for me" because they are pure vintage on the outside and very clear sounding from the inside.

Hi Funky:

You are correct, the 8 ohms rating for both your Marantz and B&W would indicate that they are compatible, at least on paper.

I originally thought that your B&Ws were not rated at 8 ohms and because of the power anomaly with the Marantz, you could be running out of gas ... but that is not the case. My apologies for not doing the research and relying instead on memory before posting for the first time.

So, I was using two different Marantz receivers (2216B and 2240) for a number of years. I used them with a number of different monitors. The pairings I liked best were the following: Rega Ara, NHT SB2, Wharfedale Diamond 9.0, and Omega Super 3i. The pairings I liked least were the B&W 302 and the EPOS ELS3.

Like yourself, I was getting good sound from the Marantz, but I felt that there was more to be had. Even though I grew up with warm, organic sounding stereos (think Philco tube amplifiers, vintage Pioneer receivers, Dual turntables, and EPI and AR speakers), over the years I have become more accustomed to the sound of more accurate, slightly leaner sounding separates and CD players.

So what does it all mean?

Leave well enough alone. I think you can only take vintage Marantz receivers so far. They will only sound so accurate. Your system most likely sounds as good as it will. That's a good thing ... you can stop right here.

If I were to do anything, I would consider changing speakers. I was most excited about how my Marantz receivers sounded with the Omega single driver speakers. Single driver speakers can be unforgiving with badly recorded music though and can sound 'honky' with vocals. Omega has done a lot of work to correct this. I would look at their new line Hoyt-Bedfords .

Best of luck,

Rich

Have a Marantz 2230, but am thinking of getting a 2270.
Reason is want to play B&W 685 speakers and likely will need more power. Don't want to have to turn thing way up to get good sound.

Am using tower speakers from vintage Technics rack system now and rarely turn volume up half way. Speakers sound "OK" but, my sound desires outpace what speakers capability.

Want: Low volume, good stage with clarity from vinyl. Also, the 2270 has two preamp points for my Technics 1600MKII and 1650 TTs.

Anyone have any thoughts on using 685s? with a 2270?

Have used this speaker for years with a variety of amps and receivers and have had no issues with clarity, soundstage, or dynamic range with quality components and well recorded media. I would say they sound about as good as you are going to get from a 2-way speaker with 8" bass driver in a 32" unported box. Would I like more bass, absolutely, but I think I am getting the performance this speaker was designed to provide. Cheers.