Any opinions on Technics sadx1050 versus Marantz 4200/5200?

[Amos]

Iwas intending to treat myself soon to a Marantz 4200 or 5200 (it gets good reviews here & elswhere).

However, Currys are selling the Technics sadx1050 for £150 (against a typical 'net price of £260-£300).

Does anyone here have any opinions on how they compare? Music reproduction is important - eventually the current hi-fi set-up is going, & the new amp would have to do everything, that is CD, radio, records (I ain't throwing them away) & TV.

TIA

[Justin]

Originally posted by Amos
Iwas intending to treat myself soon to a Marantz 4200 or 5200 (it gets good reviews here & elswhere).

However, Currys are selling the Technics sadx1050 for £150 (against a typical 'net price of £260-£300).

Does anyone here have any opinions on how they compare? Music reproduction is important - eventually the current hi-fi set-up is going, & the new amp would have to do everything, that is CD, radio, records (I ain't throwing them away) & TV.

TIA

If you are wanting an amp to be half decent for music, then the Technics isn`t it:) To be quite honest, the Technics is pretty bad at everything, and even at the reduced price to clear an end of line model, you can do better for the same money - have a look at richer sounds and pick up a Kenwood or Yamaha RXV396 for example at same price.

I only remember seeing one review that didn`t slate it, and to be fair, I`ve heard the above and for the original retail price of £350 it never had a hope! Comparing it against, say, a £150 basic sony or Pioneer receiver, then its going to eb about the same. But comparing it against the Marantz or Denon 1602 is going show the technics failings:) I would strongly recommend saving the extra £100 or so and consider the Marantz or Denon. Even a Yamaha RXV420RDS is going to sound better then the technics for music!

Hoep that helps, but I`d get a demo before you even part with your cash for the technics!

[Amos]

Well, that's unambiguous! Many thanks for the reply Justin. I will act on your advice.

[At The Gates]

Hi Justin,

I've been looking at some of the packs on your site and wondered if the Yamaha HTIB40 would be any good for a newbie :) It would be going in a smallish room, coupled with a Pioneer DV444K. Like the original poster i would be looking to use the amp for everything, as my Cambridge Audio amp has just gone.

As for connecting, am i right in assuming i just hook the optical out from the DVD player to the optical in on the amp and i will get DD/DTS right away?

Thanks :)

[Justin]

Originally posted by At The Gates
Hi Justin,

I've been looking at some of the packs on your site and wondered if the Yamaha HTIB40 would be any good for a newbie :) It would be going in a smallish room, coupled with a Pioneer DV444K. Like the original poster i would be looking to use the amp for everything, as my Cambridge Audio amp has just gone.

As for connecting, am i right in assuming i just hook the optical out from the DVD player to the optical in on the amp and i will get DD/DTS right away?

Thanks :)

Yeap, HTib40 is a good pack to start with, had some good reviews and is based on some half decent components for the money. You are right in assuming the connections - just connect your DVD player via an optical, and you`ve 5.1 surround:)

Theres other options for similar money, but I think that if you get a demo of the above you`d be happy with its performance. And unlike some other packs like the Sony or yamaha VS10, you can alwayd change the speakers or amp later on...

Hope that helps

[brock_landers]

Originally posted by Justin


If you are wanting an amp to be half decent for music, then the Technics isn`t it:) To be quite honest, the Technics is pretty bad at everything, and even at the reduced price to clear an end of line model, you can do better for the same money - have a look at richer sounds and pick up a Kenwood or Yamaha RXV396 for example at same price.

I only remember seeing one review that didn`t slate it, and to be fair, I`ve heard the above and for the original retail price of £350 it never had a hope! Comparing it against, say, a £150 basic sony or Pioneer receiver, then its going to eb about the same. But comparing it against the Marantz or Denon 1602 is going show the technics failings:) I would strongly recommend saving the extra £100 or so and consider the Marantz or Denon. Even a Yamaha RXV420RDS is going to sound better then the technics for music!

Hoep that helps, but I`d get a demo before you even part with your cash for the technics!

Must point out and I'm sure Justin knew, just forgot that the yam rxv396 is dolby digital only, no dts and is only 65 watts per channel.

Cheers, Brock.

[MikeK]

While it may not be as good as a Denon AVR1602 or a Marantz SR4200, that doesn't necessarily mean it's crap, especially for the price.

For 150 quid, it looks like a pretty good deal.

Neither the Denon nor the Marantz model has a phono input, so you'd have to buy a seperate phono preamp for them as well.

It all depends on your expectation level really.
Go and have a listen to the Technics - only then can you really say whether it's good enough.

One thing that puzzles me somewhat is that some people say that 2 channel music performance is a high priority for them, and then they get a budget AV receiver. Even though the Marantz SR4200 for instance may be as good as it gets for 2channel performance for less than 300 quid or so, that still doesn't mean it's all that good. Several 150 quid stereo amps will run rings round it in 2 channel mode.
So, what exactly do people mean when they say music performance is a high priority?
Consider that for the price of the SR4200 (now around 300 quid I think), you could have the Technics AND a stereo amp that will sound better than the SR4200 in stereo mode.
Sure, more messing around, but what's the priority here?
Any budget AV receiver will mean compromising on 2 channel performance, Marantz and Denon included.
That's not to say they are all unlistenable, but you do have to decide what your real priorities are.