A good affordable performer (Marantz PM 4001S)

Member Name: pcspinheiro

Product:	Marantz PM 4001S
Date:	29/07/09 (17 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: good sound, good looks

Disadvantages: at this price, none really

I've used this amplifier for about one year. Bought it half-price from a sale of demo products and it was my first serious atempt at hifi, after having played around with DIY stuff with no luck. It's a very good all round performer with features that are well above it's price range. Had them hooked up to a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers, which at 86 dB are not the easyest to drive, but the listening room was also not so large, about 16 m2. However, these babies together could sing and the 35 Watt output never seemed shy! The lows were controlled and well integrated and the highs never got harsh. The remote is good looking with its brushed aluminum front and easy to read layout, plus it allows you to control other marantz equipment, like I did with the CD player. Older stuff can also be controlled using the Marantz D-Bus (basically a RCA cable that connects to the back of the devices and allow the amplifier to control them. The amplifier also features a quite useful headphone jack in the front and in the back a nice set of connections, including a moving magnet phono stage if you still have a vinyl spiner laying around. It also includes recorder in/out connections. the build quality is solid although one feels that the inside gear would have fitted in a much smaller enclosure... In the front you can find two large knobs, for volume and input selector and smaller balance/treble/bass which are, in my opinion, are better left alone by bypassing them using the direct source button. You can also hook up two sets of speakers for multiroom listening and can select which pair is active in the front panel. A very good amp indeed, if you can still get your hand on one!

Summary: you can find some budget NAD and Denon that also sing well but the price on this one was unbeatable.

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