Quote:
Originally Posted by
alour 
Is anyone here disappointed with their new SR7005? I am leaning towards purchasing one over the Pioneer SC-37 but am cautious about the sound quality. I heard the SC-37 and was very impressed with sound quality and power, are SR7005 owners happy with the power output?
I'm in a unique position as I actually owned the SC-37 about a week before returning it (as some ports were defective on it and I feared it was gray market) and getting the SR7005.
I haven't looked back since.
There's no doubt that the SC-37 is a beast and a great receiver. It's quite a bit heavier than this Marantz and bigger as well (with slightly more room around the posts), but I don't necessarily consider that a pro (maybe because mine came broken and the Marantz is perfect). It does have a bit more wattage per channel and a few extra bells and whistles (for example, stadium mode and jazz club mode and classical mode, but then these are things I'd never really *use* and probably only play with). The SC-37 had Sirius internet radio streaming built in if you have an account, which is probably the only thing I miss a little, but that was pretty easily fixed with a mobile device and headphone to stereo jack (or bluetooth adapter, though I'm not impressed with bluetooth quality so far).
The Marantz has its pro's too. Being a tad smaller/lighter makes it easier to work with, it actually looks a bit cooler IMO, it's well thought out with stereo audio + composite in on the front under the panel, which I use and which the SC-37 lacked. Its GUI overlays over the screen whereas with the SC-37, it has to switch to a separate GUI menu (unless I never figured out overlay, but I don't think so). Audio quality is superb and quite a bit warmer than the SC-37's in my opinion, which I find a plus as to my ears it sounds more natural. It has two subwoofer outputs as opposed to the SC-37's one, which I happen to use in my setup as I have subs built into my mains. Possibly not an issue, but I was having power problems for a while too (solved with a new power conditioner/backup model), but I can tell you the Marantz is also more effecient on power than the SC-37 as the 37 kept tripping up my APC and the Marantz did not. (Unfortunately when I got my plasma, the APC still needed replaced.)
Audyssey on the Marantz seemed to work better for me than MCACC did, but a large part of that is probably the subwoofer out on the SC-37 was broken, and MCACC had a hard time understanding my built-in front crossovers through speaker wire only - it did much better once I turned the knobs all the way up on the subs right before I had to send it back, but I'd still give the nod to Audyssey as it nailed it the first time (I have calibrated again twice since, but only after modifying speaker placement, etc.).
Powerwise, *I* can't personally notice any appreciable difference. They both go up past reference to clear volume levels I won't be listening at (too loud for any sustained listening for my ears).
If I can answer any other questions, please let me know.
Having owned both, I can say you probably can't go *wrong* with either. Had my SC-37 been good, I probably would have kept it and been perfectly happy. That said, I think having to send that one back, I ended up with a receiver that may actually in the end be an even better fit for me, as I love the warm sound and some of the features work out better in my setup. I chose the SR7005 after speaking to Definitive Technology, the manufacturers of my Mythos ST speakers, and they recommended Marantz paired with their speakers; I couldn't get an advance replacement on the Pioneer, and couldn't find a dealer I was comfortable with authorized, whereas I could with the Marantz, so it becamse the easy choice.
If I can answer anything else, I'd be more than happy to.
