HELP - Stereo Setup - Marantz, Quad, ????

Congrats for your setup.
One query: Is there a separate o/p from DVDp for the sub?

No not from the dvdp but the sub will be conected to the pre-out of the amp.

Didn't spent on cdp since i dunno hve cds rt now. i mainly use pc collection for music. Looking forward to add a dac soon.
 
After spending a couple of weeks with the setup, here's the review -

The whole setup is placed in my living area (20' X 20' x 15') + open dining and corridor attached and marble flooring. So not acoustically perfect. Listening distance is 8 - 12ft.

The Marantz Amp is an amazing piece with decent connectivity. In my case connected the Pioneer DVDp to DVD/Aux in, TV output to CD in and AUX cable to connect the laptop and iPhone 3G to the Tuner in of the Amp. The pre-out of the amp is connected to Left Line in of the Polk Subwoofer. The Quad 11L2s are connected to the A-Speaker system (didn't bi-wired yet)

The sound of Quads is killer. It was love at first sight, oops!, audition at Denny's den (Bass n Treble, Delhi) Imaging, the enveloping music that flows, clarity and perfect bass - all perfect. There is truly no need of the sub or other channels. I was too doubtful if these two small pieces would do justice with the huge and open living area but these little shining pieces are perfect. One night i accidently landed on aa TV channel playing Jodha Akbar and the war scene was about to start and was too thrilled to experience the almost same sound effects as i auditioned AAD 5.1 setup at Denny. These speakers are great for movies too. Maybe because of the wide imaging they produce. I auditioned Wharfdale 9.1 then 10.2 and then Quads and the sound stage and clarity in mids and highs keeps on increasing but the music from the Quads just surrounds you so well that u don't hear the music but feels it and experience it live.

Now comes the Subwoofer part. As i already mentioned i bought the sub just for the party purpose. The sub is placed at the corner of the room. The advantage with this particular sub is the controls and optimisation options it offers. One touch of button optimizes the sub to be placed in the corner/cabinet/mid-wall/mid-room. The tiny remote of the sub has all the controls of the sub - volume, position optimisation, phase select, mute and on/off. The sub also offers auto mode - keep the sub in standby mode when there is no audio signal and switches it on automatically it senses the audio signal.

The performance of the sub is above average in my setup. There is no lack of bass + it integrates very well with the speakers. You feel all the music and bass coming from the speakers rather than from corner. But due to the open area on both the sides of the sub or it maybe the limitation of the sub, the bass is sometimes boomy and soft. It is sufficient though in my setup to rock the party on.

As i also mentioned earlier i do not have great collecton of cds in my setup and mostly rely on the mp3 on the pc, i mostly play my music through usb of the pioneer dvdp or connecting iphone to the amp directly. SQ wise i would rate - CD through DVDp > iphone> USB DVDp > PC.

Improving the source will definitely improve the SQ and hence will be adding a DAC soon. Eagerly looking forward to the DAC shootout between CA DACMagic and Beresford Caiman by Madhubullram and Venkat. Thanks to ashishkesarwani for helping in deciding for the setup and sharing the review of the Caiman.

Also appreciate and recommend Bass n Treble, New Delhi for his unbiased and to the point advise, competitive pricing, co-operative attitude and hassle free experience.

Pics

The Living area and setup -


Open Dining area at the right & the subwoofer -


Closer look at the setup -




Marantz PM7001 Amp -

[img=http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/4347/97921666.jpg]

The Gems - Quad 11L2







The Polk Beast - DSWpro600



 
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The sound of Quads is killer. It was love at first sight, oops!, audition at Denny's den (Bass n Treble, Delhi) Imaging, the enveloping music that flows, clarity and perfect bass - all perfect. There is truly no need of the sub or other channels. I was too doubtful if these two small pieces would do justice with the huge and open living area but these little shining pieces are perfect. One night i accidently landed on aa TV channel playing Jodha Akbar and the war scene was about to start and was too thrilled to experience the almost same sound effects as i auditioned AAD 5.1 setup at Denny. These speakers are great for movies too. Maybe because of the wide imaging they produce. I auditioned Wharfdale 9.1 then 10.2 and then Quads and the sound stage and clarity in mids and highs keeps on increasing but the music from the Quads just surrounds you so well that u don't hear the music but feels it and experience it live.

Even I auditioned the same equipment at Danny's last weekend (updated the experience on my thread), QUADs were second best for me after Warfadale 10.5, For me Warfs had a bit more clearity in the mids and vocals, rest almost every thing was same. And you are spot on with my openion on AAD as well, even I thought the same that AAD would sound killer on a 5.1 setup as the sound is more heavy. This is what I wrote at my thread

For 5.1 setup I was made to listen brand called AAD. Very loud and hefty throw with less emphasize on Mids and vocals. Treble was just fine and no issue in clarity, absolute clear. Though Danny did not have a complete setup but listing to stereo I could imagine what these spks could do when connected to full 5.1 setup with True DTS HD. As a stand alone, Stereo they can only impress those who like more bass/loudeness in the music rather than emphasizing on mids and vocals. Which is what I would prefer only in Movies.

Congratts on your purchase and enjoy your setup.... :)
 
A beautiful, well-constructed speaker with class-leading soundstage, imaging and bass that is fast, deep, and precise.
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