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Anthem AVM/20 upgrade to Integra or Marantz??

Greetings all,

I've enjoyed and stretched out the life of my Anthem AVM/20 paired with a Lexicon CX-7. My sources are Oppo, AppleTV, Roku, vinyl, and cable if you are interested. These are all being driven through Revel Performa M22 monitors, C32 center and B15 sub and Revel in-ceiling for surrounds. The speakers are in a 7.1 setup in a formal living room, not dedicated HT.

I need HDMI compatibility in my Pre-pro at this point but I don't want to lose or compromise the sonic quality I've had with the Anthem. Given that another, newer pre-pro from Anthem that isn't north of 5k isn't in the near future I'm looking to either Integra or Marantz as sonically they seem to be given top billing.

So here is my issue: I *love* 2-channel and I don't want any sonic compromise at all in soundtage bredth and depth, tonal accuracy, and sheer emotional involvement in the music. In fact, I want *better* performance than my AVM/20 currently offers.

So,will the Marantz AV7005 or Integra 80.3 do the trick? I've read Kal and Michael Fremmer's reviews of the AV7005 and they are excellent. Michael even bought the review sample and I think Kal has the integra 70.2. However the Integra offers the newer Audyssey room correction. The Anthem is just such a well put together piece that I am afraid that my upgrade will be a sonic downgrade. Are my fears justified or not?

Looking for some sage advice and guidance! Many thanks to all in advance.
internetmin

Showing 1 response by sthomas12321

sthomas12321
408 posts
 
I went from a Anthem 30 to a Onkyo prepro. The Anthem was a great piece, but its just too far behind in features I want. IMO the new anthem pieces are way too expensive. When they could be had around $2500 new, they were a much better deal and worth buying. My opinion.

The Onkyo sounds great. Movies actually sound better. If you are worried grab a used 2 channel preamp. I've seen some 5508's under $1500 used already. Compare that to a new anthem. At 5k, you can easily beat the Anthem for music & movies, even if you have to get a preamp, and a prepro to do it.
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