Marantz PM 94 or something more recent ?


I am looking to buy an integrated amp or preamp/amp for my main system. Budget is $ 1000 or thereabouts.
I heard the Marantz PM 94 in my friend's house and was quite impressed. I see that Audiogon has one for about $ 650. Can anyone advice me on whether this would be a better buy than something in the $ 1000 range by MF, Creek, or some other make ? My taste in music is quite wide ranging - but I listen mostly to classical music.

Thanks.
chander
I have two PM-94s, listen almost exclusively to classical music and I don't think I will ever part with them. A few years ago, some capacitors on my Levinson 333 went so I substituted a 94 while the Levinson was being repaired. I was really impressed on how well the 94 performed.

That said, there is a problem with these amps. They run hot, and repeated thermal cycling over many years and insufficient solder causes them to blow their output transistors. I know of at least four 94s where this has occurred among my circle (we all bought them when Dynascan sold Marantz USA to Philips). The amp developing hum in the speakers is a warning sign. Repair with matched output transistors is expensive. In my case, I was lucky not to be the first one to blow the outputs and had preventative maintenance done where they essentially resoldered all of the boards. I have not had a problem and have used them for 14 years. So I recommend the amp for sonics and flexibility, but you best check on it's history and have the boards resoldered if you purchase one.
I bought a mint condition PM-94 recently. A beautiful unit that produces a beautiful sound. It runs hot -- unless you have a small fan blowing across the vents on the top. Then it runs cool. Easy DIY to solve a potentially serious problem. Also, replace the U-jumpers on the back that connect the amp and pre-amp. It becomes a whole new amp when you do this. See my review on Audio Review about this.

Sabai