2. amps-preamps
  3. 149922-2195

Seeking Streaming Receiver Recommendations

Helping friends who are NOT audiophiles, but have a pair of SPICA TC-50 speakers (specs below).  They want a receiver (real FM radio), want to be able to stream spotify and maybe some other services, want to be able to throw content from their phones via bluetooth or airplay.  New receivers seem to have all of this, but what has good sound and enough power for the Spicas?  Crutchfield has Yamaha (Class D) and Integra (class not listed).  If anyone has looked into this, please share recommendations.  Thanks, Peter

SPICA TC-150 SPECS:
Two-way, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" soft-dome tweeter, 6.5" pulp-cone woofer. Low-frequency alignment: sealed-box with Q=0.78. Crossover frequency: 2kHz. Crossover: high-pass slope, approximately first-order, 6dB/octave; low-pass slope, fourth-order, 24dB/octave, Bessel; both drivers connected with the same polarity. Frequency response: 60Hz-17kHz -3dB. Sensitivity: 84dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms (3.6 ohms minimum at 4kHz). Amplifier requirements: 25-100W. Maximum power handling: 50W continuous, 100W peak.

peter_s

Showing 3 responses by kren0006

kren0006
1,859 posts
 
Speakers that I used most with those receivers in making the assessments were B&W CDM1NT's (old but still love them) with the Marantz and both NHT C1 and Spendor SA1 with Integra.  All bookshelf/mini-monitor/stand-mount.  The Integra with the Spendors sounds much better than it did with the NHT's (Spendors tamed the Integra down).
kren0006
1,859 posts
 
I see you have stand mounted speakers. I also use bookshelf speakers in my BR (Integra) system.

Had you instead had full-range floorstanders, I might have been able to give Integra a better recommendation because it has a mode (Direct, or Pure Direct or something like that, forget exactly what they call it) where the sound is better (to my ears anyway, less processing), but the problem is that the subwoofer output goes away in that mode (no info sent out on sub out line) and I have a lower cost sub in my BR system that requires an RCA sub out to use (unlike a REL with the full range inputs where you just tap off the amp speaker outputs terminals).

What I’m trying to say is if you use a sub that has that feature, or if you don’t use a sub at all, and can run the Integra in that direct mode, it will sound better than how I have to use it given that I want to have my sub both for music and HT (TV, movies) in my BR system.....
kren0006
1,859 posts
 
I have the Integra DTM-7 (2 ch, class A/B receiver) in my BR system and Marantz SR5012 (7 ch. class A/B receiver) as HT hub in my main system.

Both are 100WPC into 8 ohms.  Both have streaming and I have used both extensively to stream Tidal before I got a better streamer for my main system.  Both were about $600 when I got them but Marantz was on clearance because the 5013 had been released, original msrp $1k.

Of the two, I prefer the Marantz house sound (amplifier/ dac characteristics) and also the Marantz streamer interface (Heos control application better than Play Fi).  The Marantz has AK4458 dac chip and Integra has AK 4438, if memory serves.  The 4458 has slightly better specs, FWIW.  To my ears the Marantz sound is a bit warmer while the Integra is a bit brighter. YMMV.

But I really like that Integra produces a full-size 2ch receiver, whereas Marantz doesn't (all multi-channel I think).  

All that said, I'm pretty happy with both of them.
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