Marantz has released a lot of new amplification products since it introduced its new aesthetic under its new parent company, Sound United LLC.

Beginning in 2022 and seeming to end in 2024, Marantz has remade itself to quite a few awards and accolades. I’m going to try to list them all, first by product class, and then by price. With the exception of the M series, the lower the model number, the more premium the product.

The Flagship Series

Model 10. This is among the best 2-channel amplifiers on the market today, up there with Arcam, McIntosh and Mark Levinson. It’s ridiculous. Paired with the Link 10n streamer preamp and SACD 10 network CD player, plus a turntable of your choosing, it is the centerpiece of a most serious listening room. You can probably get all three pieces for under $40,000 before you have the agonizing task of choosing two bespoke tower speakers and a couple of subwoofers. Personally, I think you can spend just $4,500 a for an Arcam A25 amplifier, an Arcam CD player an Arcam or Bluesound streamer, and premium bookshelf or tower speakers of your choice, and have the best 2-channel audiophile system for the money.

Bring Your Own Power Amplifier(s)

The AV10 is a $7,000 AV Receiver (AVR), except it is just a premium audio processor and preamp. It dosen’t amplify, but it still belongs on this list because it was introduced since 2022. It’s certainly a better value than the 10 series above. You just need to carefully choose one or two power amps, making sure you finalize how many channels you want (up to 15!). Once that is done, you’re fairly committed to a home theater series of speakers by a major manufacturer, like Focal, B&W, Polk, KEF, etc.

The Networked Hi-Fi Amplifiers

Model 40n. Here we go. We’ve seen the $15,000 amplifier. We’ve seen the $7,000 digital audio processor. Now here is the best product in the whole lineup, the $2,500 Model 40n. This is a heavy Class A/B amplifier that delivers warm, musical sound. It has tone controls on the front. It can also do digital audio. It streams music from HEOS, and it can connect to a home music server. It has good phono inputs. It has digital inputs, and a very good internal DAC for third party streamers and a CD player. And the kicker: it has HDMI eARC, so it can be connected to a television. That way you can get a nice display of what music is currently steaming, and it can be used to amplify the shows and movies you watch. It’s not an AV receiver. But it can totally fill the role, while staying music focused. With the 40n, your entertainment is music first, video second. Veteran amplifier, speaker and receiver reviewer Andrew Robinson loves it:

The Model 60n is virtually the same, but a less powerful output (60 watts per channel rather than 70). It costs a thousand dollars less, yes. But every reviewer including me is going to strongly recommend the 40n over the 60n. Just save up and get the 40n. That’s the one that can power both large and small rooms. If HDMI eARC and built in music streaming are important to you, then the 40n is the music amplifier to consider first. I wouldn’t be surprised if 10 years from now, the 40n is still a very viable product. It’s a Marantz amplifier that will be remembered for decades. Denon and Marantz just need to strongly support HEOS, which has gotten a lot better in the last few months thanks to this new Marantz lineup.

But hang on, here is the Stereo 70s. This might be the sweet spot. This is the best value in the whole Marantz lineup. Even though it has a different naming convention, this is the alternative to the 40n that costs $1500 less. The catch is that it’s a receiver rather than an integrated amplifier. But because it is 2-channel amplifier, and it has digital inputs and streaming, it belongs in this networked amplifier category. For just $1000, buyers get an AVR that is dressed like a Hi-Fi amplifier. It has 8 HDMI inputs (half are 4K, half are 8K). It generates 75 watts of 2 channel stereo. On the front, it has tone controls. If you only need 2 channels (plus an optional subwoofer), and you know you won’t need 5, 7 or 9 channels in the future, then this is the AV receiver I recommend. It’s a warm Class A/B Marantz with 75watts per channel, a musical sound, and full support for movies and console video games for $1,000! It actually undercuts all of their other products!

The Analog Hi-Fi Amplifiers

Here is where the Marantz lineup is weak, in my view. Customers should get one of the three networked amplifiers above, with integrated digital inputs and HEOS streaming compatibility. But for analog purists, the Model 30 and Model 50 offer premium Class D amplification and all-analog inputs. The Model 30 is a 100 Watt amp for $3,000, and the Model 50 is a 75 Watt amp for $1,800.

In my opinion, these two amplifiers don’t have to exist. Most customers would be very happy with the 40n, even if they don’t stream music. But there are more than enough analog purists out there who will appreciate the premium phono amp. Look at that sweet analog panel, fully made in Japan. This is an amplifier for life. There’s no risk it will ever lose HEOS support, because it doesn’t have HEOS. It doesn’t do digital.

The back panel of the Model 30 and 50. All analog. 2 channels out.

And so, if you want to add digital capability to the Models 30 and 50, Marantz points customers to the $3,000 SACD 30n networked CD player. That would make the Model 30 plus the SACD 30n a $6,000 system. Both are the same size and look like they totally belong together.

The Cinema AVR Series

Here’s what I think is the bulk of Marantz’ business - AVRs. Most people don’t have commercial grade media rooms or professional installations behind walls, or in racks, or in equipment closets. They place an AVR into a media console in their living room, and run a home theater audio setup from there. As far as I know, all Marantz reecivers, including the Stereo 70s, are made in Vietnam. Thankfully, the fit and finish is super close to their top products, which are made in Japan.

Marantz arguably makes the best AVRs in the world, just one step ahead of Onkyo, and, in my opinion, comfortably ahead of Yamaha and Sony, and well ahead of NAD and Rotel. I like all of these brands. I love NAD for Hi-Fi (although the superiority of Arcam cannot be ignored). However, when it comes to AVRs, Marantz has taken the lead since 2022. These are the 3 big AVRs that put them ahead.

The Cinema 30 is the ultimate standalone AVR. 7 8K inputs, 3 8K outputs. 140 watts per channel. 11.4 channels! Yes, that’s support for 4 subwoofers. HEOS. 4 digital inputs. $4,500. Any questions?

The Cinema 40 is a slight step down. In fact it is such a small step, the justification for its existence is questioned. Or maybe it undercuts the Cinema 30! The Cinema 40 is a better value. For $1,000 less ($3,500) the buyer gets 125 watts per channel, 9.4 channels, 7 HDMI inputs and 3 outputs, all 8K. Outstanding.

The Cinema 50 makes a little more sense for those who ‘just’ need 7.2.2 channels. $2,500, 110 watts per channel, 6 HDMI inputs, 3 outputs, all 8K.

But once again, the unsung hero in the class is the slim model with an s in the model name. This is the $1,200 Cinema 70s. And this is the unit that I proudly own. It’s a slim 7.2 channel AVR that replaces Marantz’ acclaimed NR1711 slim receiver. Like all other Marantz receivers, it supports video inputs and outputs of 8K at 60 frames per second, or 4K at 120 frames per second, and all resolutions and frame rates under 4K. Filmed American and European movies, at 24p and 25p, respectively, look as good as I’ve seen them at home. Global digital cinema, ditto. Games on my PlayStation 5 feel as native and as seamless as they can be. For my small, Manhattan living room that roughly measures roughly 8 square meters (86 square feet), it’s perfect.

I’ll pause here and elaborate on how much I love the Cinema 70s. I have it set to 2 channel mode, so basically it’s a Marantz Stereo 70s, with simpler knobs in the front - one for inputs and one for volume. It delivers slightly warmer than neutral Class A/B amplification, but made for smaller spaces. I have it connected to a pair of Polk R500 floor standing loudspeakers, which are outstanding in my small space. Nothing about my setup is fatiguing on the ears. I’m really noticing the channel separation while watching movies on streaming services and Blu Ray (I have a Panasonic DP-UB820 player which is even better as a DVD player than the famed PlayStation 3). Deezer is my music streaming service of choice, and a recent HEOS update brought FLAC 44.1kHz audio to all networked Denon and Marantz devices. The Cinema 70s is the first AVR I’ve owned that truly brings a cinema experience to my home. And it always brings out the best in the music, games and movies I play.

The Marantz Cinema 70s just looks good in or on top of a media console.

The Streaming Amplifiers

This is the bedroom amplifier. The killer of soundbars. Even perhaps a first amplifier for the teenager in your home. Not too long ago, I recommended the $400 NAD C316BEE V2, new or used, as a great first amplifier for a teenager. But all of us music listeners stream our music now. Our first amplifiers need to be streaming digital amps. Here it is. It’s a Class D amplifier. It runs cool and silent. But amazingly, this little box delivers 100 Watts and drives the vast majority of banana plug compatible speakers on the market. Pair it with the Polk R100, Mission LX-1, KEF Q150 or those new Elac Debut 3s. You can’t go wrong. The only other compact streaming amplifier I recommend is the BlueSound POWERNODE. Pick one streaming amp, get a pair of bookshelf speakers, download the companion app, and you have a premium system for your bedroom today and your dorm room tomorrow. It’s seriously good. And it’s made in Japan.

And finally, we have the commercial audio streamer. The M4 seems to be an awesome choice for businesses like bars, restaurants, retail stores and gyms. A lot of these businesses could get away with the M1. But the M4 is a full 17-inch wide rack-mountable device that supports up to 4 zones (4 pairs of speakers). I find it unusual that Marantz would offer a product like this, but I’m glad they do. It’s bulletproof. It’s made in Japan and delivers 100 watts to all channels. It is driven by a phone/tablet app, and I think it can be controlled using a web browser as well. For retail, this is a no-brainer.

And that is, I think, all the new Marantz amplifiers that have been introduced since 2022? Did I miss any?

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