am i mad?

[zzagg74]

hi
i have a yamaha ca-610 amp and a marantz 1040m amp,heres what im doing.
ive conected my turntable to the marantz,then the marantz to the yamaha,so im sort of useing the marantz as a phono preamp.
reason is the marantz have some real nice vu meters and they move more than the yamaha, i have to have the yamaha turned up quite loud to have any major movement on the yamahas vu.
will thiss cause any dammage? the marantz volume has no effect on the output as ive conected the marantz to the yamaha by useing the tape out.
i just love seeing 2 pairs of vu meters dancing to the music
thanks for any opinoins

 

[Ruxman]

It is not harmful but you're degrading the signal greatly. The longer the signal path, the more you lose of the original music. Here you're making it more than twice as long than just using one amp.

 

[zzagg74]

so in your opinion what is the best amp to use

 

[Ruxman]

It's not my thing to say. Do what you like.

If you cannot hear a difference using both amps, what's stopping you? Meters are cool.

I personally would use the Yamaha, though.

 

[SoCal Sam]

You are the mad scientist putting together a Frankenstein. Seriously, lengthening the signal path is never good for objective signal reproduction. You may like the sound you are getting and that is just as good.

 

[bowtie427ss]

If you like the bling and show(and there's nothing wrong with it if you do), just get yourself an RTA.

Sometimes i can be caught staring at my Samson D-1500.

FWIW, it's display will also function as a giant horizontal 2 channel VU, as well as an SPL meter(w/calibrated mic).

 

[DonQuixote99]

I think people are overreacting to the 'signal path' issue. As long as you're bypassing the vol and tone controls of the Marantz, and you are, I don't see that you're going to get anything much 'degraded' from what the Marantz would put out by itself. And while that's a 'Phillips era' Marantz, it's an 'early Philips era' unit, and people report liking them a lot. Both it and the Yamaha are rated 40 wpc--you might consider just going with the Marantz, although you're getting a bit of a power boost by preamping twice with your setup.... Bottom line--if you don't hear a problem, there IS no problem.

 

[mhardy6647]

The CA-610 doesn't have the "x1 - x10" meter range switch, then?
I don't know the unsuffixed CA-610 well at all; the CA-610II does have dual-range meters... that I know quite well.

Probably safe to assume the Yamaha's phono preamp would sound noticeably better than that Marantz's. If you're satisfied with the Marantz, though, there's no harm in doing what you're doing.

But...

If you simply want to watch the Marantz meters dance, another way to do it would be to connect a line level Marantz input (e.g., AUX) to one of the Yamaha's REC OUT outputs. Connect the tt straight to the Yamaha, connect the TAPE 1 outputs of the YAMAHA to the Marantz AUX, set the Yamaha's REC OUT to PHONO, turn OFF the Marantz speakers; turn the Marantz ON, set the Marantz source selector to AUX, and adjust the volume on the Marantz to make the meters dance to your taste.

 

[Sandy G]

If you like the bling and show(and there's nothing wrong with it if you do), just get yourself an RTA.

Sometimes i can be caught staring at my Samson D-1500.

FWIW, it's display will also function as a giant horizontal 2 channel VU, as well as an SPL meter(w/calibrated mic).

Either THAT, or an Oscilloscope for the FULL "Bull-Goose Looney Budding Mad Scientist" effect...

 

[bowtie427ss]

Either THAT, or an Oscilloscope for the FULL "Bull-Goose Looney Budding Mad Scientist" effect...

Now that you mention it Sandy, Technics(only one i've owned), McIntosh, and Crown all made a version of "audio scope" as a stand alone unit. There are probably more, but all of those above are handsome units made to compliment most any stack of audio gear. Who doesn't love some good eye candy?

 

[Sandy G]

Nah...Get a big honkin' Tek scope w/several plug ins-they have WAY too many knobs, buttons, switches, doohickeys, & all to play with...(grin)

 

[DonQuixote99]

If you simply want to watch the Marantz meters dance, another way to do it would be to connect a line level Marantz input (e.g., AUX) to one of the Yamaha's REC OUT outputs. Connect the tt straight to the Yamaha, connect the TAPE 1 outputs of the YAMAHA to the Marantz AUX, set the Yamaha's REC OUT to PHONO, turn OFF the Marantz speakers; turn the Marantz ON, set the Marantz source selector to AUX, and adjust the volume on the Marantz to make the meters dance to your taste.

Doh. Obvious now that you mention it. Eliminates the Marantz from the signal path to the speakers, which settles that issue.

But I'd be interested in zzagg 74s opinion as to which way it sounds better to him....

 

[mhardy6647]

Nah...Get a big honkin' Tek scope w/several plug ins-they have WAY too many knobs, buttons, switches, doohickeys, & all to play with...(grin)

Doh. Obvious now that you mention it. Eliminates the Marantz from the signal path to the speakers, which settles that issue.

But I'd be interested in zzagg 74s opinion as to which way it sounds better to him....

I am Master of the Obvious

 

[Sandy G]

The only problem w/ONE Big, Honkin' Tooob Tek scope is that you REALLY need to get a SECOND one just like it, when the 1st one craps out...And then you REALLY should get a Soiled-State model when BOTH of the Tooob units go Shazbat...(grin)

 

[Ruxman]

Who would want a scope added to their stereo? Those things are the biggest eye sores this world has produced.

 

[zzagg74]

thanks mhardy ive done wht you have said, works a treat.
i assummeing as no one has said use the marantz, the yamaha is better

 

[DonQuixote99]

thanks mhardy ive done wht you have said, works a treat.
i assummeing as no one has said use the marantz, the yamaha is better

Some are of the opinion that the Yamaha is "better," that's definate. But you have both available to listen to, and you should be the supreme authority on what sounds "better" in your house to you.

 

[zzagg74]

i know my own ears can be the only things to help me dicide.
what im after is opions as to what in history, brand , and reputaion over the years is considered the best amp out of the 2

 

[DonQuixote99]

Yamaha in general builds with a 'natural sound' philosophy that meant they strived for dead accurate, uncolored amplification. Some love it, some think it sounds flat. The Marantz sound is "warmer," typically, some love that, some think such coloration undesirable. In the end, everything depends on your speakers, your room, and your subjective response to what you hear. We are talking about differences that can be obvious or subtle, depending on all those factors I just mentioned, especially the part that happens between your ears.

Your Marantz is suspected of being inferior to 'real' Marantz units since it dates to after Phillips bought the company and began a process that eventually took the marque way down in quality. But I did a little searching here of previous reports on your Marantz. Some owners reported liking it a lot. It may have plenty of the 'real Marantz' stuff.

 

[SoCal Sam]

I think people are overreacting to the 'signal path' issue. As long as you're bypassing the vol and tone controls of the Marantz, and you are, I don't see that you're going to get anything much 'degraded' from what the Marantz would put out by itself. And while that's a 'Phillips era' Marantz, it's an 'early Philips era' unit, and people report liking them a lot. Both it and the Yamaha are rated 40 wpc--you might consider just going with the Marantz, although you're getting a bit of a power boost by preamping twice with your setup.... Bottom line--if you don't hear a problem, there IS no problem.

Actually, most component or parts placed in line with the signal path will bend the signal to some degree which will soften the sound. Be aware before you discount!