Blue lights - little watts

[steamshooter]

I just rescued a Marantz 4230 from the back of a truck headed to the dump (Yamaha K-950 too). Where does this little guy (30 watts x 2/ 12x 4) stand? I saw Marantz and got a little excited. I saw Quad and was a little disapointed. I haven't really put it through it's paces yet, but it seems to work ok. Is this a keeper? How does the Dolby system work? Does FM still use Dolby? Can it be used for tapes?
It really clean except for some minor dings in the knobs from the back of the truck. No wood, bummer. Controls have a tight and positive feel to them.
I did find it on the Marantz site, its pretty much at the bottom of the heap compared to the other Marantz gear, but how does it stack up with other mfgrs? (the blue lights shor is purty)

Brad -not real sure where I've been, got wasted and couldn't find my way back home

 

[steamshooter]

Well I've been pushing vinyl through the little Marantz for some hours now. This thing is sweet ! Very natural sounding. It starts running out of juice when you really crank it, but this little guy sings. So far all sections seem to work. I've not even had the cover off, cleaned pots, or nuttin'. Tuner could be better

Now how 'bout someone filling me in on this Dolby system in this thing. It's got a 400hz tone, record levels, and play calibrations (L & R). All this runs into the tuner signal strength meter. Does anyone know how this works??

Can anyone point me in the right direction for info on this thing?


http://www.classic-audio.com/marantz/4230.html

Thanks
Brad

 

[Lefty]

The Dolby feature on your quad is only useful for external tape decks that don't have built in Dolby circuirty.

Dolby for FM never really took off as only a few stations used it in the 70s and then the whole idea tanked.

Your best bet on using all the controls and features for this receiver is to try and score a user's manual. There are a few sites that sell copies and of course manuals come up on e-bay if you wait long enough...


Lefty

 

[steamshooter]

Thanks for the suggestion. I think I will be looking for some bigger Marantz watts in the future for the living room. The 4230 will end up in the bedroom.
Have a great day
Brad

 

[gyusher]

Low watt power

My first classic purchase was a Marantz model 26 (I am yalking about the past year) This guy is rated at 10-14 wpc depending on where you get your info. Dont tell it that it only has 10 watts because it certainly preforms like 40 or so. I found a pair of PSB Alpha AVs new and they are great speakers for these low powered classic amps and receivers. Very effecient for a 6in two way. . .

 

[steamshooter]

I don't have a house full of gear that some of these folks around here , so the only thing I can compare this little Marantz to is a Hitachi SR-904 rated at 75 cont. 150 peak. The measley 30 watts per side on the Marantz are smokin' the Hitachi! Leaving nothing but ashes. I don't get it. But, I sure do like it. It's running a pair of RS Mach IIs. The bass is incredible coming from the Marantz compared to the Hitachi. The sound seems bigger without being louder. I'm hooked on Marantz.
Brad

 

[JonTee]

Hi Steam,

I agree with you on the Marantz sound especially the smaller (watts) models. My brother-in-law has a 2216b that he bought new in 1979 for $80. It puts out a meager 16 watts a channel, and at the time I owned a Pioneer SX939 with 70 watts a channel; to me his Marantz sounded better. I was floored when he told me it put out 16 watts a side!

He still has it and I am still impressed by the sound quality.

Nice score, and its good to see another discarded classic brought back to life.

Jon

 

[Dave 2238b]

Re: Low watt power

Originally posted by gyusher
I found a pair of PSB Alpha AVs new and they are great speakers for these low powered classic amps and receivers. Very effecient for a 6in two way. . .

I listen through a pair of PSB Alpha AVs (Marantz 2238b). Amazing little speaker. Cheap too. They don't make that model anymore and you can score a pair on ebay cheap. They were only $249 msrp to begin with. You'd have to spend ALOT more to get a noticeable improvemnt.

 

[mrraven]

2225 Linn Tukans

My system is a little Marantz 2225 driving 4 ohm Tukans and it does a fine job driving them in my admitidly small room. I just swapped it out for an earlier SX-750, once I cleaned the connections on the Marantz I like it’s sound better as it has much deeper fuller bass than the Pioneer ( I was using a Polk sub with the Pioneer, don’t need it with the Marantz), and is plenty powerful for this room. Part of the better sound I suspect is this Marantz is in minty shape, a fine 45 dollar Salvation Army score.

 

[mrraven]

Impressionist 2225

OK so the picture just didn't come out in low light, at least you can see the shade of blue of the purty blue lights under the photoshop junk.

 

[Wedweb]

Now when you guys say you go to the dump and search for stuff, do you mean the landfill or is there a difference? I don't think they will let anyone in the multi acre landfill near me. Is there a searchable landfill in the St. Louis area?