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Help choosing the best quadraphonic receiver

M

Moon_man157

New Member
I have been using a Pioneer QX-949 as my main amp for several years. I’ve been happy with it, but I recently acquired a Sansui QRX-7001 and a Kenwood KR-9940. All these receivers are quadraphonic. From what I can tell they all seem to have similar features. My question is, which of these receivers is best and what are they worth?
 
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Questions of worth Must be in the Dollars and sense forum.

The best of these will depend on who you ask as there is a strong Pioneer following and Sansui following and these folks might just pick by brand name. I like the Kenwood.

The best would be up to the user, based on listening tests I would think.
 
The Sansui 9001 is supposed to be the pinnacle of Quad receivers, I am not sure how close the 7001 is but I would guess is pretty close. I believe it has the same cd4 decoder.
 
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QRX-7001 probably has the best decoders, but the 9940 has a lot more power. I can't remember if the 9940 has pre-outs or not but the 7001 does not.
 
Blue Shadow said:
He!! I got a 4400. Just isn't as quiet as it should be with aging internals. Forgot that one. Always liked the Kenwood.
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I think all the others mentioned are more forgiving to work on. It takes courage or ignorance(in my case) to dig into a 4400, it's pretty packed internally.
 
markshan said:
Best in what regard? Best sounding amps? Best quad decoding?
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The 4400 doesn't quad decode it has an optional decoder of different types that plug in on the bottom of the unit easy to do lifting and flipping the thing over and swapping if you think flipping a 50+ pound unit is easy.

I think the big draw on the 4400 other than the scope is the right at 200 wpc in stereo that it produces, not rated, but benched.
 
Blue Shadow said:
The 4400 doesn't quad decode it has an optional decoder of different types that plug in on the bottom of the unit easy to do lifting and flipping the thing over and swapping if you think flipping a 50+ pound unit is easy.

I think the big draw on the 4400 other than the scope is the right at 200 wpc in stereo that it produces, not rated, but benched.
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What I mean is that the OP needs to tell us what he is looking for.
 
I'm anxiously awaiting to pick up my Marantz 4140 from refurbishment. Not a receiver, and I'll be using it in bridged stereo mode @ 70wpc.
 
markshan said:
Best in what regard? Best sounding amps? Best quad decoding?
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Thanks for all the feedback, my main question is which one sounds the best. I know the answer to that question is subject to opinion but that’s why I’m here. I want the opinion of people who know I lot more about this stuff than I do. For example, the Kenwood has Vu meters for every channel, which I like. The pioneer has a nice oscilloscope style meter (not technically an oscilloscope) which is cool. But I don't just want to pick my daily driver receiver because of aesthetics. I want to know which receiver is the most technologically advance in terms of quality. Both audio quality and performance
 
Audio quality of these gereatric quad war horses would be something you will have to evaluate as they are probably well past the expiration date of the electrolytic caps in them.

Now if they were all fully recapped and other issues addressed then the reviews of the day may be valid. But for the AK community that doesn't have a preference the response would be to listen to them. They probably sound a bit different and one should become your favorite sonically.
 
Moon_man157 said:
Thanks for all the feedback, my main question is which one sounds the best. I know the answer to that question is subject to opinion but that’s why I’m here. I want the opinion of people who know I lot more about this stuff than I do. For example, the Kenwood has Vu meters for every channel, which I like. The pioneer has a nice oscilloscope style meter (not technically an oscilloscope) which is cool. But I don't just want to pick my daily driver receiver because of aesthetics. I want to know which receiver is the most technologically advance in terms of quality. Both audio quality and performance
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I haven't heard any of these. Sorry I can't help with that. I know the Sui has the best decoder.
 
Blue Shadow said:
Audio quality of these gereatric quad war horses would be something you will have to evaluate as they are probably well past the expiration date of the electrolytic caps in them.

Now if they were all fully recapped and other issues addressed then the reviews of the day may be valid. But for the AK community that doesn't have a preference the response would be to listen to them. They probably sound a bit different and one should become your favorite sonically.
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Thanks, two of the three receivers have been serviced with in the last two years so 70’s era reviews should be relevant. Can you recommend some good review sources that I might be able to find online?
 
"Serviced" can mean a lot of things. Usually it means replacing failed components. Only seldomly does it mean checking caps for drift and replacing any that are out of spec.
 
Most quad features and format support, and the best decoders, belong to the Sansui x001 series. Only major difference really between the 7001 and TOTL 9001 is the dolby and power. The 6-7001 are also a helluva lot easier to work on as they don't have the problematic double sided board that's a bit of a pita to repair when it goes open at the pass throughs due to solder cracks.
 
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