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Vintage Marantz Receivers vs. Tube Amplifiers and Receivers

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Parallax982

Super Member
I have three vintage Marantz units. A 2270, a 2235 and a 2230. They are beautiful and I love the sound.

Was thinking I might want to experiment with tube amps because I've never had one. I've been surprised to find out how expensive they are. A decent one seems to go for more than I paid for any of my three Marantzes. I'm wondering if anyone can tell me the relative pros and cons of tube gear compared to a vintage Marantz like the 2270 or 2230. Do they sound better, as the tube guys seem to mostly feel? Thanks.
 
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I got my Marantz 2245 in 70's and always loved its warm (tube like sound) about 12 years ago i started trying other SS brands Pioneer, Sansui, Yamaha, Concept but i always liked the warm sound Marantz receivers more, I got a tube phono pre amp and liked how it sounded and finaly decided it was time to get a tube amp and picked up a Marantz 8B and was hooked the first time i listened to it. I still listen to my SS stuff but not nearly as much as my tube gear which i prefer now. One con to tube amps is if you get into tube rolling it can get pretty expensive
 
Chrisxo55441 said:
I got my Marantz 2245 in 70's and always loved its warm (tube like sound) about 12 years ago i started trying other SS brands Pioneer, Sansui, Yamaha, Concept but i always liked the warm sound Marantz receivers more, I got a tube phono pre amp and liked how it sounded and finaly decided it was time to get a tube amp and picked up a Marantz 8B and was hooked the first time i listened to it. I still listen to my SS stuff but not nearly as much as my tube gear which i prefer now. One con to tube amps is if you get into tube rolling it can get pretty expensive
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Thanks for your reply. Are there times or kinds of music for which you prefer the SS Marantz sound? Or do you simply find tube amps better?

I know it's a subjective thing. Some people find them mushy but people say that about the 1970s SS gear too. I love the soft warm sound of my Marantz units and so want to find out if I might like tube stuff even more. But, yes, there's no end to what one can spend.
 
Parallax982 said:
Thanks for your reply. Are there times or kinds of music for which you prefer the SS Marantz sound? Or do you simply find tube amps better?

I know it's a subjective thing. Some people find them mushy but people say that about the 1970s SS gear too. I love the soft warm sound of my Marantz units and so want to find out if I might like tube stuff even more. But, yes, there's no end to what one can spend.
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Yes i prefer SS if im listening to CD's or digtal on the later model Marantz receivers like 2275, 2325 as they are not as warm sounding to me as say the 2245, 2270, 2230, they are more detailed and just seem to me to sound better with digital. i very seldom listen to digital though. I do use Tube phono pre amps with my SS gear and my Model 18 with a tube pre is pretty damn close to a tube amp sound. if you dont have a tube phono pre you should start with that and see how you like as you should have one anyway if you do get a tube amp.
 
Chrisxo55441 said:
Yes i prefer SS if im listening to CD's or digtal on the later model Marantz receivers like 2275, 2325 as they are not as warm sounding to me as say the 2245, 2270, 2230, they are more detailed and just seem to me to sound better with digital. i very seldom listen to digital though. I do use Tube phono pre amps with my SS gear and my Model 18 with a tube pre is pretty damn close to a tube amp sound. if you dont have a tube phono pre you should start with that and see how you like as you should have one anyway if you do get a tube amp.
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Thanks. I've not gotten into turntables. Of course I had one back in the day but that was a long time ago. These days, I stream through a Wiim Pro with a Geshelli Labs J2 with the AKM 4499 chip set and Sparkos 2602 opamps. That feeds my Marantz 2235 but I may switch to my 2230 after I have the power board recapped. It outputs to my Original Large Advents. A single set.

Downstairs I have a Wiim Pro Plus, which has an upgraded internal DAC. Not as good as the J2 but on par with ones that sell for around $300. It feeds my 2270 which outputs to a double stack of four Original Large Advents.

I love both systems. There's really no need to upgrade but I'd be interested in trying a tube amp if I can find one at a reasonable price. I've been trying to get the info needed to figure out how I might do that but it's challenging. Mainly because my knowledge is limited and also because a lot of the guys in the forums talk totally over my head. They try to be helpful but it's hard to learn when they're speaking a foreign language. Years ago, I could have just picked stuff up and tried it but the prices today make that unworkable.
 
My first real stereo was a Audio Research entry level tube amp: VT60 and a LS7 pre-amp. Ran this system for several years and really enjoyed it. Later I decided that I wanted a tighter bass and more punch.
Thats when I replaced the tube amp for a solid state. Got a Mac MC252. Gave my system just what it needed. Still have the smoothness of the tube pre and the bass control and slam from the amp.
A tube pre with a solid state amp is the best of both worlds. IMO
 
gizzyman47 said:
My first real stereo was a Audio Research entry level tube amp: VT60 and a LS7 pre-amp. Ran this system for several years and really enjoyed it. Later I decided that I wanted a tighter bass and more punch.
Thats when I replaced the tube amp for a solid state. Got a Mac MC252. Gave my system just what it needed. Still have the smoothness of the tube pre and the bass control and slam from the amp.
A tube pre with a solid state amp is the best of both worlds. IMO
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Thanks. So much to explore.
 
I have owned Audio Research, Conrad Johnson, Dynaco tubes etc.
They sound glorious, but they need to be biased etc.

Solid state I have had here that comes somewhat close.

Sansui integrated amps (505, 555, etc.) They can have real space and dimensionality and low end weight.
Pioneer SX-626/Marantz 2230 but only using the cap coupled amp and running with a Marantz 3200. (Using pre in/main out jacks)
For the above install a 4 pole cap Jensen best but not available now. (For the large power cap)
Mundorf still makes one that works.
 
I find that quality tube design has incredible clarity and holographic sound from the lower mids thru the treble.... Many affordable tube amps fall short with control and slam of lower bass frequencies with big heavy woofers, due at least in part to having a lower damping factor. Mega buck tube amps can have incredible bass too, but not the ones I can afford. There are always a ton of variables, but a very effective solution for my situation was to run a tube preamp, and tube amps on the midbass/treble with a solid state amp on the woofers below 80hz. Best of both worlds.
 
I had collected a bunch of early to mid 70's Marantz separates.
Then I started playing with tubes. In the end I sold off almost all of my SS gear. Tubes justbl sound better to me. Like with anything, there are good designs, and bad designs. One thing to remember with tube equipment, there is some on going maintenance. Occasionally checking and adjusting the bias when needed as the tubes age if the amp has adjustable bias.
I ran the same power tubes in the same amp for around 11 years. I had to adjust the bias once. Recently, I replaced the bias test jacks in one amp with bias meters. Now I can just see from across the room in the bias has drifted. And no more draging out a test meter to check it anymore.
Before, and after.
 

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Lavane said:
I had collected a bunch of early to mid 70's Marantz separates.
Then I started playing with tubes. In the end I sold off almost all of my SS gear. Tubes justbl sound better to me. Like with anything, there are good designs, and bad designs. One thing to remember with tube equipment, there is some on going maintenance. Occasionally checking and adjusting the bias when needed as the tubes age if the amp has adjustable bias.
I ran the same power tubes in the same amp for around 11 years. I had to adjust the bias once. Recently, I replaced the bias test jacks in one amp with bias meters. Now I can just see from across the room in the bias has drifted. And no more draging out a test meter to check it anymore.
Before, and after.
Click to expand...
I'd love to explore tube gear. I've never had a tube amp. Two things have gotten in the way so far. One is cost. The other is lack of knowledge. I wouldn't know how to adjust the bias, as an example, and would have no idea how to figure it out. I've looked for an old Dynaco ST-70 but it seems like people want a fortune for ones that are in good shape. I don't have a local tech who works on them and I wouldn't know how to do it myself.
 
I find that it does affect the sound. The amp probably more though. Depends on your equipment and its quality. If you have higher resolution gear, your going to be able to hear it. Especially if your preamp is grainy/fatiguing sounding.
 
gizzyman47 said:
I find that it does affect the sound. The amp probably more though. Depends on your equipment and its quality. If you have higher resolution gear, your going to be able to hear it. Especially if your preamp is grainy/fatiguing sounding.
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Thanks. Will need to find someone with tube equipment so I can have a listen before buying. It's not like one can find old stuff cheap just to explore.
 
Parallax982 said:
I'd love to explore tube gear. I've never had a tube amp. Two things have gotten in the way so far. One is cost. The other is lack of knowledge. I wouldn't know how to adjust the bias, as an example, and would have no idea how to figure it out. I've looked for an old Dynaco ST-70 but it seems like people want a fortune for ones that are in good shape. I don't have a local tech who works on them and I wouldn't know how to do it myself.
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The Dynaco ST-70's show up here on AK in bartertown fairly often and usually cheaper than ebay prices. We can't discuss prices here in this forum, but I've seen some really nice deals on restored ST-70's in bartertown. Its only $25 for a whole year to subscribe here. And there are some nice deals in all kinds of equipment. The thing is, the ST-70, whether its a Dynaco, Dynakit clone kit amp, or a VTA ST-70 like mine there is lots of support and documentation on them. And you can usually get your money back out of them if they aren't for you.
Some like to run tube preamps with SS power amps and some like SS preamps with tube amps. Heck, you don't even need a preamp to use a ST-70 or pretty much any other tube amp, you just need a volume control and an input selector. Maybe a phono preamp, if you use a turntable.
I'm using my ST-70 right now just connected to the tape out of my preamp bypassing the preamp stage in my preamp. I added a volume control to the amp. It sounds really good all by itself. The other amps in my main system are connected to the pre-outs on my preamp.
 
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