I'm confused; is the Marantz Pearl Lite good or not?
I was looking at the pearl amp lite and cdp. But i'm confused about the reviews. What Hifi says not so good, but Hifinews find it "Outstanding product". What is true? I will also buy the MA RX 6 speakers. For my music, most metal and pop, it sounds very good, very lively with good bass and attack. I also heard Dynaudio Excite X32. Sounds also good expecially the highs, but for my music i think a little boring. No attack and the bass too light (very small woofers).
Maybe i must go for a NAD C356 with the 546 cdp, but it looks horrible and here in the Netherlands NAD has no good reputation.
Or will be the Marantz cd 6004 better than the lite cdp with the lite amp?
Nothing beats a personal demo. Demo the product yourself & decide if you like it or not.
Both.
What Hi-fi? reviewed it as a £900 amp whereas it actually costs £699 in a lot of places now. It might get it's fifth star if re-reviewed with that in mind.
The reviewers on both mags will all have different tastes in sound presentation and choice of music. The partnering equipment would also be different. Their listening rooms will be different and so will yours.
Given the money (somebody elses preferably) and forced to buy to buy a comparable amp right now, I would prefer a Naim Nait 5i but that's just me. (Actually I'd prefer a NaimUniti but that's another kettle of lobsters.)
What Hi-fi? 'get' Cyrus entry level amps, whereas I don't. (Hateful, spitty little things that should come with free Neurofens.) But there are probably more people that love them so don't believe me.
Some prefer Arcam entry level amps, whereas they made me think I had blocked ears on the few occasions I have heard them. (I had an Arcam Solo-Mini and felt it outperformed their A18 by a country mile.)
There really is no accounting for our differences and What Hi-fi? only count for one opinion amongst the many you will get.
You need to listen for yourself. You can't decide on reviews alone.
One thing I did notice is that the range of music used in the HFN review was pretty narrow and there seemed to be nothing there to really test the ability of the amps to handle more large-scale music. Something worth remembering.
I'm sure the Pearl Lite is very capable but it is a very competitive price point and there are several amplifiers worthy of consideration - Naim Nait 5i, Roksan K2, Arcam A18 (particularly with MA speakers), Creek Evolution 2, Yamaha A-S1000 etc. Time to do some demoing to find out what suits you best.
What Hifi says not so good
Really?? 4 stars is "not so good"??
5 stars is "excellent" while 4 stars is "very good". The reviewers themselves insist that both 4 star & 5 star products should be on the shortlist for a demo. It is a myth that only 5 star rated products give the best perofrmance. If partnered correctly, even 3 & 4 star products can outperform badly partnered 5 star products.
If my memory serves me correctly, the Editor of What Hi-Fi (Andy Clough) owns a TV that got "only" 3 stars.
And check Clare Newsome's post #4 here (she was the Editor of What HiFi at that time):
http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/5-star-ratings-or-death-by-stereo
I can buy a new Marantz pearl lite for 777,-- Euro now. A NAD for 600,-- Euro. I love the speed, punchy and rhytmic of the NAD but not the overblown bass and their looks. But with my music sounds good. The Marantz doesn't have the punch, apeed and rhytmic of the NAD. I think it is the cdp. I will listen next week to the Marantz Lite amp with the cd 6004. Also with a NAD, but find in my AV-rack from the same company from the looks most fine.
May I suggest you explore something else?
Rotel amps traditionally have similar punchiness to the NADs and you might find their new RA-11 or RA12 a good match to your needs.
Regarding the NADs, they only have loose, overblown bass if they aren't partnered correctly. The bass in my system is tight and tuneful and the overall sound is very rhythmic and nicely balanced.
In the past i've heard several Rotel products. I never liked them. Too cold sound. And think with MA RX 6 it is a No Go.
From the sound; now NAD on 1 and second the Marantz.
In the past i've heard several Rotel products. I never liked them. Too cold sound. And think with MA RX 6 it is a No Go.
From the sound; now NAD on 1 and second the Marantz.
The only review you should fully trust is via the two things on the side of your head. At the end of the day that's all that matters.
While you're demoing, try and listen to Creek Evo2...
As many said, a home demo is the only way to know.
But, in my various experiences with lots of equipment (which is alot, really!) I found Pearl Lite Amplifier to be one of the best Value for Money products.
Most amps in this price range are too harsh or too fatiguing. So my experiences are mostly based on long hours / days of home demo.
Things I like about the Pearl Lite amp - Very nice high frequency performance. Very silky (not as much as the big brother pearl). I compared it directly with Arcam P7 and still impressed with pearl as well as pearl lite top end performance
Pearl Lite amp has tri-tone control which many purist might dismiss but I consider it to be a big strength especially to tame a complete poorly recorded CD. With the tone controls on (and set all to zero) versus off the difference is almost none except a faint hit on overall volume.
not so good is the speed of the amp but that is only when I compared with my Classe CA-2100 or a Pathos Inpol2 which is kind of unfair. If I have to live with just one integrated amp, then I would chose the pearl lite given its flexibility.
I also want to stress the fact that all albums are not recorded the same but most of us want our HiFi to sound the best with all the albums which is again unfair to our beloved HiFi ! They do work greeat with most genres, most albums but for the rest tri tone control is a better answer !!
I guess soon Pearl Lite should pay me some commission 
If you like the sound of NAD amps so much why not explore alternative speakers? I'm surprised you haven't auditioned any B&Ws - the 684s should certainly be on your list and would pair very well with the NAD. I'd also suggest trying the KEF Q500s as another alternative.
I can buy a new Marantz pearl lite for 777,-- Euro now. A NAD for 600,-- Euro. I love the speed, punchy and rhytmic of the NAD but not the overblown bass and their looks. But with my music sounds good. The Marantz doesn't have the punch, apeed and rhytmic of the NAD. I think it is the cdp. I will listen next week to the Marantz Lite amp with the cd 6004. Also with a NAD, but find in my AV-rack from the same company from the looks most fine.
777 euro for the Pearl Lite amp is a very good price. I heard the amp and it's very good. You have to like the Marantz sound though. The sound is a little bit too warm IMO. Great for jazz/pop but not so much for rock/metal, like most Marantz amps.
I would go for the NAD amps. The C326BEE is very, very good.
If you can find one try out Onkyo's TX-8050. I've been consistently impressed with the abilities of this amp which just picked up a good review in the current issue of hi-fi world magazine where the reviewer - Paul Rigby noted its musical perfomance being above what you'd expect for its price. Check the web too for many positive owner reviews too. Mine is on this site from some months ago.
I use mine daily for hours at a time for music and TV and all you really need to do is check it with MAs. The 8050 works brilliantly with my Tannoys. All in all with its other functionality onboard, DAC etc., this is a very fine amp.
I can buy a new Marantz pearl lite for 777,-- Euro now. A NAD for 600,-- Euro. I love the speed, punchy and rhytmic of the NAD but not the overblown bass and their looks. But with my music sounds good. The Marantz doesn't have the punch, apeed and rhytmic of the NAD. I think it is the cdp. I will listen next week to the Marantz Lite amp with the cd 6004. Also with a NAD, but find in my AV-rack from the same company from the looks most fine.
From sound her with my music i found the NAD the best. Lively and fun listen to. The Marantz seems to slow for my music.
But is the NAD C326 better than the c356? And which cdp is better; the c545 or the c546?
Not as confused as I am. Why not have a listen and make up your own mind? What ever you think is the right answer, for you.
Clone Wars Kenobi or Star Wars Kenobi?
According to reviews, it should sound a little distant, not very upfront. Alas, depends how you want the sound presented.