alburrito Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 Hey guys, Looking to get some advice for my set up. This will be my first HI-FI set up and I don't really know too much about TT and audio equipment. That being said the TT I have had my eye on is the Pro-ject debut carbon. For a receiver, my pal recommends a marantz pm6004. Just want to know what you guys think? Good set up? bad? better stuff out there? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 Not knowing whether you are in the US or Europe but assuming the US by the choices both will not dissapoint but whether they can be bettered is another thing. I'm not fimiliar with the choices you have in the US or the pricing but the Marantz seems expensive in the US compared to here and I am guessing it doesn't have as much competition in the US. The Marantz though is an integrated amplifier not a receiver, a receiver has a radio tuner built in As to other options I see a bit of mention about Cambridge Audio in the US and if I were making the choice here that is where my money would go but I don't know if the pricing in the US makes that viable or not. For a turntable another choice would be the Uturn with the acrylic platter but I haven't seen any direct back to back tests or enough reviews full stop to know if that's a good suggestion or not. I'm sure some VC'ers from that side of the water will give you some better feedback than I Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ent Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I picked up the parasound zphono thanks to a recommendation from ajxd for around $200 with my new Pro-Ject Carbon and I'm very happy with it! Would definitely recommend it for a new hifi setup in a $250 or under budget for a preamp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dethrock Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 Found a guy locally selling some Blue Jeans audio cables. Going to pick up two 3 foot and a 5 foot cable tonight. I won't use them on my setup right now (Pro-ject Essential has pre attached cables) but I'll save them for my next setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 You can Hey guys, Looking to get some advice for my set up. This will be my first HI-FI set up and I don't really know too much about TT and audio equipment. That being said the TT I have had my eye on is the Pro-ject debut carbon. For a receiver, my pal recommends a marantz pm6004. Just want to know what you guys think? Good set up? bad? better stuff out there? Thanks. You can get a great price on the PM6004 right now as the PM6005 recently came out. $399 from One Call http://www.onecall.com/marantz-pm6004?PMNID=416&utm_medium=ppc&PMNID=9504&utm_medium=ppc&device={device}&network={network}&matchtype={matchtype}&gclid=CLPvkY-Yo7oCFStp7AodAFkABA $418 on Amazon or $342 Used-Like New from Amazon Warehouse. I think that's a pretty solid value. http://www.amazon.com/Marantz-PM6004-Integrated-Amplifier/dp/B005J7Y9B0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382195484&sr=8-1&keywords=marantz+PM6004 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmhmm Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Apologies if this question has been asked before but what are people's thoughts on buying audio stuff from eBay? Especially from sellers overseas. For example, I'm looking at this new Marantz PM5004 from South Korea for $320: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=271287242440&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123 The seller has excellent feedback, essentially no complaints. It seems risky given that if it were to arrive and have something wrong with it, I'd potentially have to go through an arduous return/refund process..but the price ain't bad either and it's a silver one, which doesn't seem easy to find these days. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Apologies if this question has been asked before but what are people's thoughts on buying audio stuff from eBay? Especially from sellers overseas. For example, I'm looking at this new Marantz PM5004 from South Korea for $320: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=271287242440&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123 The seller has excellent feedback, essentially no complaints. It seems risky given that if it were to arrive and have something wrong with it, I'd potentially have to go through an arduous return/refund process..but the price ain't bad either and it's a silver one, which doesn't seem easy to find these days. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks. I wouldn't bother. A number of people (myself included) have had good luck finding the PM5004 (black) on Amazon Warehouse for under $200. Many retailers (OneCall, Amazon) have been blowing out the now discontinued PM6004 recent weeks for as low as $400--although it seems that stock/price changes pretty quickly. You can look at price history and set an alert for price drops here: http://camelcamelcamel.com/Marantz-PM6004-Integrated-Amplifier/product/B005J7Y9B0?context=browse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmhmm Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 I wouldn't bother. A number of people (myself included) have had good luck finding the PM5004 (black) on Amazon Warehouse for under $200. Many retailers (OneCall, Amazon) have been blowing out the now discontinued PM6004 recent weeks for as low as $400--although it seems that stock/price changes pretty quickly. You can look at price history and set an alert for price drops here: http://camelcamelcamel.com/Marantz-PM6004-Integrated-Amplifier/product/B005J7Y9B0?context=browse Thanks. I've been looking around and it would seem your under $200 finds were excellent luck...I can't seem to find much of anything for the 5004 under $400, and the same goes for the 6004 but at around $450. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted October 25, 2013 Author Share Posted October 25, 2013 Check here: http://camelcamelcamel.com/Marantz-PM5004-Integrated-Amplifier-Black/product/B003R7KMTC?context=browse Move the date range to "1y" and price type to "3rd party used". You'll see that it was below $200 quite a few times. Just set up an alert like tardcore said and you'll get an instant email when the price drops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmhmm Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Check here: http://camelcamelcamel.com/Marantz-PM5004-Integrated-Amplifier-Black/product/B003R7KMTC?context=browse Move the date range to "1y" and price type to "3rd party used". You'll see that it was below $200 quite a few times. Just set up an alert like tardcore said and you'll get an instant email when the price drops. Done. Thank you. Aesthetically speaking, I do like the silver one that guy on eBay is selling. And it is new...I like it more than the black one, actually. But I can't find the silver one anywhere. The few that have responded to me seem to think it's not worth it given that there have been used ones for under 200. But if I like the silver one more than the black and it's new, perhaps it's worth pulling the trigger on given the difficulty of tracking down silver ones? Yes, I know the color is the silliest of reasons and I'm generally not one to be picky but aesthetics are important to my wife if this thing is going to be a prominent place in our house, and she likes that silver one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 I think that the silver version may be import only. If you really have your heart set on that particular version of that particular item, you may not have many options. the heavy mark-up and additional risk seems a bit insane to me, but be sure to let us know how it works out for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmhmm Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 I think that the silver version may be import only. If you really have your heart set on that particular version of that particular item, you may not have many options. the heavy mark-up and additional risk seems a bit insane to me, but be sure to let us know how it works out for you. Yeah, I'm going to think it over... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted October 25, 2013 Author Share Posted October 25, 2013 Just note that the one in your ebay link is a 220V model, so if you're in the US you'll need a step up transformer. Also, you'll most likely have to pay import tax, but I have no idea how high that is in US. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 You can quite often get a 220V supply in the US as you generally get two 110V phases and a nuetral as your supply into the house, you get 220V accross the two 110V phases but you would need to talk to an electrician if you haven't already got a 220V outlet in your house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpazzyMcGee Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 First time looking at the "equipment" topics, great info on having a good setup. Never thought about changing the cartridge (haven't been collecting for too long). Did have a speaker curiosity though, anyone have any thoughts/opinions on Cerwin Vega speakers? Specifically the DX-1 model. Looking to change out my current speakers (25+ years old) and saw my grandmother had a pair of them at her house. They'd be free which is their biggest selling point but I was just wondering. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 IMO you can do a better than Cerwin Vega for the money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neanderthal Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Hey, this is an awesome thread! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aju2streets Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Just note that the one in your ebay link is a 220V model, so if you're in the US you'll need a step up transformer. Also, you'll most likely have to pay import tax, but I have no idea how high that is in US. Your signature makes me cringe every time I see it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aju2streets Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 Would this work as a receiver? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jase Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 If it has an auxiliary input, it would work(depending on your turntable/preamp). Would it sound like garbage? Absolutely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 If it has an auxiliary input, it would work(depending on your turntable/preamp). Would it sound like garbage? Absolutely. +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aju2streets Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 Ok then. Not going with that. Keeping in mind that I'm not an audiophile in any way will these two speakers function together as left and right speakers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooks Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 I can't tell if you are serious or trolling the hi-fi dudes here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 Ok then. Not going with that. Keeping in mind that I'm not an audiophile in any way will these two speakers function together as left and right speakers? One of these things is not like the other. One of these things just doesn't belong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jase Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 Ok then. Not going with that. Keeping in mind that I'm not an audiophile in any way will these two speakers function together as left and right speakers? It would work. Would it sound like garbage? Absolutely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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