Go a little further in time and higher in receivers' range....In the late '70's, I had Bose 901 Series II speakers, which make big sound and can be driven by as few as 15 watts. My friend had the same speakers but drove them with a Macintosh 1700 receiver, rated at about 50 WPC. I had a Pioneer sx780 receiver rated at 45 WPC. After first hearing my Pioneer with the Bose, my friend said, "It sounds better than my Mac." I thought the sound each receiver was about equal. The 780 had a secret weapon: when the music demanded it, for a few seconds the power would automatically double to 90 to 100 WPC. If you don't believe that feature exists, look at the fine print in the Pioneer's owner manual. The sx780 is one of the most underrated receivers of the era. Buying a good working Mac 1700 receiver on EBAY now will cost around $1,000 or more US dollars. An sx780 will cost anywhere from $200 to $400. The better cost effective buy is the Pioneer.
The Sansui has half the wattage or less. Ive owned 100s of pieces. Sansui is my favorite. The 7000 receiver from the early 70s is the best receiver ive ever owned. Its the cousin to the Sansui Eight.
I have a Sansui 551, Sweet well balanced sound, what a little beast. Besides rated at 16W it sounds like it has twice the power of a 2005 Receiver rated at 110W per channel.
All the 70´s Marantz gear are voiced with a rolled off treble, making them appear more gutsy and powerful . Really important in the 70´s listening rooms at the sellers. I had two differnet mid tier Marantz recievers and couldent really get what the fuss was all about For the real thing I would strongly recommend Akai , Hitachi and Nakamichi 70´s gear , they are as neutral as it gets for the 70´s and these are very musical with a hint of warmth making them match with just about any speaker,even modern ones. The prices for second hand Akais are rising each year ... Even though the Sansui AU-series (Black face) cant be beat. Its a very different beast. Vast soundstage coupled with sugery texture, the one you cant stop listening too. Totally worth the high second hand prices asked for. (Very high)
Yes interesting comments 8317 just sold on eBay for £380 which is about double what it should be Yes and Marantz push the mid range forward I would say it’s initially impressive Cheers J
In the early 70s I had KLH 17s with a 17 wpc Sherwood receiver. This setup was MUCH more dynamic than my later more expensive system with Large Advents and SAE separates. The test was the first note of Kachti's Fire Dance from Stravinski's The Firebird Suite. I'm a nervous guy and the first five or six times I played it, it really startled me, like a hammer blow, through the Sherwood. I used to get nervous when I knew it was approaching but wasn't sure when. On the SAE/Advents it was no big deal.
Great review and you’re absolutely right with regards to the Sansui. I just got the Sansui 5050 and it’s dynamic, clean clear sound, musical and well balance. Love it!!1
I have the same type of collection. I generally agree with your observations. I would describe the Marantz sound as punchy, Pioneer as an articulate high end and Sansui as warm across all frequencies.
I have 70's Yamaha CR820, Marantz 2230 and Sansui 2000x and Sansui is my favourite. It's like hearing all songs you already knew for the first time again. It presents music in such unique way. I love it. Now I'm saving for Sansui 881 or 8080 or Eight.. something higher end.
I just had my dads Sansui AU9500 fully restored and am amazed at how good a powerful a nearly 50 year old integrated can be. It had no problem powering my Sonus Faber Sonetto iii’s to ear shattering levels.
The silver face face off. My first exposure to hi fi is my dad’s Pioneer. Tortured day and night with Bowie, Clash, Rush, etc. as far as I can remember, the SX650 is is good with hi and low end, lacks in the mids department. I got a Marantz 2352B in 2010 and quite like it. It is very good with classical and opera. I have a Sansui silver and black perspex face (idk the #) that I still need to hook up
Yes. Sansui again. First day Our top Sansui came to the House after check-in after purchase We just Said Wow. Smiled and agreed it would never leave. With larger Focal speaker Its the world
I have this Sansui 441 and it's sounds superb with only 11w connected with my advents prodigy towers sounds very very cristaline and clear. I love it. I compared with my others receivers such as Marantz 2225L , Marantz 4300 and Onkyo a-7050 and all of them sounds different. In my oppinion, Marantz has got a darker, concentrated and punchy sound (I love it). As I said... Sansui has got a cristaline treble and Onkyo is very soft in all frequencies. It's my oppinion. Thank you very much! Great channel!
I had a lovely old Yamaha receiver from about 1975 which to my ears was just about perfect. It continued to work hard for decades until my cat violently vomited his grassballs into the top vent at the rear. Try as I might to get somebody to repair it (it just stopped working full stop) I can't, but I wont let it go to the dump until I've tried a hundred experts. The sound was superbly balanced, not bright or boomy, and very refined.
@@stereoreviewx I doubt they make any heavy knobs and switches like they had either, so who knows, one day somebody may be delighted to have it for spares.
Marantz is like soft-ice with extra cream on top. Tastes delicious but you can't clearly say if it's strawberry or blueberry. Sansui is like clear, ice. Made of pure water with delicious defined smelling.
I have the sx 1250 a technics sx 1000 and a realistic str 2000 and I personally think the realistic is a great full bodied sound especially with classic rock. But I think the technics is the king of my collection. I run it with cerwin vega D9 and D5 and it is very clean and not overly boomy bass with well placed mids
I have a 1975 Pioneer SX 535 Receiver and a Turntable too...still running fine. How can I can add a subwoofer, though I don't need it? Cheers from Toronto.
I have a Marantz 2245, and a 2253b receiver, and a 1030 integrated amplifier, as well as a couple of the lesser desirable SR, and MR series receivers made later in the 80s. I swear by my earlier 70s vintage Marantz units, and think they sound better than anything I've ever heard. I did own a few Sansui receivers, and didn't think they sounded as good as my Marantz receivers. They sounded more like a Harman Kardon 5.1 home theater receiver I bought in the early 2000s. Not as detailed as early Marantzes. I only have 1 Sansui left, an integrated amplifier an AU-D77X, that needs to recapped, but when I was using it, that also had a similar sound to the newer HK. Sound is all relative, and subject to opinion, and I'm sure all our ears, to some degree, will differ, as everyone will have their own opinion. As for me, my ears are biased, and loyal, and I will stick with my Marantz units over any Sansui, Pioneer, Kenwood, Rotel, Nikko, Realistic, Tandberg, etc.
Do the amps have comparable output? Do all 3 amps have equal quality and very low volume levels? How can you compare sound quality using various pieces of music rather than several specific pieces that you know when they sound right and when they dont.
I appreciate your comments ant taste I was just wondering if you have heard the Sansui AS-100. Possibly the best speakers sbsui ever made. I have a month pair
Re;Marantz stick to low power amps...2225/2230 & yes definitely the blue bulbs just for the looks! The higher power through the marantz lines the more bass dominant they are. Low power amps are much more subtle & detailed. Of course just mho!
In the year 2001 I brought one Sansui HT1000 Amp with dolby pro logic surround decoding only cost that time's 121 dollars, came with 5 speakers and a double phase auto standby active subwoofer, the amp has no speaker distance setting, only center and rear volume controls, which could do fine calibration of more than 20 soundstage in room size from 3 meters to 15 meters size room its sound and soundstage is perfect. I never got tired listening to any sort of sound or music in that sansui amp, never repaired but from 3 year ago it's rear channels started cutting off so I brought one Sony's dolby digital pro logic 2 dts amp all the modern controls but still it could not give that quality of sansui.
try this combo and you will be amazed, sansui amp + pioneer HPM speakers, nothing beats this, you would love the very perfect sound, any song will do, but to test the ability, try the song Earthquake by flirtations, and you won't stop listening over and over again.
Verbally describing the sound of these amps is fine but, nothing would beat letting us hear the actual amps. Just talking about it doesn't give me much information.
Ye p. That's the classic rap on these three. Pioneer has always had a rep for brightness compared to the other brands, Sansui a rep for smoothness, and Marantz for a big sound.
Just bought a Sansui 9090 on Ebay. Just extraordinary. So much better and "warmer" than my NAD 7275PE. Less "shouty". Some coloration in the bass I think but so many knobs to twiddle everything can adjusted for. Playing through Rogers LS7s. Doesn't get any better. Living Stereo CDs sound incredible. My son asked me if it had a CD input (am using AUX). I told him this was built well before CD was invented!!!
@@stereoreviewx It's thanks to you and your reviews on TH-cam!! I can't thank you enough - your ability to express what are really subtle audio qualities is exceptional!
Full disclosure, I used to be a Marantz fan. But what I've found is that most Marantz owners are loyal to a fault. After they hear Sansuis they sometimes can admit the more pleasant sound, BUT then start in on the looks, the tuning wheel, the resale value, etc. (Fact is, anyone who has a well maintained Sansui WON'T EVER sell, unless it to buy another Sansui!) I admit, Marantz are better looking! But Sansui are better sounding, and this hobby is all about the sound.
Marantz 2265B The 9KHz filter really helps when I play 78s, cassettes and 45rpm An Eq is a must 10 band EQ (31Hz to 16KHz settings) helps i find There are many filters and loudness buttons also...just a few suggestions - never have your loudness button engaged at high or even moderate loudness or risk early expiration of your drivers. The loudness button should only be used at low volumes to boost key listening frequencies.My experience on Marantz 2265B Also pre amp also helps a great deal in fine tuning the perfect sound quality....
I hope you were listening through better speakers than on top of the Marantz...you must connect these amps to Japanese speakers with 10", 12" and 15" woofers...Rogers are wrong for these amps.
@@stereoreviewx i got it. i'm trying to decide if i like it enough to get rid of the realistic sta-2000 i've been using. it is less "harsh" but it also seems a little less precise through the same klipsch speakers.
Maybe you could find someone to plug them for you and show you you how to work them, so we could hear them. You say sound comparison, I didn't hear any sound at all on your "comparison". Just learn how to work them and then play them and we can decide which one sounds better. We can listen to them on our stereos, and yes it won't sound like we're there, but it's enough fidelity that we could hear the difference. I bought that Sansui 221 new in 1976 and I'm still using it. I also have an older model Pioneer and had an older Marantz so when I saw your title I thought fantastic this guy will do a sound comparison (like is says in your title). Unfortunately your video is just a waste of our time. Study up on them and maybe you could do another video letting us hear them. You'll probably get a lot more views. Good luck and congrats on collecting some great receivers.
I love my Sansui 9090db. I found one at a auction dusty for $2. Pure Heaven. 🎼 🎵 🎵 🎵 🔊 🎤 💒 ☝ totally open my eyes for the first time in my life or what good music really was
I just picked up a Marantz 2325 and Im amazed with the sound. I have newer stuff.. yamaha, adcom, and I couldnt be more pleased with the 1970's era Marantz. I also have a Harmon Kardon 430 which also sounds so very sweet. Im running a set of Magnepan .7's with a sub on the Marantz 2325 right now and its like velvet to the ears.
Good review for different 3 brands with different characters and basic sound at varies sound range.....so good to know vintage amplifier sound base.....great job, pls keep up the good work n await to watch your next video🙏👍👍😊
I have the three brands and they are similar, but have their "sonic signatures". Hard to quantify, but in a nutshell as follows. Marantz > More lower end, big fat sound, a lot like the effect of when you push the loudness button on a receiver. A "house" sound as some call it, full bodied, not as detailed as others but still no slouch. Pioneer > Nice mid range, a little brighter and not as much bass, but still good. Sansui > Smooth all around and less listener fatigue. Love it on complicated Jazz & Rock genres, he is spot on. Let's face it, some like a lot of bass, or loud sounds or high end sounds, others do not. It's a personal choice. And remember, sound frequency is from 20hz to 20Khz and the amplification of that has already been perfected back in the 1960's -1970's.
It was characteristic for amps and receivers to get brighter (and edgier) from the mid 70s into the late 70s. The Marantz is no exception and your 2238 was from the late 70s where as the Pioneer was about 1976 and the Sansui about 1973. The reason for this is -- greater use of ICs throughout especially the phone stage -- application of too much global feed back which was done to improve paper specs but it also makes the amp sound harsher and more brittle. Check out the earlier Marantz receivers with the aqua blue displays. They sounded a lot smoother like the Sansui (they didn't spec out as well) and they had no where near as many ICs. Also the late 70s Sansui (the G series was a bit bright and edgy as well) though not as much as Marantz or late 70s pioneer. A friend had an Pioneer SA8500 II integrated. Great bass but too harsh and edgy and that caused listener fatigue so he parted company quick. Yet the early SA8500 Mk 1 was so much sweeter.
Sorry to contradict you bro, but I have a Sansui G-4500 and it doesn't sound like you say. On the contrary, it's one of the most exquisite receivers I've ever had. It makes any good quality speaker, obviously, that you plug into it sound wonderful. I own 3 and they sound amazing too but Sansui sounds equal or better.
Aged caps play a roll in the quality of sound due to the age of the receivers. Some of the same name receivers with different models sounds a world apart on overall sound. For example I have a marantz 2500, 2252b side by side and the 2252b sounds better but the 2500 is stronger in power. That being said tho the units in the video for what they are correctly described in my opinion.
I own a vintage Marantz 2226 receiver and a vintage Pioneer SX1250 receiver. On the look out for a Sansui. Anyway comparing both my vintage receivers with everything else equal the Marantz sounds very good but the Pioneer sounds great to my ears and is more dynamic, exciting and just sounds right. I have also had a number of modern amps over the years and the Pioneer so far has been the best of the bunch. So if I had to take a choice between them I’d go with the Pioneer.
@@stereoreviewx thanks, and a merry Christmas to you too. I hope you had a good one? Anyway delighted to say that Santa brought me a Sansui 2000X receiver, I must have been a very good boy this year 😂 Will let you know what I think after I’ve had time getting acquainted with it.
@@spacehopper77 That’s a great receiver. I have a Sansui model SD-7000 7” reel to reel, auto-reverse and repeat, in absolute mint condition....if interested. I have maybe a dozen,or so, blank Scotch 7” reel to reel tapes. I’ve not put it up for sale. Just reading your comment made me think of it. Other Sansui stuff available. Receivers, speakers, turntable, equalizer, reverb amp, etc.....
He's...entitled to his own opinion. Like a previous comment or noticed/observed, this year is 40/plus years old, so, unless each piece has been *completely* refurbished, it's...well...how much/little have these receivers depreciated in quality. Pioneer, Sansui & Marantz(along with Kenwood & a few others)all made good "mid-to-upper consumer grade components". Not "Audiophile", but we'll above a lot of the crap that was out at the time.
I hope your channel takes off and brings you loads of quids. I want to see a whole stack of amps on that table. You have a great way of talking about them.
He has a brilliant way of talking but characters like Andrew Robinson get attention while something like this stays in the shadows because people only listen to what they want to hear.
Well if this wasnt what i needed to hear, thank you! I just got hands on a Marantz 2220b and i love the sound. Its so good and crisp while having an incredibly defined and powerful bottom end. Much more bass than my a757 Pioneer. But since im dealing with tinnitus, this harshness you mention, had been beginning to bug me. I think ive also just played too loud since ive got it but im definitely not able to have hours long listening session without an increase in the tinnitus. I iam now in search of a Sansui that hopefully gets me better sound than my a757 but less harshness compared to the Marantz. Let this also be a testament to bass of Pioneer vs Marantz products. My Bose 601 III DOES bass. But not on that Pioneer, even turned all the way up it definitely felt lacking in the bass depth even if it was able to fill out the room. The 2220B has more bass with no change to balance than the a757 do full bass on the tone control. Thats 20W vs 100W, i did not see that coming.
I love marantz ,love pioneer and love sansui to my soul ,but between this 3 if u asked me which one was more beautiful listening, and musical sansui all the way every day.
Just purchased a Marantz 2220b and after the honeymoon phase my tinnitus is hating on me. The sound from that thing compared to my a757 is much more detailed, dynamic and powerful. But man it is not comfortable for long sessions. My heart is saying yes but my ears are screaming nope. Might have to give a Sansui a try as i feel the Pioneer lacking in dynamics and bass. Especially now..
I liked your review, but am not convinced that you can use any model level from the '70's of each brand. It would be better if they were all of an equal original retail price and they were all fully refurbished, then you could compare them. But from Pioneer at LEAST, use an SX 950!
Used to service these in the 1980's for a living. Used to measure the distortion, noise floor, S/N ratio, and frequency response. The amplifiers are pretty indistinguishable in the upper end models with discreet transistors. Those that used the amplifier modules, were a little higher in noise, and THD. The tuners varied widely. Different manufactures used different IF filters. Some used inexpensive ceramic filters with sharp cutoff. Others used a tuned IF with a softer cut off. After the IF, the notch filter for the 19KHZ stereo pilot affected the ability to reproduce audio above 12KHZ, as some rolled off considerably, while other higher order filters, rolled off sharply above 16 or 17 KHZ. I don't remember which ones were which much anymore. I did like the Marantz, Sansui, and upper end Kenwood receivers. I am not a fan of the Pioneer in comparison.
I think it also depends on what speakers you mate the amp with. The same speakers can sound quite different depending on the amp. I have my Marantz 2325 running through KLH Model 5s
@@stereoreviewx I have Kenwood 7j speakers. And i want to use Sansui amplifier with Equalizer Model # A900xv... Is it ok with this combination? Because i noticed that Sansui Amplifier produces clear sound instead of Kenwood. What you will suggest me? Should i use Kenwood amplifier or should I go with Sansui?
I have my Marantz 2325 and Teac A-2300SX on BIC Formula 6 Speakers. Purchased them in early 1976. Had payments almost as much as my car payment. System still works great today.
Obviously those are all great receivers. You can't go wrong with any of them. I'm running a Kenwood KR-5600 receiver, paired with Bose 501 Series III speakers. Makes for a nice warm sound. And I've always loved the Kenwood's look!
@@stereoreviewx Yeah....have had my Sansui 5000X since 73 I believe. Got a 2270 in 77 or 78. Used it til 1999-2000. sold it on eBay, when eBay was an actual auction site. Got about $900 for it. Been using the 5000X ever since. Haven’t missed the 2270 one bit. Don’t get me wrong, it sounded great...just not as good as the Sansui.
I have just restored a Pioneer SA7500 and a 8800ii. These amps put out a big sound with a solid bass. I upgraded the loudness controls by going up a level in the silicon caps.
Go a little further in time and higher in receivers' range....In the late '70's, I had Bose 901 Series II speakers, which make big sound and can be driven by as few as 15 watts. My friend had the same speakers but drove them with a Macintosh 1700 receiver, rated at about 50 WPC. I had a Pioneer sx780 receiver rated at 45 WPC. After first hearing my Pioneer with the Bose, my friend said, "It sounds better than my Mac." I thought the sound each receiver was about equal. The 780 had a secret weapon: when the music demanded it, for a few seconds the power would automatically double to 90 to 100 WPC. If you don't believe that feature exists, look at the fine print in the Pioneer's owner manual. The sx780 is one of the most underrated receivers of the era. Buying a good working Mac 1700 receiver on EBAY now will cost around $1,000 or more US dollars. An sx780 will cost anywhere from $200 to $400. The better cost effective buy is the Pioneer.
Yeah,the 780 was the sweet spot of the 80 line.I've had mine for almost 45 years.Still going strong.
The Sansui has half the wattage or less. Ive owned 100s of pieces. Sansui is my favorite. The 7000 receiver from the early 70s is the best receiver ive ever owned. Its the cousin to the Sansui Eight.
Okay 100 pieces I don’t think I’m even trying😀
I have a Sansui 551, Sweet well balanced sound, what a little beast. Besides rated at 16W it sounds like it has twice the power of a 2005 Receiver rated at 110W per channel.
All the 70´s Marantz gear are voiced with a rolled off treble, making them appear more gutsy and powerful . Really important in the 70´s listening rooms at the sellers. I had two differnet mid tier Marantz recievers and couldent really get what the fuss was all about
For the real thing I would strongly recommend Akai , Hitachi and Nakamichi 70´s gear , they are as neutral as it gets for the 70´s and these are very musical with a hint of warmth making them match with just about any speaker,even modern ones. The prices for second hand Akais are rising each year ... Even though the Sansui AU-series (Black face) cant be beat. Its a very different beast. Vast soundstage coupled with sugery texture, the one you cant stop listening too. Totally worth the high second hand prices asked for. (Very high)
Yes interesting comments 8317 just sold on eBay for £380 which is about double what it should be
Yes and Marantz push the mid range forward I would say it’s initially impressive
Cheers J
In the early 70s I had KLH 17s with a 17 wpc Sherwood receiver. This setup was MUCH more dynamic than my later more expensive system with Large Advents and SAE separates. The test was the first note of Kachti's Fire Dance from Stravinski's The Firebird Suite. I'm a nervous guy and the first five or six times I played it, it really startled me, like a hammer blow, through the Sherwood. I used to get nervous when I knew it was approaching but wasn't sure when. On the SAE/Advents it was no big deal.
Great review and you’re absolutely right with regards to the Sansui. I just got the Sansui 5050 and it’s dynamic, clean clear sound, musical and well balance. Love it!!1
I have the same type of collection. I generally agree with your observations. I would describe the Marantz sound as punchy, Pioneer as an articulate high end and Sansui as warm across all frequencies.
@Alaina Odonell I'm guessing-at this juncture-no one gives a shit.
I have 70's Yamaha CR820, Marantz 2230 and Sansui 2000x and Sansui is my favourite. It's like hearing all songs you already knew for the first time again. It presents music in such unique way. I love it. Now I'm saving for Sansui 881 or 8080 or Eight.. something higher end.
Curious if you have ever compared some vintage Onkyo equipment and how that paired up against the others?
I just had my dads Sansui AU9500 fully restored and am amazed at how good a powerful a nearly 50 year old integrated can be. It had no problem powering my Sonus Faber Sonetto iii’s to ear shattering levels.
Brad I one too .The sound is beautiful with lots of power The build quality is brilliant
The silver face face off. My first exposure to hi fi is my dad’s Pioneer. Tortured day and night with Bowie, Clash, Rush, etc. as far as I can remember, the SX650 is is good with hi and low end, lacks in the mids department. I got a Marantz 2352B in 2010 and quite like it. It is very good with classical and opera. I have a Sansui silver and black perspex face (idk the #) that I still need to hook up
I have the same headphones...love them! A lot of sound for the money.
Sansui is still my favorite
Yes i like all 3 brands. Harmon Kardon also.
Yes. Sansui again. First day Our top Sansui came to the House after check-in after purchase We just Said Wow. Smiled and agreed it would never leave. With larger Focal speaker Its the world
I have this Sansui 441 and it's sounds superb with only 11w connected with my advents prodigy towers sounds very very cristaline and clear. I love it. I compared with my others receivers such as Marantz 2225L , Marantz 4300 and Onkyo a-7050 and all of them sounds different. In my oppinion, Marantz has got a darker, concentrated and punchy sound (I love it). As I said... Sansui has got a cristaline treble and Onkyo is very soft in all frequencies. It's my oppinion. Thank you very much! Great channel!
Thanks for the feedback my friend regarding the tuna I’ve got to say I never use it cheersK
I had a lovely old Yamaha receiver from about 1975 which to my ears was just about perfect. It continued to work hard for decades until my cat violently vomited his grassballs into the top vent at the rear. Try as I might to get somebody to repair it (it just stopped working full stop) I can't, but I wont let it go to the dump until I've tried a hundred experts. The sound was superbly balanced, not bright or boomy, and very refined.
Yes I agree keep it there may come a day when people want these things even if they don’t work they just look great
@@stereoreviewx I doubt they make any heavy knobs and switches like they had either, so who knows, one day somebody may be delighted to have it for spares.
@@Tampo-tiger
Love the bull terrier....is the cat still alive?
@@dr.jamesolack8504 Yes, he's nearly ten now. I can't believe how quickly time has flown.
Marantz is like soft-ice with extra cream on top. Tastes delicious but you can't clearly say if it's strawberry or blueberry. Sansui is like clear, ice. Made of pure water with delicious defined smelling.
That marantz has just thesame sound as my marantz cd63 player, may not so spatial but has more punch/vibration, you can feel it
I have the sx 1250 a technics sx 1000 and a realistic str 2000 and I personally think the realistic is a great full bodied sound especially with classic rock. But I think the technics is the king of my collection. I run it with cerwin vega D9 and D5 and it is very clean and not overly boomy bass with well placed mids
I had a Yamaha CR 1020. We may be reunited soon, I'm hoping.
I have a 1975 Pioneer SX 535 Receiver and a Turntable too...still running fine. How can I can add a subwoofer, though I don't need it? Cheers from Toronto.
THANKS KELVIN, MUCH APPRECIATED FOR SHARING THIS WITH All 🤗👍💚💚💚
I have a Marantz 2245, and a 2253b receiver, and a 1030 integrated amplifier, as well as a couple of the lesser desirable SR, and MR series receivers made later in the 80s. I swear by my earlier 70s vintage Marantz units, and think they sound better than anything I've ever heard. I did own a few Sansui receivers, and didn't think they sounded as good as my Marantz receivers. They sounded more like a Harman Kardon 5.1 home theater receiver I bought in the early 2000s. Not as detailed as early Marantzes. I only have 1 Sansui left, an integrated amplifier an AU-D77X, that needs to recapped, but when I was using it, that also had a similar sound to the newer HK. Sound is all relative, and subject to opinion, and I'm sure all our ears, to some degree, will differ, as everyone will have their own opinion. As for me, my ears are biased, and loyal, and I will stick with my Marantz units over any Sansui, Pioneer, Kenwood, Rotel, Nikko, Realistic, Tandberg, etc.
Oh fair enough my friend I can see you have done the subject in detail
I guess we all do have our preferences
Good luck happy hi fi K
Do the amps have comparable output? Do all 3 amps have equal quality and very low volume levels? How can you compare sound quality using various pieces of music rather than several specific pieces that you know when they sound right and when they dont.
I appreciate your comments ant taste
I was just wondering if you have heard the Sansui AS-100. Possibly the best speakers sbsui ever made. I have a month pair
I love the Marantz sound.
SANSUI! BRAVO!
Re;Marantz stick to low power amps...2225/2230 & yes definitely the blue bulbs just for the looks!
The higher power through the marantz lines the more bass dominant they are.
Low power amps are much more subtle & detailed.
Of course just mho!
Appreciate the information K
What a nice review of you . i appreciate of it !!!
In the year 2001 I brought one Sansui HT1000 Amp with dolby pro logic surround decoding only cost that time's 121 dollars, came with 5 speakers and a double phase auto standby active subwoofer, the amp has no speaker distance setting, only center and rear volume controls, which could do fine calibration of more than 20 soundstage in room size from 3 meters to 15 meters size room its sound and soundstage is perfect. I never got tired listening to any sort of sound or music in that sansui amp, never repaired but from 3 year ago it's rear channels started cutting off so I brought one Sony's dolby digital pro logic 2 dts amp all the modern controls but still it could not give that quality of sansui.
try this combo and you will be amazed, sansui amp + pioneer HPM speakers, nothing beats this, you would love the very perfect sound, any song will do, but to test the ability, try the song Earthquake by flirtations, and you won't stop listening over and over again.
Verbally describing the sound of these amps is fine but, nothing would beat letting us hear the actual amps. Just talking about it doesn't give me much information.
All 3 have different sound,but my favorite is the pioneer,pioneer is my choice and I have several receivers and pioneer is king of receivers.
Say what you mean 😜
Ye p. That's the classic rap on these three. Pioneer has always had a rep for brightness compared to the other brands, Sansui a rep for smoothness, and Marantz for a big sound.
Just bought a Sansui 9090 on Ebay. Just extraordinary. So much better and "warmer" than my NAD 7275PE. Less "shouty". Some coloration in the bass I think but so many knobs to twiddle everything can adjusted for. Playing through Rogers LS7s. Doesn't get any better. Living Stereo CDs sound incredible. My son asked me if it had a CD input (am using AUX). I told him this was built well before CD was invented!!!
So glad you’re getting the Sansui sound it is just gorgeous
I’ve had at least 10 people say I just got to Sansui and it’s brilliant cheers K
@@stereoreviewx It's thanks to you and your reviews on TH-cam!! I can't thank you enough - your ability to express what are really subtle audio qualities is exceptional!
Nice review! Maybe you can look up the newprice of the amps and correct it to todays money? That way you get a better comparison in my opinion.
The Marantz was the most expensive I would bet on that
Those mythological speaker prices have gone loopy on e-bay £1-2k.....
Whats a quid ? for us yanks.....I got a Marantz 2226b . So the Marantz is the best for metal or hard rock ?
a pound its 1.25 dollars to the pound right now
Very good shootout
Sansui wins...AGAIN!!
I can’t help it it’s just true
Full disclosure, I used to be a Marantz fan.
But what I've found is that most Marantz owners are loyal to a fault. After they hear Sansuis they sometimes can admit the more pleasant sound, BUT then start in on the looks, the tuning wheel, the resale value, etc.
(Fact is, anyone who has a well maintained Sansui WON'T EVER sell, unless it to buy another Sansui!)
I admit, Marantz are better looking!
But Sansui are better sounding, and this hobby is all about the sound.
In order to do a proper sound comparison one needs some serious bookshelf speakers such as Pioneer CS99a’s!
Amplifiers sound different, yeah? Yeah!
Marantz 2265B
The 9KHz filter really helps when I play 78s, cassettes and 45rpm
An Eq is a must 10 band EQ (31Hz to 16KHz settings) helps i find
There are many filters and loudness buttons also...just a few suggestions - never have your loudness button engaged at high or even moderate loudness or risk early expiration of your drivers. The loudness button should only be used at low volumes to boost key listening frequencies.My experience on Marantz 2265B Also pre amp also helps a great deal in fine tuning the perfect sound quality....
I haven’t done it for ages but my understanding is the loudness doesn’t do anything once sure significant volumes
@@stereoreviewx
I’m sorry.....could you rephrase that please.
@@dr.jamesolack8504 Once you get to around 40% 50% of your volume knob the loudness will not be effective it won’t be doing anything
I hope you were listening through better speakers than on top of the Marantz...you must connect these amps to Japanese speakers with 10", 12" and 15" woofers...Rogers are wrong for these amps.
Honestly I have many different speakers
Oh I forgot to mention the speakers suggest cerwin vega D9 speakers monster wires. Set at low ohms.
How the yamaha or technics compair to these?
i'm about to buy a sansui g3000. have you ever had one?
No I haven’t
You can’t go far wrong
@@stereoreviewx thanks, from looking at eBay i'm probably not stealing it
@@stereoreviewx i got it. i'm trying to decide if i like it enough to get rid of the realistic sta-2000 i've been using. it is less "harsh" but it also seems a little less precise through the same klipsch speakers.
Some vintage Sony receivers such as the 6055, 6060, 7045, 5800 also have great sound.
hey, pal that all "sound" OK but where is the real demo sound?
Yeah? Yeah.
Yeah? Yeah
Yeah?
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Those comparisons made are among unequal receivers: the Marantz is 38 wpc; the Pioneer is 20 wpc; the Sansui is 11 wpc.
Rubbish mate
Maybe you could find someone to plug them for you and show you you how to work them, so we could hear them. You say sound comparison, I didn't hear any sound at all on your "comparison". Just learn how to work them and then play them and we can decide which one sounds better. We can listen to them on our stereos, and yes it won't sound like we're there, but it's enough fidelity that we could hear the difference. I bought that Sansui 221 new in 1976 and I'm still using it. I also have an older model Pioneer and had an older Marantz so when I saw your title I thought fantastic this guy will do a sound comparison (like is says in your title). Unfortunately your video is just a waste of our time. Study up on them and maybe you could do another video letting us hear them. You'll probably get a lot more views. Good luck and congrats on collecting some great receivers.
Que manera de mentir... Nie el se la cree
PLAY THE RECEIVERSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
nice one geezer
talk a lot
we prefer sound demo !
It’s incredibly hard to do this properly I have discovered a microphone is different to a human pair of ears
Какой же противный и грубый английский язык !
I love my Sansui 9090db. I found one at a auction dusty for $2. Pure Heaven. 🎼 🎵 🎵 🎵 🔊 🎤 💒 ☝ totally open my eyes for the first time in my life or what good music really was
Wow that's like waking up Christmas morning and finding your favorite Hot Wheels in a red box.
My first 9090 was free as a matter of fact the guy paid me to take it away, still sounded the same.
@@tommywingate2220 I look weekly at thrift stores and garage hoping to run across a find like yours So lucky.
I just picked up a Marantz 2325 and Im amazed with the sound. I have newer stuff.. yamaha, adcom, and I couldnt be more pleased with the 1970's era Marantz. I also have a Harmon Kardon 430 which also sounds so very sweet. Im running a set of Magnepan .7's with a sub on the Marantz 2325 right now and its like velvet to the ears.
how does the HK 430 compares to the Marantz?
Good review for different 3 brands with different characters and basic sound at varies sound range.....so good to know vintage amplifier sound base.....great job, pls keep up the good work n await to watch your next video🙏👍👍😊
I have the three brands and they are similar, but have their "sonic signatures". Hard to quantify, but in a nutshell as follows. Marantz > More lower end, big fat sound, a lot like the effect of when you push the loudness button on a receiver. A "house" sound as some call it, full bodied, not as detailed as others but still no slouch. Pioneer > Nice mid range, a little brighter and not as much bass, but still good. Sansui > Smooth all around and less listener fatigue. Love it on complicated Jazz & Rock genres, he is spot on. Let's face it, some like a lot of bass, or loud sounds or high end sounds, others do not. It's a personal choice. And remember, sound frequency is from 20hz to 20Khz and the amplification of that has already been perfected back in the 1960's -1970's.
I think I pretty much agree with you
Appreciate your comments thanks Kelvin
It was characteristic for amps and receivers to get brighter (and edgier) from the mid 70s into the late 70s. The Marantz is no exception and your 2238 was from the late 70s where as the Pioneer was about 1976 and the Sansui about 1973. The reason for this is
-- greater use of ICs throughout especially the phone stage
-- application of too much global feed back which was done to improve paper specs but it also makes the amp sound harsher and more brittle.
Check out the earlier Marantz receivers with the aqua blue displays. They sounded a lot smoother like the Sansui (they didn't spec out as well) and they had no where near as many ICs. Also the late 70s Sansui (the G series was a bit bright and edgy as well) though not as much as Marantz or late 70s pioneer. A friend had an Pioneer SA8500 II integrated. Great bass but too harsh and edgy and that caused listener fatigue so he parted company quick. Yet the early SA8500 Mk 1 was so much sweeter.
I know you posted this months ago but I want to thank you for your post. It explains a lot of my exp with modern vs vintage amps.
Sorry to contradict you bro, but I have a Sansui G-4500 and it doesn't sound like you say. On the contrary, it's one of the most exquisite receivers I've ever had. It makes any good quality speaker, obviously, that you plug into it sound wonderful.
I own 3 and they sound amazing too but Sansui sounds equal or better.
Marantz 2238 and Sansui 441, not comparable powerwise, the nearest competition for that 2238 is the Sansui 771. I agree Sansui won hands down 👍
Aged caps play a roll in the quality of sound due to the age of the receivers. Some of the same name receivers with different models sounds a world apart on overall sound. For example I have a marantz 2500, 2252b side by side and the 2252b sounds better but the 2500 is stronger in power. That being said tho the units in the video for what they are correctly described in my opinion.
I own a vintage Marantz 2226 receiver and a vintage Pioneer SX1250 receiver. On the look out for a Sansui. Anyway comparing both my vintage receivers with everything else equal the Marantz sounds very good but the Pioneer sounds great to my ears and is more dynamic, exciting and just sounds right. I have also had a number of modern amps over the years and the Pioneer so far has been the best of the bunch. So if I had to take a choice between them I’d go with the Pioneer.
Fair enough my friend if you get a chance try a Sansui 551 661 771 I’m not a bad bet not too expensive Merry Christmas from London
@@stereoreviewx thanks, and a merry Christmas to you too. I hope you had a good one? Anyway delighted to say that Santa brought me a Sansui 2000X receiver, I must have been a very good boy this year 😂 Will let you know what I think after I’ve had time getting acquainted with it.
@@spacehopper77
That’s a great receiver. I have a Sansui model SD-7000 7” reel to reel, auto-reverse and repeat, in absolute mint condition....if interested. I have maybe a dozen,or so, blank Scotch 7” reel to reel tapes. I’ve not put it up for sale. Just reading your comment made me think of it. Other Sansui stuff available. Receivers, speakers, turntable, equalizer, reverb amp, etc.....
It's not easy to talk about music and how you feel / hear it. You do it very well ! Thank you !
Sansui everyday...
He's...entitled to his own opinion. Like a previous comment or noticed/observed, this year is 40/plus years old, so, unless each piece has been *completely* refurbished, it's...well...how much/little have these receivers depreciated in quality. Pioneer, Sansui & Marantz(along with Kenwood & a few others)all made good "mid-to-upper consumer grade components". Not "Audiophile", but we'll above a lot of the crap that was out at the time.
Good review mate. Yeah?
Had a Marantz 2270 for many years.....still have my Sansui 5000X. The Sansui sounds better.....hands down
I have the 5000x and love it. I haven't heard anything better yet.
Harman Kardon amps sound the best for the dollar or pound. :-)
Fabulous review !! Thank you °°
I will try Sansui, thanks and regards.
I hope your channel takes off and brings you loads of quids. I want to see a whole stack of amps on that table. You have a great way of talking about them.
He has a brilliant way of talking but characters like Andrew Robinson get attention while something like this stays in the shadows because people only listen to what they want to hear.
Did you knock off this video before you headed over to the pub ?
I’m just excited alright 😅
Love my Sansui 8080! Glad you're a fan as well.
G 8700 DB sweetest thing and that's with a troubled left channel
I have 7070 just less power than 8080, but still excellent sound....
Best Sansui 250 with tubes
Pioneer have these stk power modules. I would take anything but them.
Well i dont care about receivers. I have hiend Pioneer Elite m90/c90 separates and thats my sound.
Picked up a 1978 Rotel Amp the other day. Would not have been my first choice but I was surprised by the sound quality.
Well if this wasnt what i needed to hear, thank you!
I just got hands on a Marantz 2220b and i love the sound. Its so good and crisp while having an incredibly defined and powerful bottom end. Much more bass than my a757 Pioneer.
But since im dealing with tinnitus, this harshness you mention, had been beginning to bug me. I think ive also just played too loud since ive got it but im definitely not able to have hours long listening session without an increase in the tinnitus. I iam now in search of a Sansui that hopefully gets me better sound than my a757 but less harshness compared to the Marantz.
Let this also be a testament to bass of Pioneer vs Marantz products. My Bose 601 III DOES bass. But not on that Pioneer, even turned all the way up it definitely felt lacking in the bass depth even if it was able to fill out the room. The 2220B has more bass with no change to balance than the a757 do full bass on the tone control. Thats 20W vs 100W, i did not see that coming.
I love marantz ,love pioneer and love sansui to my soul ,but between this 3 if u asked me which one was more beautiful listening, and musical sansui all the way every day.
First time viewer. Great review. I love your descriptions of each amps characteristics. Thanks man.
Just purchased a Marantz 2220b and after the honeymoon phase my tinnitus is hating on me. The sound from that thing compared to my a757 is much more detailed, dynamic and powerful. But man it is not comfortable for long sessions. My heart is saying yes but my ears are screaming nope.
Might have to give a Sansui a try as i feel the Pioneer lacking in dynamics and bass. Especially now..
Bass response has a lot to do with an amp's slew rate and power supply performance.
I liked your review, but am not convinced that you can use any model level from the '70's of each brand. It would be better if they were all of an equal original retail price and they were all fully refurbished, then you could compare them. But from Pioneer at LEAST, use an SX 950!
Красавцы
The marantz has a mid range adjustments!
Reciver made in 70 80 years are the best.
SANSUI is sweet balance
Wish you would have included something from Sony of that era. Sansui and Sony have my favorite tone.
Sony is not known much for audio, but for tv, they are popular.
would love that an Onkyo TX-2500 was there...
Nice video as always.
Used to service these in the 1980's for a living. Used to measure the distortion, noise floor, S/N ratio, and frequency response. The amplifiers are pretty indistinguishable in the upper end models with discreet transistors. Those that used the amplifier modules, were a little higher in noise, and THD. The tuners varied widely. Different manufactures used different IF filters. Some used inexpensive ceramic filters with sharp cutoff. Others used a tuned IF with a softer cut off. After the IF, the notch filter for the 19KHZ stereo pilot affected the ability to reproduce audio above 12KHZ, as some rolled off considerably, while other higher order filters, rolled off sharply above 16 or 17 KHZ.
I don't remember which ones were which much anymore. I did like the Marantz, Sansui, and upper end Kenwood receivers. I am not a fan of the Pioneer in comparison.
Great info thanks K
marantz is the best..!!
Nothing beats a Marantz...For the sound! as well as the resale value.
I think it also depends on what speakers you mate the amp with. The same speakers can sound quite different depending on the amp. I have my Marantz 2325 running through KLH Model 5s
Yes I would agree I mean matching can do miracles can be every think the right speaker with the right amp
@@stereoreviewx I have Kenwood 7j speakers. And i want to use Sansui amplifier with Equalizer Model # A900xv... Is it ok with this combination? Because i noticed that Sansui Amplifier produces clear sound instead of Kenwood. What you will suggest me? Should i use Kenwood amplifier or should I go with Sansui?
I have my Marantz 2325 and Teac A-2300SX on BIC Formula 6 Speakers. Purchased them in early 1976. Had payments almost as much as my car payment. System still works great today.
Obviously those are all great receivers. You can't go wrong with any of them. I'm running a Kenwood KR-5600 receiver, paired with Bose 501 Series III speakers. Makes for a nice warm sound. And I've always loved the Kenwood's look!
Sansui is the most natural and hones tight sound!
Yes it’s true isn’t it to be honest Marantz and pioneer come nowhere to sansui
K
@@stereoreviewx
Yeah....have had my Sansui 5000X since 73 I believe. Got a 2270 in 77 or 78. Used it til 1999-2000. sold it on eBay, when eBay was an actual auction site. Got about $900 for it. Been using the 5000X ever since. Haven’t missed the 2270 one bit. Don’t get me wrong, it sounded great...just not as good as the Sansui.
I have just restored a Pioneer SA7500 and a 8800ii. These amps put out a big sound with a solid bass.
I upgraded the loudness controls by going up a level in the silicon caps.