|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 17, 2016 23:02:23 GMT -5
This is a temporary setup, (see picture below) but scored a pair of ETAC Uni-Fi UB5s this evening and have paired them with my restored Marantz 2325. Randy at irebuildmarantz.com did the Marantz restoration earlier this year (after being on the waiting list for five years!). He did a tremendous job though!!! Very nice restoration. There were cosmetic things he fixed and the receiver sounds fantastic with any speakers I have paired with them. It has that confident and powerful Marantz sound. My initial thoughts on the ETAC UB5's: First, they do have to be broken in. After 3 hours of play, they do sound better and the bass really does come into play after the suspensions are loosened up a bit. I expect these to sound better by Monday. I can sort of hear what the review are gushing about in terms of the bass, it is developing, but not quite where I think it will be. Second, the imaging and accuracy is very, very good. They do sound a bit bright at first, but have mellowed out after some time. Third, everything about the speaker screams quality EXCEPT the dirt cheap, horrible vinyl covering. I bought these from one of those stores that sell returned and damaged box merchandise for Newegg, Amazon, etc., but the vinyl on these is just pathetic. Two corners of the speakers are peeling back and given the source of the purchase I can understand give it a little bit of a pass, but given the quality of vinyl finish it is obvious as to why it would happen in shippment. I am afraid to touch them. The corners are fixable, but this is a big oversight for what are in every other way, wonderfully constructed speakers.  |
|
|
|
Post by Loop 7 on Sept 17, 2016 23:15:32 GMT -5
Second, the imaging and accuracy is very, very good. They do sound a bit bright at first, but have mellowed out after some time. Third, everything about the speaker screams quality EXCEPT the dirt cheap, horrible vinyl covering. Agree on the vinyl. I had the opportunity to hear the ELAC B6 before I bought them so I knew about this tradeoff. ELAC cut corners, pun intended, in order to put all the money into the drivers and crossovers. I'm eager to compare the ELAC B6 with the Emo B1. I bet the B1 cabinet quality is dramatically higher than ELAC. Way cool Marantz, by the way. |
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 17, 2016 23:56:06 GMT -5
Way cool Marantz, by the way. There's a story behind the Marantz 2325. My Dad and I bought it in a church garage sale 30 years ago and repaired it together. A really cool father/son project. Some do cars, my Dad and I did stereos. He worked for Texas instruments as a electrical systems engineer and had always wanted one of the big Marantz receivers. He was also encouraging me to be an engineer which didn't work, but I did develop into an audiophile. The Marantz was used daily and worked great for about 15 years paired with a pair of Advent 2002 speakers my mother had won in a drawing. As with Marantz receivers of this vintage, the electrolytic caps eventually dried and one channel died. We put it storage knowing it needed a full restoration that my Dad wanted to do when he retired. There was no way we were going to get rid of it. Dad never retired. Five and a half years ago, we dug it out when I found the irebuildmarantz.com website, paid a $100 deposit and got it on the list. Because of the wait we put it back into storage. Dad passed away during the wait. Still, we had put money away just to get this thing restored, so I did. I was eager to have it fixed when Randy contacted me this year, it shipped to Sonoma, CA the next day. I think I even took the afternoon off to pack it. About 12 days later it returned, and I have had all sorts of fun trying different speakers out with it since. My Marantz is an heirloom, and one of those sentimental things I would have a lot of trouble parting with. |
|
|
|
Post by vneal on Sept 18, 2016 7:49:04 GMT -5
GREAT STORY
I had as a 12 or 13 year old teenager a Marantz 2240B
|
|
|
|
Post by Soup on Sept 18, 2016 9:17:45 GMT -5
Nice family story
|
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 18, 2016 11:42:40 GMT -5
I think I am going to get a black face plate for the Marantz 2325. There is a company in Glenview, Illinois that is reproducing them and selling on Ebay. Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by geebo on Sept 18, 2016 12:36:36 GMT -5
I think I am going to get a black face plate for the Marantz 2325. There is a company in Glenview, Illinois that is reproducing them and selling on Ebay. Love the look of the classic Marantz receivers of that era. Black just wouldn't look right to me. The way it is now is beautiful. |
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 18, 2016 13:37:36 GMT -5
I think I am going to get a black face plate for the Marantz 2325. There is a company in Glenview, Illinois that is reproducing them and selling on Ebay. Love the look of the classic Marantz receivers of that era. Black just wouldn't look right to me. The way it is now is beautiful. I agree geebo, and I like the silver too. It is proper. I really like the all silver Marantz products that immediately followed the 2325 design in 1977-1979. But matching them with (modern) components to have modern conveniences is a pain: there's less choice and its usually more expensive, too. This nice thing is the face plate is easily detachable, and can be switched back and forth. Having both silver and black face plates adds flexibility. |
|
|
|
Post by vneal on Sept 18, 2016 16:04:15 GMT -5
I would like to have some of the American made Saul Marantz tube gear. Maybe a 10B
|
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 18, 2016 16:23:14 GMT -5
I would like to have some of the American made Saul Marantz tube gear. Maybe a 10B +1 |
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 18, 2016 18:28:15 GMT -5
Okay, some thoughts and observations on the ETAC Uni-Fi UB5's since they are now broken in.
1. The ETAC UB5's are fine bookshelf speakers. Definitely one of the better sounding bookshelf speakers I have heard. Glad the main purpose of the speakers is to listen to them, because they are not pretty with the cheap vinyl covering (see my original post regarding the finish).
2. The ETAC UB5's do produce a lot of bass and punch with their 5.25" woofers and they do sound bigger than they are. At normal and casual listening levels the bass is taunt, precise and controlled. A lot of reviews say these do not need a subwoofer, and in truth, for a lot of people and most of the time, they don't. However, I have found that when pushed to above average listening levels, they come close to bottoming on deep frequencies and bass distortion is noticeable in my large living room. To alleviate this, I have placed a modest Klipsch RPW10 in the temporary system relieving the UB5's of everything below about 65 hz. The RPW10 is not a remarkable sub in any particular way, but is a solid performer. I=The sub's inclusion results in even better imaging and clarity from the UB5's. IMO - the UB5 bass is adequate from smaller and medium sized, enclosed rooms, but a subwoofer, even a modest one, is helpful with these speakers in many situations.
3. Besides the tight and controlled bass at normal and casual listening levels, the the other standout qualities of the UB5's are imaging and clarity. And I mean, really good imaging. The imaging may be due in part to the concentric midrange and tweeter driver (like KEF speakers). The clarity I suspect is from their integration of the 3-way design in the small package.
4. The UB5's are also precise and what many describe as revealing. In other words, I hear little things in the tracks I do not necessarily hear with other speakers - especially in the upper frequencies, In doing so, they let you know real quick whether the track was a good recording or has flaws, or not. They are quite honest.
5. After being broken in, they are still on the bright side and sound forward by themselves. But by adding the sub woofer to the system, this quality seems to impart the imaging. The sub just balances the system. Others' mileage may vary.
I am go to move these around the house and try them in other environments in the next week or two. I will report what they are like then too. But so far, these are keepers.
|
|
|
|
Post by unsound on Sept 18, 2016 22:05:09 GMT -5
I recently stumbled across a combination that I really enjoy in my bedroom setup: Sherwood S7450CP with the KEF LS50s Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by unsound on Sept 18, 2016 22:07:07 GMT -5
A closeup of the Sherwood Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 19, 2016 1:25:46 GMT -5
A closeup of the Sherwood Ooooo! Keep that up and this thread might turn into a vintage receiver porn thread.  Seriously, that looks like a nice combo, and the Sherwood is in great shape! It looks absolutely pristine. |
|
|
|
Post by unsound on Sept 19, 2016 12:01:43 GMT -5
Ooooo! Keep that up and this thread might turn into a vintage receiver porn thread. Seriously, that looks like a nice combo, and the Sherwood is in great shape! It looks absolutely pristine. Thanks, yes, it is pristine. The Aux input doesn't work too well, but other than that, it's in great shape. Speaking of vintage receiver porn, here's something along those lines that I recently acquired, Yamaha CA-1010 integrated amp Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 21, 2016 3:15:59 GMT -5
......Speaking of vintage receiver porn, here's something along those lines that I recently acquired, Yamaha CA-1010 integrated amp Oooo....she's nice and silver....  The Yammy CA-1010 looks clean and pristine too, NICE! I may have a Marantz 2325, but I would not mind having one of these  Marantz 2385 |
|
|
|
Post by unsound on Sept 23, 2016 11:45:52 GMT -5
The Yammy CA-1010 looks clean and pristine too, NICE! I may have a Marantz 2325 Thanks, it is in excellent condition and I do enjoy its sound. From my little experience with vintage equipment, they seem to have a lot more mid-bass to them. I haven't heard either Marantz and would love to, but I may have to wait a bit before I'm allowed to bring any more audio related purchases home. The only way to avoid that is to stop listening to any new stuff  |
|
|
|
Post by wrinklemash on Sept 23, 2016 12:08:14 GMT -5
Thanks, it is in excellent condition and I do enjoy its sound. From my little experience with vintage equipment, they seem to have a lot more mid-bass to them. I haven't heard either Marantz and would love to, but I may have to wait a bit before I'm allowed to bring any more audio related purchases home. The only way to avoid that is to stop listening to any new stuff The Marantz units from 1973-1980 have a warm tone and an effortless, powerful sound - especially in the bigger units. They sound like they can drive anything and the perceived headroom is great. Those ELAC's are only 85db efficient and the 2325 doesn't blink. Their amplifier sections were built to amazing standards. If the specs said 125 watts per channel, it meant from 20-20,000Hz continuously for DAYS. Extremely robust, a lot like McIntosh gear. Clean stout, stout units. Relative to Pioneer, Sansui, Yamaha, Kenwood and others in that era, which were all great, Marantz probably went the furthest in executing a clean, simple and brutally beefy output section. In my experience, the Yamaha's of that era could provide a good bit of punch, which would coincide with your mid-bass comment. |
|
|
|
Post by vneal on Nov 19, 2016 18:37:38 GMT -5
bumpity bump
|
|
