What's the deal with old, cheap marantz receivers?

I went to a local hi-fi shop wanting to get my very old Rotel 1412 tank repaired, when I noticed a whole collection of '70's Marantz receivers for sale. I actually spotted my very first receiver I got when i was 12/13--a 2220 (20 watts/channel), I believe. I think I paid $88 for that new in '79.

Apparently now they're worth much more than what they cost new.

Why? I never thought that was particularly good receiver. It looked cool with its back-lit blue panel, and tactile tuning wheel, but is it an audio classic? Not in my estimation.

 

One great feature of the old solid-state Marantz receivers and amplifiers of the 1970s is low distortion, even at high volumes. Another great feature is that they're more likely to last for years than much of what came later.

 

They are built very nicely and the gyroscope tuning is collectable.

 

I've owned two of them: both developed very bad corrosion in / on the pots, leading to interesting noise when changing volume / inputs.

The only reason that they are 'worth so much', is for the sake of nostalgia. We are all much older now, more or less wealthy and yearning for days of yore. Guess what - there are lots of folks willing to sell it to us in one way or another!

IMHO: they were freakishly ugly!

Andrew D.
Cdnav.com

 

I just picked up a Marantz 2215b and I use it as a phono preamp. Sounds a lot better than my Sony receiver made 5 yrs ago.

 

The 2220 actually retailed for $300 when new according to audioclassics website. Maybe your hi-fi shop had spent time and $ refurbing, servicing and cleaning the unit to account for the asking price?

 

I bought a 2270 for the same reason about year ago. Mine was like new and even came with the original box.

 

Hi,

Why they are worth more is: Nice build quality. Superb sonics. Superb styling which is classic and never dated looking. I love them. They do have their issues as do all over 30 year old components. They really don't have a modern equivalent made now. Fortunately, I can repair this stuff!

 

Not a receiver, but i just won a vintage Marantz 1060 amp, like the one below. It's meant to be a nice sounding piece, and it looks real cool IMO..................

 

this was my first amp, acquired around 1974, and loved dearly. I always thought it sounded great and seemed to be a real workhorse. Marantz in those days has a real cachet to it, and much of that seems to have returned.

doug

 

One drawback to these Marantzes is that you will periodically have to clean the pots and switches, and there's no way to avoid that, it's a classic case of copper vs oxygen. I find it a trivial detail to maintain their quality and reliability.

 

I got a Marantz 2270 in 1972 and absolutely loved it. In fact, I used it to drive our band's PA which was basically a pair of Altec A7's. It kicked and was in stereo to boot. People thought I was nuts to use my stereo for our PA until they heard what it could do.

 

You might be surprised if you fired up a vintage Marantz with the rest of your current system. I recently took a 30 year old Technics SA-300 receiver out of moth balls and plugged it in to my current system in place of my modern Yamaha receiver. I was amazed to find that I liked the old Technics sound better, in particular with CD's. In fact, I am wondering if much of the harshness I have always atributed to CD's was in fact the fault of the Yamaha. I honestly don't think this involves nostalgia since the Technics is very plain and unremarkable in the looks department. It just seems to provide a warmer sound with no loss of detail. It does seem to lack some of the "punchiness" and deep bass of the Yamaha, but I attribute that to its modest 30 WPC output. I am seriously considering buying a more powerfull Marantz or Pioneer vintage receiver to see what I think of that.

 

Sorry to be an idiot, but is there a webpage somewhere that explains how to do this? Do you have to take the cover off the chassis and clean internal components? I have a Marantz 2230, and I love it, but it has started making some nasty crackling noises when I change the volume or switch inputs, as discussed above.

 

I think thay're gorgeous, and sound great, too!

 

I love the Marantz receivers--the look, the sound, and the build quality. For the money, I don't think new receivers can touch them. Plus, as said above, they have decent phono stages, which many modern recivers lack altogether.

 

something doesn't have to be an audio classic to beat a lot of the crap made the last 20 years. (echoing previous comments)

 

I'm sure there are websites for equipment maintenance, but the answer to your other question is that you do have to take the top cover off, and sometimes the bottom plate to access the pots and switches. Your can of spray solvent should come with a straw that will enable you to spray the solvent directly into the access slots on the pots, from which point you manipulate the pot back and forth a few times or more before you repeat the process with the next one. You should make sure that the unit is unplugged before you start. Spraying the push-switches takes more skill, as they have access holes no bigger than the thickness of a cat whisker, but you will learn from experience. My experience is that the push-switch that needs the most maintenance is the tape monitor switch. You should also spray the contacts in the rotor switches (like the selector dial) and give them a good manipulation.

 

Get a spray can of DeoxIt D5, this is the stuff to use on vintage amps! Spray it in the pots (power off, cover off) give it a minute then work the controls many, many times, then spray again to flush. It's slow drying, they say 4 hrs I think, but be safe and wait overnight before plugging in again.
Also go to audiokarma.org for lots of info on vintage amps. Buy your stuff there from trusted members (ebay is risky). At the bottom of every page are ads by members who can repair and/or sell you equipment.

 

I had a 2270 and loved it before it bit the dust; its phono input went to hell. Another thing--if you get one of these things, be prepared to do some heavy lifting. These things are built like tanks. Heaviest piece of audio equipment I've ever dealt with.

To avoid these problems I ended up getting, upon the advice of another forum member, an Onkyo. Cheap, 2-channel, new receiver. It doesn't sound quite as nice as the old Marantz, but it weighs about half as much and works.

That said, if you really are into this stuff and don't mind or have the know-how to fix them and deal with them, they really do sound incredible.

 

I think the phono preamps and tuners in most receivers made over the past few years are just garbage, as companies have been trying to cut corners in anyway they can.

 

Disagree. Yes, the pots can get noisy, but that doesn't make the equipment bad - it means the pots need to be cleaned. Nostalgia can play a part in lots of things, but if these were junk, it would only be about nostalgia (like those damn "record players" sold as nostalgia - the same junk that gave records a bad name in the first place). Not the case here. I have a 2238B in my 2nd system, and it makes music. Very good sound, though they are not meant to compete with the world's finest components, and weren't Model 8B's or 9's to begin with. The tuner (FM and AM) is even really nice, and the Gyro tuning is a pleasure to use. Neat looking to me, but that's in the eye of the beholder.

 

I am in complete agreement with Marty. Speaking of ugly equipments, look no further than most moderately priced equipments made over the past few years, i.e. most equipments under $1000. In the 70's, many modestly priced equipments actually looked cool, something we just don't see these days.

 

I've found that generally the more a piece of gear weighs the better it sounds. I used to schlep that 2270 all over the place. I wish i still had mine, but mainly for nostalgic reasons. I'd love to have the AR3a's I ran with it as well. I thought they sounded great with it at the time.