Customer Ratings & Reviews

Best Buy encourages buyers to rate their products. That alone is very noble, because they publish both good and bad reviews. I want so badly to write a review of the Marantz 7008 for many reasons. Yet at the same time I doubt the use of such reviews for a product that is no longer being made and has of course been replaced with a new model. Plus my review would be based on a substantially reduced cost to me, than some reviewers paid. Less than HALF the price, (You must sign up for Deal Of the day. !) Would I have the same review if I had paid more? Well, no. I would have expected more if I had paid full price. There are some issues, but not deal breakers, mainly because of the sound. Also I am reluctant to publish a review because it is just too soon, This thing has and does so much it will take months of listening to know all of its strengths and weaknesses, and certainly its reliability, I have already caused it to shut off and have to be rebooted 3 times, yet I still don’t know if that is because of a set up error or defect. There are also so many settings, it will take hours of listening to decide what is best. I should start by giving a set up and history, this unit is becoming part of a more than average cost music system, including over 5000 dollars worth of speakers Klipsch Reference line 7.1, and an Emotiva XPA5 5 channel amp (200 watts per), among other things. It is replacing (almost) a 2003 model Kenwood THX certified receiver, (pre HDMI, pre full room correction). I also hesitated and shopped for a receiver or Pre Amp for OVER 3 years. I did A LOT of research. I had to have a quality head unit that had pre amp outs, but did not need the “extra $1000 dollars worth” of extras, stuff a computer or other add on can do. Most important thing, the sound. Yes, it has passed this test flawlessly. Both before, then after the room correction. The room correction program is alone a must have. It did wonders with my room. But of course newer units have the Multi X32 Audyssey. program. I really don’t have the space here to discuss fully the beauty of the sound of this thing, with WAV files, CD, Phono, even HD radio. Let’s put it this way, if it wasn’t remarkable, nothing else about the unit would matter to me. My music sounded wonderful before, it sounds even better, can play even louder now, louder because of room correction and Marantz’s commitment to music first, but remember, I am still using an outside amp, I can’t judge this units amps. The advancements in” neo” surround effects, stuff I did not tolerate before, preferring pure stereo, now sound amazing. I wish I had room to go into details here. I like the Pure Direct option but really it has very little, if any difference. Blue Ray and DVD of course sound amazing, both in 5.1 and 7.1 as expected. 7.1 is frickin spectacular. Internet radio and Pandora work great, and were very easy to set up. What doesn’t work? I can’t configure zone 2 or 3. But again, I don’t know yet if I am setting up something wrong or there is a problem. Also many times, for no apparent reason, some options stop working, like if you go to change the music surround mode, it just stops letting you make a change, the only solution is to shut off and back on. Its not the remote, it even freezes up using IP internet access to controls. If I had paid full price this would not be tolerable. Would I buy this unit again? Ask me in about a year. Would I buy from anywhere but Best Buy, probably not.

The Marantz 7008 is an absolutely great sounding receiver. I listened to all of the receivers in the $1500-$2000 range from Denon, Onkyo, Yamaha, Pioneer, and Marantz. The Marantz impressed me the most. It has great sound separation and a nice warm sound. I'm running a 5.2 setup with 6 and 8 ohm speakers, so I can't speak to 4 ohm speakers. I'm running mid-range speakers and the Marantz provides enough power for them. If you're running high end speakers (power hungry) you may want to buy a separate amp to power your speakers. The Marantz can run a 9.2 setup with the option to expand to 11.2 with a separate amp. There is enough power to run my speakers without a separate amp. Sound calibration with Audyssey XT32 and Sub EQ HT was a breeze, but takes a little time. Audyssey XT32 does a great job at sound calibration and Sub EQ HT perfectly balanced out the bass in my room. The menu system is onscreen and is very easy and intuitive to use with plenty of options to tinker with. I don't use the radio apps so I can't speak to that. I tested many reference quality blu-rays such as master and commander, battle los-angeles, saving private ryan, and many more. They all sound absolutely great with bullets and cannons whizzing around the room. The sound clarity and detail is outstanding. The bass shakes the house. I do recommend having two subs as the bass is much better balanced. With one sub I could always tell which corner of the room the bass was coming from. With two subs the bass is much better distributed. I don't listen to much music with the receiver, but from what I've heard it sounds excellent. I mostly use it for movies and it is outstanding. I highly recommend the Marantz 7008. It is a little expensive compared to the other options, but if you like a warmer sound I think the Marantz beats out the other options out there. My only complaint is that for the price I'm surprised wifi isn't included in the receiver. There are receivers out there at only $500 that include wifi. Of course sound is subjective to every ear, so I recommend listening to many other receivers out there. You may like the sound provided from Denon, Yamaha, Onkyo, or Pioneer better than Marantz, but in my opinion the Marantz provided the best sound for me.

Just hooked up this receiver to power my 8.1 system. So far so good. I take one star off because the unit does not have built in Wi-fi. I am a little concerned about reliability but so far so good. The Audyssey Room calibration is great. I am using this receiver to drive (5) Definitive Technology Pro 1000's, (2) Def Tech SM55's, (1) Def Tech Pro Center 2000 and (1) SVS PC-2000 sub. This unit really drives all of them. Much more so than the Yamaha unit it replaced. I had to purchase a Wi-Fi power adapter ($50) to allow streaming from my iPhone but this was a small trade off for the big discounted price. I paid $999.00 for this unit which is a great bargain. My fear is reliability. I will need to tweek some settings to get the perfect sound for music but for movies, this unit is sublime. The unit oozes power effortlessly, and the beast looks beautiful. The 2-line display is also a great touch but everyone loves the classic port hole look. The unit also has great trigger functionality to allow the unit to turn on my separate amp which drives my 2nd zone. I use an onkyo 5010 to drive my zone 2 which is my outdoor deck. Trigger works flawlessly. So far I am very happy with this purchase.

After decades of Onkyo and the 3rd such receiver quit (after being repaired under factory warranty) I decided to step up to Marantz. Looked at Denon and Yamaha decided price per pound Marantz offered best features and quality. The new Marantz allows 6.2 surround and Zone 2 to play without a 2nd amp! My older Cambridge Soundworks speakers sound better than ever! Easier to connect speakers w banana plugs, newer components via HDMI, older via digital optical or even RCA connects. The 4 preset EQ settings (movie, music, game, etc.) make a dramatic difference. Audyssey set up worth your time; no short cuts = great sound. Keep track of remote to employ Zone 2 (and 3 if needed)...

This is an excellent receiver! After setting this up with the Audyssey room correction system, details are clearly heard with great imaging. Compared to previous Onkyo receiver, this one offers up tight bass, a warm midrange, and crystal clear highs. Overall, it is a pleasure on music and movies. As for the video side, I saw no artifacts from doing video switching. Blu-Rays are clear and inputs can be switched quickly. In addition, you can passthrough almost any kind of signal. Last but not least, the receiver looks great with its porthole design although the readout is difficult to see from distance. You can flip down the door to see a full display if desired. Overall, a great flagship receiver.

Very simple to setup with the user friendly setup screen. Takes a little time getting used to navigating what you want the sound to do, but a great product once you learn it. I am very happy and I saved a good amount of money compared to buying the brand new model that was recently released.

I really liked the audio spatial test that is available with this system. It was simple to run through and once set up the theatre sound is amazing. I do have one concern. The system has shut off twice. I notice that there are internet complaints about this issue. It has been infrequent so far but I do worry about it becoming more of an issue.

Fantastic picture + fantastic sounds. My living room turns into movie theater.

This receiver does not disappoint. Upgraded from an older Onkyo that served me well. Set up takes a bit longer then most other receivers. After running Audyssey, you will need to fine tune settings to really make the sound come alive.

Makes my MK speakers sound the best ever! Everyone flocks to this system for movies and sports. I have an outstanding Bose system upstairs that is getting very little use now!

I would have given this a five star rating except the Audyssey microphone (included with receiver) was inoperative. This made speaker calibration difficult to say the least. But once done the 9.2.2 channels were awesome. Tied to my 78" Samsung 4K 3D and I am in heaven!

I was in between Pioneer and Marantz. After reviewing everything went with Marantz. Its an amazing picture and sound quality.

The receiver works great sounds great and has just about everything you need except bluetooth

I really love this receiver. It produce great sound and has many options for performance. I also bought a pioneer elite SC-85 receiver and in my opinion, the Marantz out performs the pioneer elite. Furthermore, the Marantz has a look like no other (looks like a beast). Returning the pioneer elite today for a refund. You can't go wrong with the Marantz.

I was a little bit skeptical about the initial purchase, but now that it's installed I'm very excited every time I sit to listen or watch my home theater system. The Marantz 2115 W was an excellent choice.

I am moving from a Denon AVR-X4000 which I was very pleased with. However it started shutting off on it's own and went in for repair. I decided to upgrade and sell the Denon when I get it back from the shop. I purchased the SR7008 instead of the 7009 because in my current set up, Atmos is not feasible. I am very pleased with the sound of this unit. It is much more musical then the Denon. It also has 9 channels instead of 7 channel driven by internal amps on the Denon. Both are very good units, but you can't go wrong with the Marantz.

Excellent sound. Feels like in theatre. Good for movies, not for 2.1 music.

would recommend it.. impressed quality ... My First Marantaz

I've only had it a couple of month now but so far so good. It takes a little while to navigate around the features but once you've done it a couple of times you really get to appreciate the unit more and more.

Bought this about a month ago, is one of the best AVR in this price range.