I have my Marantz 2385 hooked up to a pair of El Crappo 1990s Sony speakers, which obviously aren't going to cut it for any length of time - but at least they are rated for 140 watts. Finally tried my Cerwin Vega 300 SE's after refoaming them, but to be honest I wasn't pleased with the sound. I have a pair of Infinity ES-200's coming, but they will need refoam/repair or possibly new drivers evfore they can be even tested. They are costing me $0 so no complaints there, but I really want to start the hunt for a GREAT pair of speakers for this unit. I am open to suggestions and price range is under $1000 for the pair - though $500 is doable this year rather than next.



Gunny

Hmm, no suggestions? Perhaps I should have put this in the Speakers forum, but I was interested in what other high-power Marantz owners were using.



Gunny

I like my JBL L166s and KLH seventeens with my Marantz and other gear. While rated at 60 watts continuous, they seem to adore the power I give them (200 wpc rms with the Denon, or 120/125/70 Marantz wpc rms). I have them set as A or B speakers, the JBLs play louder and have better highs, but the seventeens have such a mellow sweet sound.

It depends on what you want, vintage/modern, loud sound, accurate sound, a mix of all above?

185 watts per channel with that receiver is ALOT of power, what size room will you be playing in?

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3162/2679386098_9cfc417722_b.jpg

Obviously speaker preferences are unique to the individual as well as the room, but I am trying to see what others are using and happy with. JBLs are fairly easy to find on the used market so that is a place to start. I also remember loving the Klipsch Heresys that my brother in law had years ago, can't remember what he had them hooked to.....
I am in the process of rearranging the room, and I am certain that the location I had the CVs in was NOT optimal - the 300 SE's are rear-ported and really need to be fairly close to a wall to get theri true sound. With the influx of vintage gear I have to combine everything with my existing home theater, should be loads of fun! Thanks for the suggestions and keep them coming!

Gunny

I find that my Paradigm Reference 60v3 and my 2265B made a magical combination. Marantz receivers tend towards a warm, lush sound and in my opinion tend to mate well with a more neutral speaker.

Also, it probably goes without saying, but with close to 200 watts per channel on tap, you want to make sure your speakers can handle the output of the Marantz.

With that kind of power, you can drive ANY speaker. I have a pair of Klipsch heresy's and klf 10's.... and they sound great with both my 2220b and 2265b recievers.

Speakers are a personal choice though, what I like someone else may say is terrible sounding.

Go listen for yourself... you can power electrostats... or difficult load speakers like totem and dynaudio... your reciever will beg for more:thmbsp:...then pick what sounds good to you.

The 2385 receiver does have a warm if not particularly accurate sound. I tried my 2385 on NS-1000M's and the balance was fair. The mids are lush but not particularly detailed compared to the best separates. Go for a large ported speaker with a 12 inch woofer. JBL's like the 4311, L-100, and L-112 played very well on my 2385. Also, try the HPM-100. You will get big sound that is satisfying for rock and reasonably versatile for other genres.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I just received a free pair of Infinity ES 300's, and they sound FABULOUS with the Marantz. They do need a refoad and new passives, so I can't really run them up yet. Still will be shopping for a pair of rock speakers - these Infinity will never have a real punch in the bass.

Gunny