hodg100
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They're awesome Ken - Anthem MRX 710 AV Receiver ReviewAgreed, there should be a nine-channel option, though I myself would be quite happy with the 11-channel one! I know two dealers in Edinburgh who rate Anthem receivers very highly, though I myself have never heard one.
Regarding cost, on previous experience the dollar price in America is likely to be similar to the pound price in Britain.
Possibly, an 11-channel receiver makes for a tidy 7.1.4 solution but I'll need to see how the latest version of ARC performs.Tempted to go back to Anthem Steve, now you can you Atmos/DTS-X?
Anthem are only really competing at higher price points, which is a shame for me, but understandable for them.
UK pricing according to Quantum AV is supposed to be
AVM60 - £2999
MRX1120 - £3399
MRX720 - £2399
MRX520 - £1399
If this pricing pans out the entry point to Atmos / DTS-X on Anthem is £2399, so they're competing with the Denon 7200 and the Arcam 550. (It also competes with a Denon 5200 + Dirac 88 + a decent s/h power amp.)
This makes sense - it's quite good positioning. But it means that AV enthusiasts at the ~£1K-£1.5K price point can get ARC but can't get Atmos. You used to have a budget entry point into ARC and all the codecs but no longer. O understand the decision, but personally this is disappointing.
I think this shows that Anthem don't want to cannibalise their own sales with their entry level product as the 300 and arguably the 310 / 510 did.
When I compare the Denon 4200 (£1K) and 5200 (£1.2K) with the MRX520 I see a significant price premium AND a lack of Atmos. I can't help seeing the MRX520 as an "orphan" product. Who would spend that much and not get the new codecs? Especially when there are still some 310s and 510s in the channel.
The Denons are pretty good amps, and you do wonder just how good the new ARC is to justify the price premium. It would be very interesting to read a head-to-head test of the 720 versus a 5200 to see if the £1K+ price difference is really worth it. Because many people have gone from Anthem ARC to Denon 7200 and not missed anything.
The MRX 1120 looks very tempting...
I think anthem has shot themselves in the foot not having a upgrade path for 510 owner sub £2000 and the AVP60 what is a scaled 720 with improved DACs is nearly £3000 on the high side considering it is a £2400 receiver without amps. I would likely go to Marantz or arcam and move away from anthem not giving a sub £2000 upgrade path from my 510.
thanks for that info, will consider changing to another anthem then,i want the 4k plus atmos,Until recently I had a 710, 510 and a 7200wa. The 710 and 7200wa are now sold as I'm selling off gear ahead of house move and new dedicated room down the line. I now use the remaining 510 as a pre/pro into my power amp. For 2 channel SQ both the anthems are better than the Denon. For movies the Denon was more dynamic (better amp section imo) but to me ARC makes such a difference in my room I wouldn't be without it.
So the 1120 looks an interesting option for my new setup but given that even the 710 was a bit short on grunt I would want to see some pretty serious power supplies for 11 channels.
has anyone gone from an anthem mrx700 to either the denon or marantz amps,i was wondering what the difference was like for 2 channel stereo,i have found the anthem 700 to be the best amp i have ever owned for stereo replay,even better than my arcam avr600 in my opinion with my monitor audio gs range and oppo 105, stereo sound is as important as surround sound to me,