Is Marantz’s entry into the compact streamer-amplifier market in the fast lane to become a winner with installers and end users alike? Richard Stevenson gets in the driver’s seat to test our the Marantz M1.
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Wireless streaming amplifiers have become the go-to stereo Hi-Fi system in the last decade, and there is no shortage of price points, feature sets and even rack-mount options. Yet, for customers looking for an affordable, discreet, in-room audio solution that can also play TV sound via HDMI ARC, there are realistically two big players – the Sonos Amp and Bluesound Powernode. Small, accomplished and under a grand, they remain the go-to choices.
Neither is without caveats, though. From years of in-house experience with both systems, Bluesound would be the audiophile choice for its sonic merit, but network connectivity and system stability are far from bulletproof. The Amp is beautifully made, stays connected and has a class-leading app, but the sound is more utility than engaging and emotional.
Many brands have tried to combine the best of both. Several have succeeded. Yet none have done so and remained in three-figure price tag territory.
Enter the Marantz M1 HEOS streaming amplifier. HEOS’ accomplished streaming credentials with plenty of streaming services meets Marantz’s audiophile heritage and sonic know-how, with eARC HDMI connectivity added in for good measure. Sprinkle in control system integration with Control4, AMX, URC and Crestron, crowbar in the beefiest amplifier in the genre by quite a margin (100Wpc), and complete with AirPlay2, Roon Ready status and a £899 retail price ticket. That is fighting specs!
Out of the box, the Marantz M1 design is deeper and chunkier than either of its main rivals, albeit going with the slightly clichéd matt-back box with rounded corners. The M1 design then goes off-piste with the entire top panel being a multi-layer wire mesh grille with waffle print indentations. No waffle-making was attempted in this review. The underside is more in keeping with Sonos, a shallow rounded plinth with vent slits and a single central threaded socket for wall mounting. As an ex-engineer, I will never understand the logic of a single mount point attachment, but it seems the norm.
The fascia panel has touch-sensitive volume up/down and play/pause buttons and a multi-colour LED status light. It faces mostly downwards at the base of the front panel, ensuring it’s not visible in 90% of installations. Yet, as a fit-and-forget unit with an app-based remote, the light is only required on setup anyway.
The rear panel is verbatim for the compact streamer format with single speaker binding terminals with banana sockets, albeit far from the build robustness of Sonos’ custom terminals. Physical connections span a single sub-out RCA, RJ45 LAN, USB-A, eARC HDMI, optical and good-old analogue RCA audio. There is an IR input, Bluetooth button and a ‘connect’ button to simplify Wi-Fi setup. That is right beside an almost identically sized case screw, which I guarantee you will press several times by mistake while reaching around the back and wonder why nothing is happening. I speak from experience…
The system setup is done using the comprehensive HEOS app. It’s not as naturally intuitive as Sonos or as pretty as BluOS on a phone or tablet, and there is no desktop version for those stuck at their PC all day. Yet it is packed with features and created by engineers who were clearly determined not to leave anything out. The main settings menu has 18 sub-headings alone.
Connecting M1 to the LAN via the app is seamless, and set-up controls are comprehensive from tone controls and selectable output filters to turning off the touch controls and adjusting the brightness of the status light. A further advanced menu gives a web interface with network status, settings, statistics, and hardware and software version data. For the end-user, there is a handy setup assistant, HEOS tips, and instructions on how to teach a third-party remote M1 IR commands.
Hooked up to the similarly priced Q-Acoustics 5040 floorstanders, the M1’s performance is simply stunning for the price. It keeps a vice-like grip on the 5040’s bass drivers for super-punchy bass, while its clean and controlled HF is an ideal match for the Q-Acoustics’ crisp top end. The soundstage is super wide, the dynamic range is truly impressive, and there is lush Marantz-like detail at the top end that makes this unit a serious audiophile contender.
HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION?
Impressive enough, yet M1 is a whole different league above its competitors in terms of power and control at higher volumes. It drives serious SPLs with the precision and agility of much pricier amplification, leaving its peers running out of puff. It does dance anthems and big orchestral works with the sort of passion that can have you throwing shapes to Faithless and headbanging to Beethoven. Adding a good sub to the system turns the musical enjoyment and scale up to 11.
Hooked up to a large-screen TV via ARC, the M1 is no less impressive in AV duties. The power and punch lend real scale and impact to movies, and the dialogue enhancer feature is perfectly balanced to lift voices and pin them securely between stereo speakers placed on either side of the screen. The M1 supports Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital+ signals, downmixing multichannel to 2.1 with mixed LFE and main channel bass sent to the subwoofer depending on the selected high pass filter setting. With decent floorstanders like the 5040’s a subwoofer is optional, but there are a host of compact subs around the £999 mark that would make the perfect demo partner and tip customers into an add-on sale.
Over a month of rigorous testing, the M1 stayed up and connected 100% of the time, matching the Sonos Amp installed in the kitchen for uptime. I can’t say the same for my admittedly more complex (eight players) BluOS systems over the same period.
As a standalone streamer amplifier, the Marantz M1 mixes flexibility and features with truly outstanding performance, offers well-proven HEOS streaming and comes with Marantz’s enviable brand name. Dolby downmixing, eARC, robust networking, and the long list of control system integrations make it equally suitable for boosting TV sound and more complex integrated multiroom audio installations.
The Marantz M1 is ridiculously impressive for the price and an absolute winner in the crowded streamer amplifier market for installers and end users alike.
