Marantz NR1606 vs Pioneer SC-67

Here we are comparing Marantz NR1606 to Pioneer SC-67 to reveal their common strengths and weaknesses as well as the differences between them which will help you in making a correct decision before the purchase. The Marantz NR1606 has 7 channel and the Pioneer SC-67 has 9 channel amplifiers with Marantz NR1606's being less powerful.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these receivers, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Marantz NR1606 over Pioneer SC-67.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Pioneer SC-67 over Marantz NR1606.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Amplifier

THX™ Select™2 Plus certification

Pioneer SC-67 is thxtradecertification Select™2 Plus certified. This means that it is ideally suited for a room where the screen-to-seat viewing distance is approximately 3 to 4 meters, and the room size is approximately 56 cubic meters.

• THX™ Certification: THX™ Certification offers optimal performance, superior quality and seamless integration. THX works with partners from the ground up, so that certified products deliver professional quality audio-visual experiences right out of the box. They only certify the very best products with uncompromised quality, performance and consistency. They ensure that THX certified devices play well with lower performing devices and components. THX listening modes make the receiver to have one speaker set up for movies, music and games. They are tested for power output, bass management, signal-to-noise ratio and feature THX Loudness Plus, Boundary Gain Compensation, Timbre Matching and RE-EQ.
• Power Output: Power output is tested to ensure the receiver accurately plays source material at THX Reference Level in every input and mode and at every sampling rate for all possible playback combinations selected by the listener.
• Frequency Response: THX has strict requirements for frequency response to ensure that you hear all the details in high-resolution tracks, ensures dialog in movies, and vocals in music are clear while maintaining deep, impactful bass output that doesn’t overpower the listening experience.
• Signal-to-Noise Ratio: THX tests the signal-to-noise ratio to ensure the unit is designed to have low noise performance with very little to no audible hiss from the speakers.
• Bass Management: THX requires an 80Hz crossover point in the setup menu to ensure proper bass management in every THX Certified AVR. This setting confirms that the subwoofer handles low frequencies, freeing up the loudspeakers to handle mids and highs.
• THX Loudness Plus™: THX Loudness Plus™ is a volume control technology featured in THX Certified Dominus, THX Certified Ultra and THX Certified Select AV Receivers, and preamplifiers that automatically adjusts the front-to-back speaker level relationship as you turn the volume down. With THX Loudness Plus, home theater audiences can now experience the rich details of surround sound at any volume level.
• Boundary Gain Compensation: Sitting near a wall may result in increased acoustic levels at the lower frequencies. BGC corrects the way low frequency sound is perceived when seated near a wall. This results in a more accurate bass response.
• Timbre Matching: Your ears hear different tonal qualities in sounds coming from different directions. Timbre Matching restores the frequency balance between your front and surround speakers ensuring seamless and smooth panning between the front to back of the room.
• RE-EQ: Many movie soundtracks are mixed in studios for playback in large cinema auditoriums with an array of speakers. When played on home systems, they may appear abrasive and edgy. Re-EQ establishes a more accurate tonal balance when enjoying movies in your home.

Speaker Configurations

Marantz NR1606's and Pioneer SC-67's amplifiers can be assigned for different speaker configurations.

• Dolby Atmos Configurations: The following speaker configurations are supported for Dolby Atmos:
Marantz NR1606: 5.2.2 with internal amplifier.
Pioneer SC-67: Not supported.
• DTS:X Configurations: The following speaker configurations are supported for DTS:X:
Marantz NR1606: The speaker configurations for DTS:X are the same as for Dolby Atmos - 5.2.2 with internal amplifier.
Pioneer SC-67: Not supported.
• Configurations without height channels: There are also other speaker configurations available which do not include height channels:
Marantz NR1606: 5.2, 7.2 with internal amplifier.
Pioneer SC-67: 5.2, 7.2, 9.2 with internal amplifier.
• Front Wide Channel support: With the presence of two front wide speakers you can enhance the front surround stage. The following speaker configurations are available for front wide channels:
Marantz NR1606: Does not support.
Pioneer SC-67: 9.2.
• Bi-Amp: Marantz NR1606 is able to bi-amp up to 2 and Pioneer SC-67 is able to bi-amp up to 4 main channels simultaneously. During bi-amplification two amplifiers are used for one speaker. One amplifier powers the midrange and tweeter section of the speaker and another amplifier powers the low frequency woofers. Each amplifier is less loaded and performs better. In order to use this feature speakers must have 2 pairs of connectors.



Dolby Atmos

Marantz NR1606 supports Dolby Atmos. It is a cinematic audio format in which sounds exist as individual entities, called audio objects. In Dolby Atmos, any sound can exist as an independent audio object, free of channel restrictions. They can be precisely placed and moved anywhere in your room, including overhead, to flow above and around you in three-dimensional space. Through the use of audio objects, overhead sound, and all the richness, clarity, and power of Dolby sound, Dolby Atmos turns your room into an amazing place for entertainment. The format supports up to 128 simultaneous independent audio objects in a mix for rich, realistic, and breathtaking sound. It recreates the director's original concept through descriptive metadata to provide customized playback for home theater and delivers sounds above you through overhead speakers, special upward-firing Dolby Atmos speakers, or a Dolby Atmos enabled sound bar.

• Dolby Surround Upmixer: Marantz NR1606 supports Dolby Surround Upmixer. If the content is not mixed in Dolby Atmos then the Dolby surround upmixer will expand the audio to all channels including ceiling speakers. The upmixer has replaced the Dolby Pro Logic II family with improved upmixing algorithms.

DTS:X

Marantz NR1606 supports DTS:X. A technique used in DTS:X is similar to the one used in Dolby Atmos. Instead of a fixed number of channels, DTS:X defines object locations from the listener in polar coordinates. An a/v receiver then dynamically renders sound according to the current speaker configuration. The speaker layout employed by DTS:X is the sum of Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D. It has standard 7.1 channel base layer, a 5 channel height layer above the base layer on the front and side walls, and 3 rows of speakers on the ceiling.

• DTS Neural:X: Marantz NR1606 supports DTS Neural:X which is an advanced upmixer that can take non DTS:X content and upmix it to the DTS:X speaker layout. It has replaced the DTS Neo family with improved flexibility.
• DTS Dialog Control: Marantz NR1606 supports DTS Dialog Control. This function adjusts the dialog levels during playback of the DTS:X stream. It allows you to separately increase the dialog levels in contrast with the background sound and hear dialog easily even under noisy circumstances.

Sound Processing

• Audyssey: Marantz NR1606 comes with Audyssey Dynamic EQ and Dynamic Volume.
Dynamic EQ: selects the best possible frequency response and surround volume levels moment-by-moment. This ensures that the bass response, tonal balance and surround impression remain constant despite changes in volume. This is the first technology that carefully combines information from incoming source levels with actual output sound levels in the room, a pre-requisite for delivering a dynamic volume solution.
Dynamic Volume: Your Listening experience can be greatly diminished when there are significant shifts in volume between television programs, commercials and within the program material itself. When this happens you must constantly adjust the volume to maintain your desired listening level. Audyssey Dynamic Volume monitors the volume of program material moment-by-moment and automatically adjusts it, maintaining the desired listening level for all content while optimizing the dynamic range to preserve impact.
• Compressed Music Enhancer: Marantz NR1606 and Pioneer SC-67 feature Compressed Music Enhancer which enhances the quality of the music files with lossy compression.
MDAX2: Compressed music enhancement in Marantz NR1606 is done by Marantz’ MDAX2 technology. The use of compressed audio files like MP3, Windows Media™ Audio or AAC is getting more and more popular. The audio quality of these compressed files however is less than the original lossless files that are on a CD, especially lacking the higher frequencies and affecting the lower frequencies which make the audio image less wide and deep. The Marantz Digital Audio Expander 2, also called M-DAX2, recalculates the outputted frequency range. This enables you to get a more detailed and clearer sound.
Advanced Sound Retriever: Compressed music enhancement in Pioneer SC-67 is done by Pioneer’s Advanced Sound Retriever. Hear the detail, warmth and clarity, the way the artist intended it, from all of your highly compressed MP3 and WMA files stored on USB, Smartphone and portable media players. By restoring data that tend to get lost in the digital compression process, Pioneers Advanced Sound Retriever Technology enhances audio reproduction all the way upto 20 Khz frequencies.

Room Calibration

Marantz NR1606 comes with Audyssey MultEQ and Pioneer SC-67 comes with Advanced MCACC room correction system.

• Audyssey Room Calibration: Audyssey is an acoustic measurement technology which automatically restores the acoustic distortion caused by the acoustic behaviour of a room with only a push on a button. Audyssey equalization provides an clear, accurate, natural sound with voices and dialog that become focused and intelligible, restoring the musical balance. Musical instruments and sound effects become precisely localized and the surround soundstage is made seamless and enveloping.
• MCACC: Pioneer’s exclusive Multi-Channel Acoustic Calibration System (MCACC) delivers an easy-to-use, automatic sound adjustment system to precision-tune your Pioneer and Pioneer Elite receivers with minimal effort. Every MCACC system comes with a microphone to measure and analyze reverb characteristics. The equalizer optimally adjusts sound parameters to fit the size and shape of your home environment while maintaining the integrity of high-resolution playback without any degradation to the quality of your music.

HDMI

Marantz NR1606 comes with 8 HDMI inputs. It has 1 output.

Pioneer SC-67 comes with 8 HDMI inputs. It has 3 outputs - 2 for MAIN and 1 for Sub/Zone4.

• 4K/60Hz Passthrough on Marantz NR1606: All inputs pass up to 4K 50/60Hz 4:4:4 video signal.
  4K/30Hz Passthrough on Pioneer SC-67: All inputs pass up to 4K/30p video signal.
• 4K Upscaling on Marantz NR1606: It can upscale up to 4K 30/25/24p 4:4:4 from HDMI and analog sources.
  1080p Upscaling on Pioneer SC-67: It can upscale up to 1080/24p (Marvell Qdeo) from HDMI and analog sources.
• Analog To HDMI Upconversion: Both receivers support analog to HDMI Upconversion, so you can input your analog video sources and output them digitally via HDMI. This means that you will need only one HDMI cable to connect to your TV.
• BT.2020 Color Space: BT.2020 or Rec. 2020 is a color standard which delivers a wider color gamut compared to Rec. 709. It covers approximately 75% of the total visual spectrum while the Rec. 709 covers only 35% (available on Marantz NR1606 only).
• HDCP 2.2.0 Copy Protection: Both receivers are HDCP 2.2.0 compliant which is a requirement for 4K/HDR copy-protected content transmission.
• 3D Ready: Both receivers are able to pass 3D video through HDMI.

HDR (High Dynamic Range)

Marantz NR1606 supports HDR10, Dolby Vision and Hybrid Log-Gamma.

Pioneer SC-67 does not support HDR.

High dynamic range video has greater dynamic range than standard dynamic range (SDR) video with brighter whites and deeper blacks. The result is greater contrast and more details in dark and bright areas, better color and depth.

• HDR10: HDR10 uses the wide-gamut Rec. 2020 color space. It sends static metadata via video stream to the TV which calibrates its screen brightness and color according to that. HDR10 supports 10-bit color which corresponds to 1024 shades of the primary RGB colors. It is technically limited to a maximum of 10,000 nits peak brightness, however common HDR10 contents are mastered with peak brightness from 1,000 to 4,000 nits.
• Dolby Vision: Dolby Vision is a set of technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories for high dynamic range (HDR) video. It covers content creation, distribution, and playback. Like HDR10+, it includes dynamic metadata that are used to adjust and optimize each frame of the HDR video to the consumer display's capabilities in a way specified by the content creator. Dolby Vision allows for a maximum resolution of 8K up to 12-bit color depth, maximum peak brightness of 10,000 nits and a color gamut up to Rec. 2020. It uses Dolby's proprietary dynamic metadata defined in SMPTE ST 2094-10.
• Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG): The Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) is a transfer function developed mainly for HDR live video feed and over-the-air broadcasts. It is an HDR format that uses BT.2020 color primaries and a bitdepth of 10-bit. It is backward compatible with the transfer function of SDR and is designed to be better-suited for television broadcasting, where the metadata required for other HDR formats is not backward compatible with non-HDR displays. HLG defines a non-linear optical-electro transfer function, in which the lower half of the signal values use a gamma curve and the upper half of the signal values use a logarithmic curve.

Audio

• Phono Input: There is an MM phono input on Pioneer SC-67 with built-in phono stage for connecting the moving magnet cartridge output of the turntable directly to the receiver.
• Analog Pre-Outs: Marantz NR1606 has 2.2 and Pioneer SC-67 has 11.2 preamplifier outputs which allow you to connect the receivers to the external power amplifiers. You may want to use a high quality external amplifier for certain channels, usually for front L/R and center, and use the receiver to power the rest.
• Analog Line Inputs and Outputs: There are 3 pair of line inputs on Marantz NR1606 and 5 pair of line inputs on Pioneer SC-67 for connecting sources with analog outputs. There is also 1 pair of line outputs on Pioneer SC-67.
• Digital Inputs: 1 optical input and 1 coaxial input are available on Marantz NR1606 and 2 optical inputs, 1 optical output and 2 coaxial inputs are available on Pioneer SC-67 for digital audio connections.
• Headphone Output: There is a 6.3 mm (1/4") headphone output jack on the front panel of each receiver.

Video

• HDMI:
Marantz NR1606
Inputs: 8 (1 front)   Outputs: 1
8K Inputs: 0.
Pioneer SC-67
Inputs: 8 (1 front)   Outputs: 3 (2 for MAIN, 1 for Sub/Zone4)
8K Inputs: 0.
• Composite Video: Connect you VCR, Laserdisc player and other old video equipment with composite video cables.
Marantz NR1606
Inputs: 3   Outputs: 1.
Pioneer SC-67
Inputs: 5   Outputs: 2.
• Component Video: Component video connection gives you the higher quality video compared to the composite video connection. So in case your old DVD player and other equipment do not have an HDMI output but have Component video output use this connection over the composite one. Both receivers support up to 1080p resolution on Component video connectors.
Marantz NR1606
Inputs: 2   Outputs: 1.
Pioneer SC-67
Inputs: 3   Outputs: 1.

Front A/V Inputs

• Marantz NR1606: HDMI, USB
• Pioneer SC-67: HDMI, USB, Composite Video

Marantz NR1606

Pioneer SC-67