Any opinion on Marantz 2238B....what would be the fair street price
nowdays?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

I bought a 2270 for $200, I've seen them go for $300
plus on ebay. I suggest you watch ebay and see what the 2238b
is going for.

Scott

wrote:

Any opinion on Marantz 2238B....what would be the fair street price
nowdays?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

I own a Marantz 2238B, and it's lying around here somewhere.... broken
that is.

Bought this mint unit from ebay a few years back for about $125 if I
remember correctly, and bought it as a present for my mother with a new
pair of small B+W DM-302 Speakers.

One week later, the unit unfortunately crapped out. Thankfully, my best
friend came to my aid, and gave me a mint Sansui 7000 that he found at a
garage sale for $20 to replace the 2238B with.

All in all, I've owned about 8, or 9 Marantz recievers over the years.
And truthfully, while I loved their looks, I have grown a completely
different opion about their sound, and reliability.

From a bought new in '75, Marantz 4400 Quad reciever, which blew the CRT
Display 4 months later, and I dumped, to two 2330B's, 2275, 2238B, 2285B
Black Face, 2265, 2270.

Out of all of them, the only two I thought had acceptable sound was the
2265, and the 2285B Black Face.

Every other unit seemed to me to have a "veiled sound", and a cloudy
sound. That's the only way I can desribe them.

For the time period, it seemed to me that whatever Sansui had out during
the same perios, although certainly not as pretty, sounded much much
better to me, with better fidelity, a lack of veiling, and better
dynamics.
Not to mention much better reliability to boot.

Before you consider buying a Marantz 2238B, which IMO is worth no more
than a $100 tops, is not a rare, or highly sought after reciever by any
means, look into a comparable Sansui Vintage model, such as the Sansui
Seven (45wpc), Sansui Eight, or Eight Deluxe (60wpc)

Don't let the 45wpc rating of the Sansui Seven fool you. This little
powerhouse will sound very nice, and exhibit very nice neutral clarity
with the right efficient speakers. My best friend I mention above, has
been using his bought new Sansui Seven for 30 years without a problem,
and they've been driving a pair of bought new Klipsh Cornwalls for the
last 20.

I've gotten numerous very clean-mint Sansui Sevens, and Eights for
friends-relatives off of ebay over the last 5 years. From $65-$110 tops,
and all have been great performers, reliable, and their new owners were
all very happy with them. Other great Sansui Recievers to consider
would be the 8080, and 9090-9090DB, Mark