Rega io vs Marantz PM6007: Which Should You Buy?
The vinyl purist against the premium all-rounder: the choice is about use, not quality
Choose the Rega io if:
- You listen almost only to vinyl and do not need digital
- You want the Brio's phono stage in an essential amp
- You prefer Rega simplicity and spending a little less
- You want the rhythmic, direct character What Hi-Fi? hears in it
Choose the Marantz PM6007 if:
- You listen to vinyl and digital sources too (CD, TV, streamer)
- You want a quality built-in AK4490 DAC, with no extra boxes
- You want the sound What Hi-Fi? finds more refined, and more features
- You do not mind spending a little more for completeness
These are two of the best entry integrated amplifiers for vinyl — the Rega io is our number one, the Marantz PM6007 our number two — and at first glance it looks like a hard choice. In fact it is a simple one, as long as you answer a single question: do you listen to vinyl only, or to digital sources too?
Products not tried by me: this comparison is based on sources.
Because these two do not compete on the same ground. The Rega io is the purist: thirty watts, the Brio's phono stage, and no digital — all the budget in the analogue side. The Marantz PM6007 is the premium all-rounder: forty-five watts, an AK4490 DAC with digital inputs, and a sound What Hi-Fi? describes as full, smooth and balanced. It is not a contest of which is better: it is a question of how you listen.
- Class A/B integrated, 30 W per channel into 8 Ω
- MM phono stage (the same as the Brio)
- 2 RCA line inputs + 1 MM phono
- No digital: no DAC, no Bluetooth
- Headphone output from the power amp · remote included
- Current-feedback integrated, 45 W per channel into 8 Ω
- AK4490 DAC · 2 optical + 1 coaxial (up to 192/24)
- MM phono stage with FET input
- 5 analogue inputs · tone controls + Source Direct
- Dedicated headphone output · subwoofer output · no Bluetooth
Design philosophy: purist or complete
The Rega io is born of subtraction: two line inputs, a phono stage, thirty watts, and nothing else. No DAC, no Bluetooth, no tone controls. Rega put the money in the circuit and took it out of everything else. It is a precise philosophy — sound before functions — and if your listening is almost only vinyl, it is exactly what you need.
The Marantz goes the opposite way: an AK4490 DAC, optical and coaxial digital inputs, five analogue inputs, tone controls. It is the amp that wants to do everything in one chassis — vinyl and digital, multiple sources — without asking you for extra boxes. You pay more, but you take home completeness.
Performance on vinyl
The Rega's MM phono stage is the same circuit as the Brio's, the model above, not a reduced version. What Hi-Fi? describes the io as rhythmic, with punchy dynamics and a direct, lively character; The Ear praises its timing and surprising detail for the price. Audio Science Review, which measured it rather than listening to it, finds the phono stage's RIAA curve good but mains hum high and crosstalk poor, and does not recommend it.
The Marantz's MM phono stage is a new circuit, inherited from the PM7000N, with a FET input. For What Hi-Fi? it is cohesive and punchy, if a little less clear and bright than the line inputs. The same magazine, in its Rega review, finds the Marantz more refined than the io: on vinyl the sources do not point to a clear winner.
Sonic versatility and digital sources
Marantz PM6007
The Rega, by choice, has nothing digital: no DAC, no optical inputs, no Bluetooth. If your sources are only the turntable and perhaps one line input, you will not even notice. But if you also listen from CD, TV or a streamer, the Rega cannot help — you would need an external DAC.
The Marantz breaks clear: the AK4490 DAC with two optical inputs and one coaxial accepts files up to 192 kHz/24-bit, and it handles vinyl and digital in the same chassis. For those who live by mixed sources it is another league, and it is this feature set that puts it a hair above in the composite score.
Value
Rega io
The Rega costs less and does the essentials: for those who mostly listen to vinyl, every euro goes into the amplification and the phono, not into functions they would not use. It is the better value of the two, if you do not need digital — and the money saved goes better into a turntable or better speakers.
The Marantz asks for more, and that premium you pay in DAC, build and completeness. It is worth the money if you use the digital side; if you only listen to vinyl, you are paying for something you would not use. Value, here, depends entirely on how you listen.
- You listen almost only to vinyl and do not need digital
- You want the Brio's phono stage in an essential amp
- You prefer Rega simplicity and spending a little less
- You want the rhythmic, direct character What Hi-Fi? hears in it
- You listen to vinyl and digital sources too (CD, TV, streamer)
- You want a quality built-in AK4490 DAC, with no extra boxes
- You want the sound What Hi-Fi? finds more refined, and more features
- You do not mind spending a little more for completeness
Does the Rega io have Bluetooth or a DAC?
No, by choice: the Rega io is fully analogue, without a DAC, Bluetooth or digital inputs. It has two line inputs and an MM phono stage. If you need digital sources, the choice is the Marantz PM6007, which has the built-in DAC.
Does the Marantz PM6007 have a phono stage?
Yes, an MM phono stage with a FET input: you connect the turntable directly without an external preamp. It is MM only, though — with a moving-coil cartridge you need a dedicated MC preamp, as with the Rega.
Which should I choose if I only listen to vinyl?
The Rega io: it has the Brio's phono stage, costs less and does not make you pay for digital. On sound the sources disagree: What Hi-Fi? finds it rhythmic and direct but less refined than the Marantz, and Audio Science Review's measurements are critical. The Marantz makes sense if you also listen from digital sources and want the built-in DAC: for vinyl alone, the Rega is more focused and it is our number one.
Why does the Marantz cost more?
Because it offers more: the AK4490 DAC with digital inputs, a more substantial build, more inputs and tone controls. If you use the digital, the premium is justified; if you only listen to vinyl, you are paying for functions you would not use.
