Denon PMA-600NE Stereo Amplifier With Bluetooth

The Denon PMA-600NE sounds very much like a high quality 1970s solid state stereo integrated amplifier or receiver (with a warm and somewhat tube-like sound.) I compared the sound the Denon PMA-600NE fed from the auxiliary output of the WiiM Mini (streaming Spotify) with the optical output of the WiiM Mini sent to the Denon PMA-600NE using the internal Denon DAC. The sound quality of the Denon PMA-600NE’s internal DAC is equal to or better than the WiiM Mini’s internal DAC.

Unpacking: The Denon PMA-600NE integrated amplifier arrived undamaged in the original box braced with Styrofoam inserts (not double boxed.)

Connections: The Denon PMA-600NE provides connections for one pair of stereo speakers. The plastic five-way speaker wire binding posts can accept banana plugs. I connected the PMA-600NE to my speakers using bare wire. The moving magnet cartridge left and right phono inputs come with plugs (to reduce noise when not connected to a turntable.) I did not test the phono input. All of my listening with the Denon PMA-600NE amplifier was done with Sennheiser HD-600 headphones and a pair of custom Acoustic Research AR-4X 8 ohm wired bookshelf speakers. The Denon PMA-600NE did not require any break in time and sounded great straight away.

PMA-600NE controls: The input selector on the Denon PMA-600NE has a ring of LED indicator lights. As noted in another review these lights can be hard to see as the LEDs are dim and recessed behind the indicator knob. The internal relays in the Denon PMA-600NE integrated amplifier are loud and sound clunky. There is a noticeable delay when switching inputs.

The Pure Direct button removes the tone controls and balance controls from the signal path. Using the headphones I found that the Pure Direct mode may provide slightly clearer audio. When not using Pure Direct mode the bass and treble controls worked well at tailoring the sound. I did not test the Pure Analog mode. (LPT: the WiiM app includes audio controls for selecting stereo/mono, a balance control and an equalizer. You can adjust the audio level using the WiiM app or WiiM remote (available separately for the WiiM Mini and included with the WiiM Pro Plus.)

Denon PMA-600NE Remote Control: Most of the buttons on the Denon remote control are for use with a Denon CD player. The PMA-600NE remote control does not include the ability to control the bass, treble or balance or to control the Pure Direct mode. I only use the Denon PMA-600NE remote control to turn on the PMA-600NE and enter standby mode, also to mute the audio.

Volume Control: Using the Denon PMA-600NE remote control to control the volume can be frustrating. The PMA-600NE remote control volume function is very lagged and the volume level adjustments using the remote are too coarse. The volume level rises and falls too quickly to be able to use the remote to easily set a comfortable volume level. (If you use the WiiM music streamer, be sure to get the WiiM remote.)

Some have stated that the calibration of the volume control range on the Denon PMA-600NE is set too high. Although I did not test the phono input, typically phono audio levels coming from the phono preamp section of an amplifier are much lower in level than are the line level inputs. Perhaps someone who uses the phono input of the Denon PMA-600NE can provide their opinion on whether the range of the volume control of the PMA-600NE is well calibrated for use with phono input. I did not test the Bluetooth audio input feature.

I tested the headphone output of the PMA-600NE. Plugging into the 1/4 inch headphone jack automatically disconnects the output to the speakers. Listening was done using Sennheiser HD-600 high impedance (300 ohm) headphones. I had no difficulty setting a comfortable listening level with the volume control set manually to approximately 9 O’clock.

At no time did I observe the top of the Denon PMA-600NE become more than barely warm to the touch even after several hours of continuous use with speakers and with headphones.

Compared to the Marantz PM6007 integrated amplifier the Denon PMA-600NE is sleeker and much more compact. The chassis of the PMA-600NE is significantly less deep than the Marantz PM6007. In comparison to the Denon PMA-600NE, the Marantz PM6007 provided deeper, better articulated bass when using the headphones.

The Marantz PM6007 enables you to select from two different digital filters when using the internal Marantz DAC. The Denon PMA-600NE only has one digital filter when using the internal Denon DAC.

Compared to the Yamaha A-S501 integrated amplifier the Denon PMA-600NE is sleeker and much more compact. In my listening tests the Yamaha A-S501 amplifier sounds more neutral compared with the warmer sound of the Denon PMA-600NE.

The digital optical input using the Yamaha’s internal DAC is intended for TV/DVD/Blu-ray 2.1 channel audio. The left and right audio channels output from the internal Yamaha DAC are rolled off below ~100Hz. The A-S501 DAC output is intended for use with a subwoofer (the A-S501 has a subwoofer RCA output that has a 90 Hz low pass filter.) The Denon PMA-600NE internal DAC provides full range 2.0 channel audio. The Denon PMA-600NE has an RCA subwoofer output.

Excelente amplificador. Muito correto e linear no espectro de frequências audíveis, resultando numa audição agradável, principalmente na função source direct.
Cuidadosa construção e topologia coerente.

At a glance: excellent value, great feature list (for my needs at least), attention to detail in the design, step up in sound quality from my previous setups (vintage), good headphone amplifier.

In detail: Sound is subjective (tastes) and relative (what gear are you familiar with). My previous receivers were mid-fi vintage units. I bought the PMA-600 to replace a Marantz PM750DC (early 80s vintage) which I thought sounded great but had nagging crackles in the left/right balance that I couldn’t stand anymore. I also have a late 70s Fisher CA-2310, and 70s Kenwood KA-8300. Both of those are tank-like units with heavy, huge transformers and again, old gear develops problems over time. I love vintage gear and I try to buy used everything, so this purchase is a rare one for me. Basically I was tired of amps that worked well “most” of the time.

My speakers are custom-built bookshelves with Scan-Speak drivers and I have a custom 12″ sealed-box sub, all DIY gear I researched and built myself. I also have several Grado Labs headphones, Audeze LCD-2C (my best set of cans), a bunch of audio interfaces and a Aune T1SE tube DAC. All this is context to give a background of where I’m coming from. I started looking at the Denon PMA series on the advice of a thread at Head-Fi, about integrated amps which feature a good headphone amp. I’ll also mention that my audio preference is typically toward “dark” and “warm”. I think my hearing is on the more sensitive end of the spectrum, so hyped treble is a turn-off for me, and peaky, harsh resonance in the mids or highs is a stand-out, painful deal-breaker for me.

Compared to my outgoing Marantz, this Denon has a ton of “detail.” The treble is a lot more airy, the soundstage has more depth. It feels like the room I’m in got larger. FWIW, the room I’m in is not really ideal for listening (it’s wide but not deep). The treble is a lot more “present” than the Marantz was or my other two listening setups are, but it’s not abrasive to me and I’m sensitive when it comes to that. This amp has breathed a new sense of spaciousness into my listening. I had felt that my Marantz did a good job driving these Scan-Speak bookshelves but man, they sound obviously, unequivocally better with the PMA-600 and their tone is much more clear. Like a veil has been lifted. Bells, pianos, rhodes, cymbols all sound way more “awake”. That’s the biggest surprise that I want to emphasize: I have a very nice set of bookshelves and this amp has taken them to a whole ‘nother level of richness. I hear new things in familiar recordings. In the end, that’s what you always hope a new piece of audio gear will do for you.

As for my subwoofer, this is not a fair comparison: the Marantz had no sub output and the line-level was super hot for some reason, so I was running speaker-level connections off one channel. Now with the PMA-600 I’m using the subwoofer output and again it’s a big leap up. The bass is way tighter, clearer, just patently better in all respects.

Things about the amp I love: EQ section bypass (“Source Direct”), “Analog Mode” is a really cool feature which shows the designers were puttin some love into this this amp when they were laying it out–honestly that was a big selling point that the designers cared enough to go to this length. When you switch between input sources it’s relay-switched so there’s a click and a pause which I like.

Things I wish it had: an old-school “Loudness” mode would be great. My Kenwood actually has “Loudness 1” and “Loudness 2” which is ideal since you can toggle between 2 different loudness setting dependent upon what you’re listening to. The Kenwood also has toggle switches which let the EQ tone controls have different frequencies. Surprisingly 800Hz on that unit really has a huge effect on the timbre and I love to throw that knob around to liven up some duller recordings. Some more EQ customization and a Loudness control on the PMA would be nice although I’m not docking any points for that. They are trying to bring the price point down on this unit and all that adds complexity.

I hooked up a SPIDF cable to give the onboard DAC inside the PMA-600 a try: it seems good overall, maybe a smidge clearer/cleaner (and also louder) than my M-audio Fast Track Pro. However when I hook up the Aune T1SE tube DAC, there’s little question that the Aune sounds sweeter. That’s also an apples-to-oranges comparison though, since the T1SE is adding its own sauce in the form of tube warmth. Using my Audeze LCD-2C I swapped back and forth between the Aune and the Denon with a consistent volume setting. Since the line out on the Aune does feed to the tube warmth into the Denon this is an apples-to-apples comparison of the headphone amp sections only, with consistent DAC between the two. Again the Aune sounds slightly richer and clearer although the difference is not night and day here. If you wanted to plug headphones directly into the Denon, it is going to do a good job as a headphone amp. Not sure how well it would drive something with high impedance since all my cans are under 100 ohms. The LCD-2C are 70 ohms.

Although the stated power is 45W, I feel it delivers plenty of power to my speakers. I don’t remember the efficiency but I believe it was not super hot, like 87 dB. This amp can get them plenty loud enough for my liking. Like 1/3 of the way up on the volume control is getting too loud for me, with plenty of clarity. I usually don’t crank the volume super loud but I definitely don’t listen quiet either.

All in all, I feel really happy with this purchase. I would recommend this amp.

Regards,
I have purchased a Dnon pma600ne integrated stereo amplifier from av squad via amazon. Its excellent servicing and very melodious sound so I am great pleasure .I was very impressed with the quality of the product.
Thanks