Malcolm Owen
Home audio firms Marantz and Denon have added to the list of receivers and sound bar models on the market that will receive an update to support AirPlay 2.
On Wednesday, Apple released a list of third-party products that will gain support for AirPlay 2 in the future, including items already on the market and some that will be shipping soon. The list, made up of 32 products, included items from Bang & Olufsen, Denon, Libratone, Marantz, Naim, and Sonos.
Marantz and Denon supplied Poor Audiophile a complete list of devices that are planned to receive software updates adding AirPlay 2 compatibility in the future. While Apple's list included ten items from the Marantz and Denon product lines, the version provided by the manufacturers identifies 29 products that will be updated.
The latest list also seems to suggest some mistakes were made on Apple's version, as some models that appear on the first list do not appear on the second. Apple identifies the Denon AVR-X6500H and the Marantz AV7705, NA6006, SR5013, SR6013, and SR7013, but these are not visible in the updated list.
Just as with Apple's announcement, Marantz and Denon has not advised of when support for Apple's home streaming technology will be rolling out in a firmware update.
Marantz and Denon hardware that will gain AirPlay 2 support includes:
- HEOS Home Cinema HS2
- Marantz ND8006
- Marantz NR1508
- Marantz NR1608
- Marantz SR5011
- Marantz SR5012
- Marantz SR6011
- Marantz SR6012
- Marantz SR7011
- Marantz SR7012
- Marantz AV8805
- Marantz AV7704
- Marantz AV7703
- Marantz SR8012
- Marantz NR1509
- Marantz NR1609
- Denon AVR-X4300H
- Denon AVR-X6300H
- Denon AVR-X8500H
- Denon AVR-X6400H
- Denon AVR-X4400H
- Denon AVR-X3400H
Released to the public as part of iOS 11.4 on Tuesday, AirPlay 2 updates Apple's home streaming platform with support for multi-room audio, allowing users to play music across multiple speakers, or shift playback from one room to another. Currently the Apple's own HomePod is the only speaker on the market that supports AirPlay 2.
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17 Comments
"In the future" means "don't hold your breath." Their firmware updates are famously slow to market. I've been waiting for a year and a half for the "coming soon" Dolby Vision update for my Denon. Denon and Marantz are made by the same company btw. Same guts, different case/branding.
SR7009 is the one in my home theater. Bummer!
I'm still interested in using the Marantz unit with Sonos, so unless Sonos really knocks AirPlay 2 support out of the park, I'm probably best to stick with the Sonos Connect that sits next to the Marantz today.
Most importantly: The AirPlay 2 speakers (when being run by the Sonos App) should be streaming content from the network directly (like regular Sonos devices), not from the network > then through a mobile device > then to the AirPlay 2 device grouped with regular Sonos components. I live in a house with more than one person who controls the music, and it would be really annoying if one of us left to run an errand, all the music shuts down because the mobile device managing the AirPlay 2 devices has left the building. This is the beauty of the Sonos system, the beat goes on.
It's telling that I always frame AirPlay 2 in terms of how it will play with my Sonos devices. AirPlay 2 has a tall bar to clear. I am so happy with Sonos' performance. I'm intrigued by the potential of AirPlay 2 to allow more generic sources (PODCASTS!) that don't need to be integrated with the Sonos App, but I would be very disappointed to give up the niceties that come with the Sonos system.
Wondering what company will build a low-cost airplay 2 compatible Wi-Fi receiver with analog audio out to plug-in to the millions of existing systems that can’t upgrade to airplay 2…
Hopefully an AirPlay 2 speaker switch from a good switchmaker... like Niles... will come soon. Want to use AirPlay 2 to choose from various hardwired speakers in a whole home speaker system. Will avoid having manually adjust/select from a centralized switch.