It makes sense comparing Denon AVR-X540BT vs Marantz SR7015 because they both are able to give some premium features.
A significant difference between the receivers in the number of channels, Denon AVR-X540BT has 5.2 versus 9.2 for Marantz SR7015. Regarding power, then AVR-X540BT has such a W/Ohm ratio - 70/8, 90/6 when SR7015 has a power of 125/8, 165/6. The THD is 0.08% for the AVR-X540BT but 0.05% for the SR7015. Only the SR7015 supports Bi-amping feature. Each of the AV receivers can transmit an audio signal directly to the amplifier and bypasses any DSP processing. Rivals from our review have Bluetooth support. Spotify can be used on each receiver. The AVR-X540BT can work with the audio stream from TIDAL, Pandora, and the SR7015 can receive a content from Deezer, TIDAL, Pandora, SiriusXM, Napster, SoundCloud. HDMI signal transmission in standby mode is implemented in each of the devices. The SR7015 can scale the input HDMI signal, unlike the AVR-X540BT. The HDR standard - Dolby Vision is supported by these receivers.
The Denon AVR-X540BT has 5/1 HDMI inputs/outputs versus 8/3 HDMI connectors of the Marantz SR7015. The HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC) feature supports both devices. The HDMI eARC is available only on the SR7015. The Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) feature is present in most modern AV receivers and the models in our comparison are no exception. The AVR-X540BT supports the protection of digital content of the standard HDCP 2.2, versus HDCP 2.3 in the SR7015. The SR7015 has a built-in phono stage for connecting a vinyl player. It is also worth noting that the ECO mode is presented in each of the receivers. Both AVR-X540BT and SR7015 can be configured using the Setup assistant.
Only the SR7015 has a Dolby Atmos multichannel audio format support. A surround technology DTS:X is supported only by the SR7015.