An affordable AV receiver is always a good option to consider, so Marantz NR1508 vs Marantz NR1710 comparison definitely makes sense.
A significant difference between the receivers in the number of channels, Marantz NR1508 has 5.2 versus 7.2 for Marantz NR1710. Regarding power, then NR1508 has such a W/Ohm ratio - 50/8 when NR1710 has a power of 50/8, 70/6. The THD is the same and is 0.08%.
Characteristics of digital to analog converter (DAC) are different, 192 KHz/24-bit for NR1508 and 192 KHz/32-bit for the NR1710. Only the NR1710 supports Bi-amping feature. Each of the AV receivers can transmit an audio signal directly to the amplifier and bypasses any DSP processing.
WI-FI modules have the same characteristics: 2.4/5GHz. Rivals from our review have Bluetooth support. The Apple Music service is implemented on considered devices: AirPlay, AirPlay 2. Spotify can be used on each receiver. The NR1508 can work with the audio stream from Deezer, TIDAL, Pandora, and the NR1710 can receive a content from Deezer, TIDAL, Pandora, Napster, SiriusXM, TuneIn Radio. Compared AV receivers retain the quality of 4K/60Hz signal when transmitting from a source to a TV or projector. HDMI signal transmission in standby mode is implemented in each of the devices. The NR1710 can scale the input HDMI signal, unlike the NR1508. The HDR standard - Dolby Vision is supported by these receivers.
The Marantz NR1508 has 6/1 HDMI inputs/outputs versus 8/1 HDMI connectors of the Marantz NR1710. Only the NR1710 supports HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC). The HDMI eARC is available only on the NR1710. The Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) feature is present in most modern AV receivers and the models in our comparison are no exception. The NR1508 supports the protection of digital content of the standard HDCP 2.2, versus HDCP 2.3 in the NR1710. The NR1710 has a built-in phono stage for connecting a vinyl player. Supported voice control technologies are identical - Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri, Josh.AI. It is also worth noting that the ECO mode is presented in each of the receivers. Both NR1508 and NR1710 can be configured using the Setup assistant.
Only the NR1710 has a Dolby Atmos multichannel audio format support. A surround technology DTS:X is supported only by the NR1710.