An affordable AV receiver is always a good option to consider, so Marantz NR1508 vs Sony STR DH550 comparison definitely makes sense.
Considered AV receivers have the same number of channels 5.2. Regarding power, then NR1508 has such a W/Ohm ratio - 50/8 when STR DH550 has a power of 90/6. The THD is 0.08% for the NR1508 but 0.09% for the STR DH550.
Competitors' digital to analog converter (DAC) is identical to 192 KHz/24-bit. None of the models support Bi-amping. The Marantz NR1508 can transmit an audio signal directly to the amplifier and bypasses any DSP processing. Only the NR1508 has Bluetooth support. Only the NR1508 supports Spotify.
Only the Marantz NR1508 has support for High dynamic range (HDR). Only the NR1508 provides HDMI signal transmission in standby mode. Both competitors are not able to scale the HDMI signal. Dolby Vision technology found support only on the NR1508.
The Marantz NR1508 has 6/1 HDMI inputs/outputs versus 4/1 HDMI connectors of the Sony STR DH550. Only the STR DH550 supports HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC). Unfortunately, HDMI eARC is not available on monitored devices. The Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) feature is present in most modern AV receivers and the models in our comparison are no exception. Both models support the standard HDCP 2.2. Receivers do not have a built-in phono stage for connecting a vinyl player. An ECO mode is only available for the NR1508. The setup assistant will help you configure Marantz NR1508.
None of the rivals equipped with Dolby Atmos multichannel audio decoder. The receivers do not support the surround sound technology DTS:X.