One is a streaming all-in-one and the other is an amplifier. Judge them on how many boxes you want and what you already own, not on the spec sheet alone.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Power | A | Rega Elicit MK5 has more power - 105W against 70W into 8 ohms. That is about 1.8dB, which is a small step in loudness but real headroom on peaks. |
| Room size | depends | We rate Rega Elicit MK5 the better fit for a large room and a very large room, and Marantz Model 40n for a small room. Match the amplifier to the room you actually have, not the one you want. |
| Grip on hard loads | evenly matched | Both behave much the same into 4 ohms - output increases modestly (162W and 100W). |
| Built-in DAC | evenly matched | Both have a DAC on board with much the same capability. |
| Streaming | B | Only Marantz Model 40n has AirPlay 2, Roon and HEOS. |
| Analogue inputs | A | Rega Elicit MK5 takes more analogue sources - 4 against 3. |
| Room to grow | evenly matched | The same expansion options on both. |
| Shelf space | depends | Rega Elicit MK5 takes up about 31% less shelf area (1469cm² against 2126cm²), and it is 141mm shallower, which is the measurement that decides whether a rack door shuts. |
| Price | B | Marantz Model 40n costs less - $2,499 against $3,345 at list. |
A Rega Elicit MK5 B Marantz Model 40n
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, your system or how you will use them. Only specs published for both amplifiers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.
Which should you choose?
Rega Elicit MK5 is ahead, but on only 1 of the measured areas, and it costs about 34% more. That is a lot of money for a narrow margin - Marantz Model 40n is the sensible buy unless a specific feature above decides it for you. Think about the whole system: the roughly $846 saved by taking the cheaper one would buy better speakers or a subwoofer, which does more for the sound than the difference between two competent amplifiers.
What a spec sheet cannot show: how either sounds with your speakers, how the controls feel day to day, and what the app is like to live with - which is where most all-in-one amplifiers are actually won or lost. Power figures are the manufacturers' own and are not measured to a common standard, so treat small differences as noise. If you can hear both, that will tell you more than any row above.