Ken Ishiwata 1947-2019

What a brilliant designer. Rest easy, sir.
Ken Ishiwata, legendary hi-fi figure, dies aged 72 | What Hi-Fi?

 

RIP Ken.

 

A talented and entertaining gentleman that will be missed.

RIP

 

Words fail but RIP Mr Ambassador will suffice for now.

 

Thank you for sharing your incredible talent and passion for music with the world.

RIP

 

He used to attend my local show and was very approachable, a true ambassador, I still own five KI signature items, it's impossible to measure how many people were exposed to quality sound on a budget because of his efforts, a very sad loss.

 

A true gentleman. Marantz was lucky to have him all these years.

 

I am saddened by this news. RIP Mr. Ishiwata.

 

This is indeed sad news.

During my time at Philips' Natlab, I was fortunate enough to work with him during the development of SACD, and would regularly visit his office and listening room in Eindhoven. He was a warm, generous man, with a profound love for music and sound quality. His team was responsible for the nitty-gritty design of Marantz products, but he was responsible for the tuning (and subsequent promotion, of course). Making cost-no-object products is relatively easy, but making something that sounds wonderful to a budget is far harder, and, as mentioned above, products he oversaw may have reached more budding audiophiles than by anyone else.

I thank him for his kindness and the profound impact he has had on this hobby which we all love so dearly.

RIP.

 

It is a grey day indeed/ RIP

 

Oh no.

RIP Ken

 

Yes, very sad we lost another legend. RIP Mr. Ishiwata.

 

This is very sad to hear. RIP Ken.

 

That's a shame. RIP.

dan c

 

He was truly a master at his craft.
RIP.

 

Very sad to hear this news. He was a true gentleman. I had the pleasure of meeting him several times at the Hi Fi shows in London and Bristol. He always took the time to talk to me, and was always happy to listen to what I had to say. He had so much passion for the music, great designer, so many great products over the 41 years at Marantz. Above all, a lovely human being, I'll miss you Ken Ishiwata. RIP my friend.

 

I just saw this thread, this is very sad, he will be missed. I was shocked when I heard that he was no longer at Marantz ( I heard his departure was due to the United Audio take over, but I have no way of knowing if that is true) and then I just hear he had died. This is all so very sad, he will be missed.

 

I just bought my first Marantz product (SR 8012) Can someone describe briefly what Ken did?

 

He was brand ambassador for Marantz for many years, meaning that he had a huge say on Marantz audio product development (especially the products that carried his name) and was the 'face' of Marantz to the general public (through the many shows he attended, presentations he made, interviews he gave, etc.). He split his time between The Netherlands (as a result of Philips owning Marantz at one point) and Japan, and had a team of product designers to do the hands on creation of a product, but the tuning was down to him. He had his own style/panache, and was very outgoing by Japanese standards (also hard to miss with his ponytail and colorful clothes), but he had very clear ideas about sound-quality, and was instrumental in bringing high-performance products to the cheaper end of the market (through SE and KI versions of low-cost Marantz products).

 

I look at the Audio Hardware forum every day but this is the first time I have seen this thread. I didn't know he passed away. Sad news. I love the Marantz sound. May he rest in peace.

 

One almost wonders if being fired from Marantz had any direct impact on his health declining and/or passing away.

 

Probably the opposite.

 

Care to explain?

 

Since the rumors are/were that his separation was involuntary, I suspect that it did.

 

Well being 72 is old for a full time job with good health, not to mention declining health. I'm thinking he wasn't feeling well, was up in age and his effectiveness/productivity was in decline. This sort of thing happens to many aging people that just can't do things the way they did when they were younger. He probably didn't want to retire but was forced out for a younger person. Just my opinion.