A bit of a can of worms but I think we can call it the high end of audio equipment. The standard by which other gear is measured by as a reference point.
These are their current USA offerings, all made in Japan vs China. Lots of historical Reference Series gear still holding good value that others might have personal insights or links to. Marantz US | Reference Series ยป
Modern Marantz Reference Series product line would include the following premium models (might have left out a few): Amps: SM-11S1/S2, MA-9S1/S2, PM-11S1/S2/S3, PM-15S1/S2, PM-14S1, PM-KI-Pearl SACD/CD Players: SA-11S1/S2/S3, SA-15S1/S2, SA-7S1/S2, SA-14S1, SA-KI-Pearl Preamps: SC-11S1/S2, SC-7S1/S2 Turntables and Network Players: TT-15S1, NA-11S1
I had a full stack of Marantz Reference components for about 7 years, and I loved them. I made some big changes, and went back to a tubed preamp and amp, and a streaming bridge and DAC. I sold the SC7S2 and SA7S1, and still have the MA9S1 monoblocks for sale.
Hey the SA8005 is no slouch! Probably gets you 80% of the quality for 30% of the price. Wonderful player for the price and light years ahead of the CD6005.
I bought an SA-8005 a month ago and as good as it sounds, the SA-14S1 and SA-11S3 sound a lot more than 20% better to my ears YMMV As far as build quality there's no comparison, just sayin', and I do like my SA-8005.
New arrival from FleaBay today, a 10-year old Marantz ST-17 tuner in minty condition for $200. Weighs 15 pounds with metal top, could be an early Reference series tuner. Hot dam it even has HDAM circuitry. This black version with gyro tuning looks real sweet, and the sound quality has surpassed my picky expectations
Thanks for the video Hiro, I really enjoyed it...."the emotion of music" that's that thought that I agree with the most. Nice gear but I'm suprised how much "toed in" those B&W were in that room.
I've seen Ken demo with B&W quite a lot. Bold move, those speakers need A LOT of juice to sing! You almost always see these speakers paired with gigantic McIntosh blocks.
I think that audience is buying McIntosh instead. The company makes pretty good deals with their dealers, and I think they have a much wider network and greater influence, at least in the U.S.
I've had lots of Marantz reference gear over the years. I've gone in a different direction, but I enjoyed them when various pieces were part of my system. Their reference gear is great and built like a Sherman tank. I liked the SACD players in particular. Some old pics These days, I'm more into McIntosh and Luxman, but Marantz reference gear is great stuff.
I've drooled for years over the Marantz reference gear! Beautiful stuff! Unfortunately my budget has only allowed me to own the SA 8001 and PM 7001. I love them! Also have acquired four vintage Marantz receivers from the 70's. I guess you could say I love all things Marantz!!!!
I also have a full stack of the Marantz reference gear: MA9S2 Sc7S2 Sa7S1 I really like this stuff and I doubt I will change it anytime soon.....
New PM-10S1 arrived a few weeks ago. Haven't had much time to get acquainted yet, but out of the box I prefer it over the PM-11S3. No longer concerned about Class-D, this beast and the La Scala II's rock the Casbah
