Marantz.....A History To be Truly Revered

To understand why we are where we are now it is appropriate to look back at great engineering feats that helped us discover how wonderful music listening can be.A pioneer and genius of the early years of high fidelity,Saul B Marantz introduced us to some very special pieces of amplification.Going way back to 1958,Marantz introduced it's Model 7 Preamplifier which was a breakthrough.In it's 12 year production run 130,000 units were sold which is a staggering figure considering it's price of $385 ($3211 in 2016 dollars).

To match the Model 7 Preamplifier the Model 8 power amplifier was released.A valve based design,it has become a legend in hifi history.The Model 8 amplifier made it's debut in 1959 with a then considerable 35 watts per channel.Despite it's inadequacies compared to modern technologies this amplifier was truly good for it's time and helped pave the way for development and modern design.......it could be said it was an inspiration as are many Marantz designs.

It is encouraging that after Philips had their way with the ownership of Marantz that Marantz Japan bought the company in 2000 and has gone back to the roots and now is again designing award winning amplifiers and CD players.The designs and technology that Saul B Marantz brought to us are truly a part of where we have been inspired to be today.A testament to this is the prices that these classic pieces are attaining on the secondhand marketplace.Despite their apparent flaws compared to current technology,they still have an inherent musicality that can never be taken away.