Dear reader, Marantz is shaking the gates of high-end by launching a new series of “reference quality” high-end audio products, called the 10 Series. In this series a new amplifier is included, the Model 10, a new premium SACD, the SA-10, and joining them later, a high-end streamer called the Link 10N.
Here is the official Marantz picture with all three included, SA-10 on the left, Model 10 amplifier in the middle and the future Link 10N in the right, all arranged in a modernistic mid-century inspired warm-oak type of look, Bowers & Wilkins Series 800 speakers included:
The amplifier, Model 10, is definitely a nice design, being inspired from the past, having a clear reference to the old top-notch high-end Marantz separates of the 90s. The amplifier has a dual-mono architecture, with a heavy shielded fully compartmented interior. The side panels of Model 10 are made from solid aluminum, being 16mm thick. Individual power supplies are available for each channel, while distortion is measured at only 0.05% THD. The amplifier circuitry is completely new, but the philosophy remains the same, unchanged from 1992. The Model 10 is a beast, outputting 250W of power per channel into 8-ohm.
The front design is simple yet very slick, with a multipurpose round OLED display in the middle, volume selector on the right side and input selector on the left. The amplifier has multiple illumination features included, the most interesting being its internal illumination that can be customized or fully turned down and, also, illumination of the front bevel, following the new design philosophy of Marantz.
The amplifier has many inputs available, 2 sets of balanced XLR inputs, 3 sets of RCA inputs, a phono input also, RCA line out, RCA/XLR preamp out and power amp inputs. Model 10 does not have any kind of digital inputs, but there are two sets of binding posts in terms of speaker connection for bi-wiring purposes.
No release date is communicated for the CD-Player or for the streamer, but they will be out soon, and they will be complementary to Model 10. The amplifier will be available in either black or “Marantz Champagne” and SA-10 only in black. These do not come cheap: Model 10 will cost $15000, SA-10 $7500 and the LINK 10N remains to be seen, but I reckon will be also around $7500. All of these will be handcrafted in Shirakawa, Japan.
The launch of the new high-end 10 Series puts the high-end spotlight on the dormant Marantz, they have not launched products in this category for a very long time, and for us high enders, this is a great moment. Bravo Marantz!
