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Hi-Fi: Marantz SA7003 SACD Player & PM7003 Integrated Amplifier – 79
Marantz has been creating memorable products since Saul Marantz got his start way back in the early ’50s. While your Tone reviewer doesn’t go back quite that far, he has had the pleasure of owning a Marantz SACD player since 2006, and has yet to hear a better digital source at anything near the price. Can this new mid-range Marantz kit live up to Tone’s admittedly huge expectations?
The amp and player are nicely finished with neat lines and ergonomic layouts, but to get to the chase: sonically, the Marantz delivered.
You can’t mistake this signature if you’re familiar with it. Overall it’s clean and extremely revealing, and if you crave detail and resolution, these components will send you into throes of ecstasy. Every single part of the mix is spotlighted and each instrument proclaims: “Here I am, listen to me”. This is no mellow, opaque, ever-so-safe combination; it’s almost forensic but fear not, the results are enjoyable, allowing you to concentrate on the elements that make up the music yet still flowing together as a cohesive whole. Words like ‘alive’, ‘vibrant’ and ‘dramatic’ come to mind.
The low frequencies are well taken care of, the amp seems to have a good grip on speaker cones and there’s a decent amount of power under the lid: 70 watts is enough for most real-world speakers.
Potential buyers best beware the sting in the tail: all that detail, which is especially evident in the high frequencies, demands careful speaker matching. Partner this pair with loudspeakers that are toppy or brightly lit and you’re likely to get too much of a good thing. The amp has effective tone controls but it sounds best in Source Direct mode, so choose your transducers with some forethought.
As good as the amp is, the SACD player is the stronger component (the fact that the SA7003 spins SACDs is a bonus) but the two come together extremely well. Matched with the right speakers, they make for stirring listening and offer an audio experience that will satisfy in the long term.
They can play in the bigger leagues, too; in fact they made pleasant partners for much pricier speakers such as the talented Spendor A6s reviewed in this issue or even my own Theophany M5 Series 2 floorstanders, and that’s praise from on high.
Listening
These components were challenged with music including but not limited to the following:
Hugh Masekela – Hope; Nils Lofgren – Acoustic Live; Kings of Leon – Only by the Night; Leonard Cohen – Live in London; Neil Young – Live at Massey Hall 1971; Lisa Ekdahl – Back to Earth; Rodrigo y Gabriela – Live Manchester and Dublin; Nirvana – Unplugged in New York; Antonio Forcione – Tears of Joy; Stockfish Records – Closer to the Music (SACD); Massive Attack – Collected; Stanley Clarke – At the Movies; Frank Black – Fast Man, Raider Man; Diana Krall – The Girl in the Other Room (SACD); Holst – The Planets; Stereophile magazine Test CDs vol 1-3; Robert Cray – Sweet Potato Pie; Aimee Mann – Lost in Space; Jethro Tull – Thick as a Brick; Audioslave – Audioslave
Every one of these discs has something on it that will showcase the good and bad of any audio system. I’ve heard them many times (too many times, some may say) and that familiarity allows me to hear what each system does differently. I’d encourage anyone serious about hi-fi to compile a collection of much-loved music and to always listen extensively before spending their hard-earned cash.
BRETT GIDEON
Tech Specs
SA7003 SACD PLAYER
FORMATS: SACD (stereo), CD, CD-R/RW, MP3, WMA
OUTPUTS: Analogue RCA, digital co-ax, digital optical, headphone (with volume control)
OTHER CONNECTORS: D-BUS remote in/out
DIMENSIONS: 107 x 440 x 339.5mm (H/W/D)
WEIGHT: 5.9kg
FINISHES: Silver, black, gold
PM7003 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER
INTPUTS: 6 x RCA incl
MM phono, pre-in
OUTPUTS: Two sets speaker, pre-out, headphone out
OTHER CONNECTORS: D-BUS remote in/out
POWER OUTPUT: 70/100W (8/4 Ohm)
DIMENSIONS: 123 x 440 x 364mm (H/W/D)
WEIGHT: 10.5kg
FINISHES: Silver, black, gold
PROS
- Exciting sound
- Highly detailed and revealing
CONS
- Need careful speaker matching
VERDICT
That good old Marantz house sound still thrills
CONTACT
This review is from Tone issue 79. Click here to check it out.
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