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What is to become of Marantz Reference and HIFI as we know it

So I have been in a quiet morning for KI and Marantz as a brand for five months now.... The Marantz brand has been an American Icon in high-end audio and Saul Marantz might very well be the first “Audiophile” ever?

The Marantz brand has been with all of us for soooo very long! And in my family I’ll always remember the glowing blue of the hard earned family receiver...

When Saul knew his time was up and when he sold his company he made sure he had the assurance that someone would have/keep his vision and they sent him Ken Ishiwata, aka KI!
KI kept his end of the deal and more! KI has always had Saul Marantz in mind and his best interest at heart when guiding the Marantz companies References series.... And now sadly KI is gone, no longer with us. I always thought that somehow I would meet him at some trade show or something and shake his hand, thank him for all he did to make an impression on our hobby and in my life... Again sadly that never happened and as someone who loves HIFI I regret it.

But the larger question looms as what happens to Marantz high-end reference series/products now? They have been carefully guided by Saul Marantz and Ken Ishiwata for all these years! And there was no passing of the torch as there was between Saul and Ken...

I fear that the lone fighter for Marantz HIFI is gone now and it will not recover? I hope I am wrong and that someone in the Japan division will take it up but only time will tell...

Here is to you KI for keeping that flame alive all these years 
264win
chorus
976 posts
 
My first real system included a Marantz 3300 preamp, Marantz Model 120 tuner and a Phase Linear 400 amp. They all held high sex appeal to my eyes.
Life goes on. Companies come and go. Music reproduction evolves and improves. Say Thanks to your old buddies and come along to the future.

mahler123
3,378 posts
 
Was KI really that important to the sound?  I had always read that he tweaked equipment that had been designed by their in house team.

My lousy streamer aside, my other experience with Marantz products was that they did well in the bass and midrange, but gently rolled off the top end .  My SACD player8005 and the aforementioned streamer sounded remarkably similar and I am guessing must have had similar DACs.  I had a friend who owned their top line HT Processor and multichannel amp, which cost about 8K as a combo back in the early 2000s, and was struck by the same feature when I heard them a few years back.  Was that a KI preference?
  My only “Classic Marantz “ piece that I recall was a tuner that probably hailed from the early sixties.  I tried it for a weekend from a dealer who would let you audition second hand gear.  It probably needed an overhaul but it did have a comfortable warmth.  I didn’t keep it because it was massive and threatened to break my equipment rack of the time.
nitrobob
259 posts
 
In the 70's. I started my first line of credit by going to a small credit bureau, borrowing 168 dollars ( I still have the receipt) and buying my very first turntable. A Marantz 6300. I made payments on that thing for 2 years with my paper route ..
mammothguy54's avatar
mammothguy54
951 posts
 
My first real hi-fi system, 1 year out of high school, included a Marantz 2270 receiver.  What a joy that system was.  Though I have moved way beyond a receiver system, several times over the years, that particular system still rings my bell.  I loved it and I'll never forget it.  Long live the Marantz brand!
jndean
132 posts
 
I ,too, will miss Ken. He was passionate and did tweak everything on the reference side  of Marantz. I have owned mostly Marantz for 30 years and started with multichannel, then moved to the PM 17 integrated with two Sm 17 power amps.  I now use a PM 8005/ SA 8005 in an upstairs den and a PM 14S1 integrated amplifier in my main system with Triangle Celius  floorstanders. The PM 14S1 is minimally on the warm side of neutral, but without loss of detail, and well compliments the marginally cool  horn tweeter of the Triangles. The newer PM KI Ruby integrated is class D with power. I haven’t heard it, but it has gotten good recent reviews. 
I believe someone will step up and continue developing the reference products for Marantz. All the above were/are built in the Reference facility in Japan including the PM 8005 and PM 8006.
John
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