Amplifiers are at the core of Marantz history
Marantz very first product was a high-quality preamplifier designed to make the most of the then-new LP record format. And with a history stretching all the way to that ground-breaking Audio Consolette – which Saul B Marantz started manufacturing in 1952, and which soon became the first real Marantz product, the Model 1 preamplifier – , it’s no surprise that the company’s very latest Premium Series model, the PM-10, is an integrated amplifier built to set new standards with all of today’s music formats. In fact, this massively powerful integrated amplifier is constructed more like a high-end separate preamplifier and a pair of monobloc power amps, but all in one beautifully finished case, designed both to maximize performance and create a strong visual statement.
Optimized design
To achieve such quality, while still delivering class-leading power, means optimizing each section of the amplifier for its task, just as would be done in a design using a separate preamplifier and monobloc power amps. Commonly, amplifiers use a single transformer, with separate power supply regulation for the preamplifier and power amplifier sections; the PM-10 takes things much further. A dual-mono design, it has separate power supplies for the preamplifier and each of the power amplifier channels, with one transformer dedicated to the preamp to ensure the delicate signals passing through that section of the amplifier aren’t affected by the demands of the high power output stages. There’s also a dedicated supply for the microprocessor controlling volume adjustment, input selection and so on, ensuring no noise from the control section finds its way in to the audio path.
Built to perform
Like the partnering SA-10 Super Audio CD/CD player/DAC, the PM-10 is constructed to the highest possible standards, with a double-layered copper-plated chassis for excellent rejection of mechanical and electrical interference, and casework constructed from thick, heavy, non-magnetic aluminium panels. Both products also sit on aluminium die-cast feet.