Ma rantz SA- I 5 SZIPM- I 5 52 Limrted Edilion (fzoootfzooo)

ru
I552
MarantzSA-I5SZIPMLimrtedEdilion(fzoootfzooo)
15'Premium
Range'audio
havebeenworkedoverby
These
Series
components
models
Marantz's
Kenlshiwata
to createtwo ratherspecialLimitedEditionaudiophile
Review:
JohnBamfordLab:PaulMiller
usic may indeed be the food of
love, but when playedthrough
a hi-fisystemnot all of it has
the same nutritionalvalue.
Electroniccomponent selection,layout and
mechanicalintegrity can all play a part in
separatingthe good from the great. And
this is the premiseof these brand new
Limited Editionoroductsfrom Marantz.
Its 'BrandAmbassador'and designer
extraordinaire, Ken lshiwata, celebrated
his 30th anniversaryof working at Marantz
a couple ofyears ago by producingthe
sumDtuousKl Pearlcombinationof SACD
playerand amplifier[HFNSept'09].
Manufacturingwas limited to just 500 sets.
Then last year lshiwatafollowed up with
a couple of significantlymore affordable
specials,the SA-KIPearlLite playerand
PM-KIPearlLite amplifier,each priced
under E1000. I've not heardthe amplifier
in my system, however the Pearl Lite SACD
playerhas visitedmy home on a couple of
occasions.Lite it may be, but it's certainly
no lightweight performer,being one of the
best bargainson the market for budding
audiophileson a tight budget: I love it!
SO DOES HE EIIER SLEEP?
hastimeto sleep
QuitewhenI'shiwata
I'm not sure.lf there's an important hi-fi
exhibitionunderwayanywherein the
world, Kenwill be there. Perhapsmost of
his shut-eyeis undertakenat 35,000ft.
Nevertheless,
this year he hasfound
time to breatheon Marantz'sSeries15
componentsfrom the company'sPremium
Range.The SA-15 two-channelSACDplayer
and PM-15stereo integratedamplifier
were first introducedin 2005. lmproved
52 versionsappearedin the autumn of
2 0 0 9 p r i c e da t a r o u n dE 1 7 0 0 e a c h .l t ' s
l"E'spower supplyemploys
RIGHT: The SA-15S2
a torcidal transformer.The discmechanism
is mounted on 2mm-thicksteel,designedto
reduce the etrect of vibration from the spindle
50 i www.hifinews.co.ukI DECEMBER
2011
t h e s e ' 1 5 S 2m o d e l st h a t l s h i w a t ah a sn o w
spent time tweaking to within inchesof
their lives,resultingin the Limited Edition
versionswe have here.
They come only in black,but certainly
look handsomethanksto a silkyfinishto
'Limited'
t h e a l u m i n i u mc a s e w o r ka n d
insigniason their fascias.Eachproduct
is housedin a 1.2mm-thickchassis'environmentally-friendly
chrome-free',
saysthe company- with an additional
3mm bottom plate and substantialdiecast
aluminiumvibration insulators,'footed'
with felt padsto protect the shelvesof
your equipment racks.
Evenbefore one considerswhat's
under the bonnets.it is clearfrom the
high quality of fit and finishthat you're
getting a great deal for the money here.
The SA-1552LEfeaturesthe familiar
SACD-10
d i s cm e c h a n i s mw, i t h i t s l o a d i n g
tray made from Zyron.lt employsCirrus
Logic'sCS4398 Delta-SigmaDACwith two
filter-settingsswitchablevia the player's
remote handset.Filter2 is in fact the
'conventional'steep roll-offdigital filter
while filter 1 (the player'sdefault setting)
offers a slower roll-off characteristic.
Playbackof MP3 and WMA files on CD-R/RW
media is supported.
The power supply'sdual-shielded
toroidal transformerhas separatewindings
for the player'sdigital and analogue
sections,the front panel display,and
the final audio output stage.Circuit
componentssuch as film capacitors,main
electrolyticsand decouplingcapacitorsin
this LEversionare similarto those used in
%
Marantz'shigh-end(circaf 5k)SA-7S1
SACD
player,asarethe company'sproprietary
HDAMand HDAM-SA2
amplifiermodules
in the output stage.Theplayer'soptical
andcoaxialdigitaloutputscanbe disabled,
ascanthe display,
whilean opticalinput
allowsthe playerto be usedasa DAC
for an externaldigitalsource(upto 24Theheadphonesocketis driven
bit/96kHz).
by a discreteoutput circuit.
The 18.5k9PM-15S2
LEfeatures
bass/
treblecontrolsthat aresubtle-acting
and
defeatable
andbalancecanbe setvia
menu-controlled
trim settings.
A standout
featureof all ampsin Marantz's
Premium
Rangeis the abilityto cascadethem for
bi-or tri-ampingandusein multichannel
systems.
Again,viathe set-upmenuthe
SA-15S2
LEcanbe assigned
to be a 'master'
'slave',
or numbered
in conjunction
with a
sliderswitchon the rearpanelthat should
be left setto-Stereofor normaluse.
In particularit's the attentionto detail
in the amplifier'spowersupplythat
differentiates
this LimitedEditionversion
fromthe standardPM-1552.
Employing
gorgeous
techniques
firstusedin Marantz's
MA-9monoblocks,
the transformeris
carefullyshielded,whilethe supply'smain
electrolyticcapacitorsare now the same
proprietarydesignsfeaturedin the Kl-Pearl
amplifier.lshiwatasaysthe discreteHDAMSA2and SA3amp moduleshavebeen
speciallyoptimisedhere.
ASOVE: Bluefront panellighting,wtrkh can
be sitched on/off, adds a touch of luuryto
desilky bhckfinish of these timited Editions
extremely refined, full-bodied and rounded,
with delicate and sweet high frequencies
that rarely grated even when playing
brash pop/rock recordings.The modern
electronica of Chase& Status'sNo More
ldols CD [Mercury 27451351is typical of
the genrewith its
dense,impenetrable
In the past I've described
sound.Despitethe
the SA-KIPearl Lite player
compression,
this LE
as soundingdetailed
playermanagedto
and precise,with the
makegood senseof
the cacophonyasthe
mountingtorrent of
easy-going
nature.
room-shaking
bass
AndthisnewSA-15S2
LEsoundssimilaily
floodedmy listening
spacewhenlistening
explicitwith good detaildefinition,but
to the track'BlindFaith'.SingerLiam
addsa creamy,luxuriousflavourto the
Bailey's
vocalswere portrayedmostvividly,
mix.Auditionedthroughmy MarkLevinson hisvoiceseeminglypulledout from the mix
No.383amplifierthe SA-1552
LEsounded with plentyof spacearoundit to aid clarity.
And again,when referencinghow I've
perceivedthe soundof the PearlLitedisc
playerin the past,I can hearthat this
Marantz's Xen lshiwata takes a holistic approach when tuning the sound of disc
SA-l5S2LEpossesses
a velvetysmoothness
players and amplifiers to maximisetheir potential. For him it's not simply about
that polishesoff the edgessomewhat.
selecting more costly, higher specification internal components, or beefing up
Soif you'reafter a sharply-etched,
crisp
power supplies.Nor is it solely about circuit topology, or heavy-dutychassis
you mightnot be
and'brilliant'sound,
construction to avoid vibration of electronic circuits. Rather,he is looking to find
thrilledby thisSpecial
Edition.lt is highly
the'sweet-spot'where elementsof a product'sdesignseemto work in harmony
vividin the criticalmidband,however.
with each other. His passionis for musicality alongside wide and deep soundConsequently,
vocalsare alwaysexplicit
staging. SaysKen:'Prefered tonal balance will always be a personal matter, of
and easyto decipher,whilethe player's
course.We have individual tastes, so some people mayfind the Marantz sound
weightyandvigorousbassstopsand starts
too warm, for example.'Wecouldn't agree mone.Indeed,how can one possibly
with great precision.
accountfor the balanceof an enthusiastlistener'smonitors?
Raising
the barwith a discof audiophile
quafity,the hybridSACDof TheLookOf O
@nrrnncREAM
'Theplayermade
goodsenseof the
mountingtorrentof
room-shakrns
bass'
3:l*:HT::l:ffi:'''
DECEMBER
2O11 | www.hifinews.co.uk| 51
'//t
/z
MARANTZ SII-$SZIPM -ISSZLE(14k)
ABOVE: Connectaonsare singleended (RCA)via gold-plated sockets.Amplifier hasa
high quality MM/MC phono stage prc/povuerin/out and WBTspeakerterminals
Love by Diana Krall [Verve 589
507-21soundedsumptuous.
Swappinglayersshowed clear
differentiation between CD and
SACDsound quality,the soundstage
captured by this recordingopening
up considerablywhen playingthe
hi-resoption. The basswas rich and
extendedand the accompanying
strings and piano were focused
beautifullyto create a wonderful
'picture'.
Krall'svoice was delivered
with a sensualwarm glow.
woody and full-bodied,and Jenny
Carr'spiano accompanimentwas
eerily lifelike,thanksto the senseof
spacearound the instruments.
TheseSeries15 Limited Editions
have an abilityto cut right to the
heart of the music played.A great
exampleof this came with the
marvellous'FeelCood lnc'from
the 2005 Corillaz album Demon
D a y s[ P a r l o p h o n 0e 9 4 6 3 1 1 6 9 1 ] ,
the infectiousbassline served
up wonderfullyby this Marantz
pairing.The vital (Crammyawarded)
AMP WIIII ATM{ORIIY
contributionto the song by the
A u d i t i o n i n gt h e P M - 1 5 5 2L Ea m p l i f i e r Americanhip-hoptrio De La Soul
in isolation- a line input fed from
was most specific- where so many
Chord Electronics'QBDT6HDDAC
systemcomponentsfail to resolve
and musicfrom my digital library
the variousindividualelements.
- proved that, like its partnering
Thesetwo new designsfrom the
disc player,it has a refinedand
handsof Ken lshiwatadeliversound
easy-on-the-ear
quality.lt sounds
that's alsoextremelyvalve-like,
muscularand authoritativetoo, with
w h i c h w i l l u n d o u b t e d l yb e ' m u s i c
spaciousstereo imagerythat really
to the ears'of many.But seriously
comesto the fore when listeningto
... mellifluous,smooth and silky,
powerful orchestralmaterial.I was
and with an intelligibleand vivid
able to reallywind it up without it
midband.Engagingin spades,and
soundingstressedor on the edge.
easyto listento for hourson end...
And with more delicate materialMightn't I be describingmany a
for example,the frail voice and solo
valve-drivencombo? These'1 5S2
piano of RadkaToneff's'TheMoon
LEcomponentsreallydo sound
ls A Harsh Mistress'from Fairytales
deliciouslysweet.O
[Odin CD-03]- it was evident
that this is an amplifiercapableof
subtletyand grace in equal measure.
Deliveringholographic image
'l
Pairedup, these Series 5 Limited
perspectives and extremely
Editionssoundedcalm and unforced
fine and polished sound,
with enchantingdepth-layering
these Marantz Limited Edition
of stereo images. Resolutionof
components are nothing short of
instrumental textures was excellent
delightful to listen to. Given the
too, especiallywhen listeningto
attention to detail in their build
SACDS,
despitea warm tonality
quality, they clearly represent
givingthe impressionof indifference
excellentvalue for money and
to the analysisof fine detailsin
can be highly recommended.
recordingswith forensicprecision.
Certainlythey could form the
'Lilac
Wine' from BarbJungr'sJust
basis of a fabulous hi-fi system for
LikeA Woman SACD[Linn AKD 309]
lessthan a king's ransom.
brought a lump to my throat, with
her intimate, rather huskyvoice
Sound
0uatity:
850/o
soundingfull of passion.Danny
Thompson'sstring basssounded
€Hffi,0
Let'skick-offwith the SA-15S2LE
player.Unusually,it's Marantz's
Filter 1 option that offers a slow HFroll-off,trading reduced
ringingand group delayin the audiobandfor a poorer
attenuation of stopband (aliasing)images.Filter 2 offers the
more traditional 'brickwall' cutoff (-78d8 at z4kqzvs. -24d8
at 24kHzwith 48kHzdigitalinsand -22d8 at 5 1kHzvs.-6dB
at 5 1kHzwith 96kHz digital ins).Howeve( the frequency
responsewithin the passbandis unaffectedby filter setting:
-O.26dB/2okHz(44.1kHz CD),-O.24dBl2OkHz(BkHz digital
in) and - l.9dB/45kHz(96kHzdigitalin).On the other hand,
the Filtersettingsdo impact on the practical responseof SACD
replay,with Filter i the 'flatter' extendingout to -1 9dB/100kHz
vs.-45dBi l OOkHzwith Filter 2. Jittershowsthe sameslightly
untidy pattern observedwith recent Marantz playersat
-400psec with CD/SACD
but rather higher at 228opsecvia the
digitalinput with 48kHzmedia[seeGraph2, below].
Maranfz'spartnering amplifier exceedsits 90W rating at
'l4OW
2xl lOry8ohm and offersa full
250W and 410W into
8, 4 and 2ohm loadsunderdynamicconditions[seeGraph1].
Distortionis low throughthe bassand midrangeand increases
gently with output from O.0018%at 1W to 0.0037%at 10W
and 0.0 1%at 100W. THD necessarilyincreasesat higher
frequencyto just O.O17%
at 20kHz/10W. Responseis very
extended:just -0.7d8/1ookHzbut with an unusualsubsonic
bassboost of +7.5d8 at 3Hz. Readersmay view comprehensive
QC Suitetest reports for Marantz'sSA/PM-I5S2LECD/SACD
player/DACand amp by navigatingtowww.hifinews.com and
clickingon the red 'download'button. PM
E
l
E
3
o
I
g
Dyrmic
Powtr Outp|lt >>
E
ABOVE:Dynamicpower output versusdistortion into
8ohm (blacktrace), 4ohm (red),2ohm (blue) and
lohm (green)speakerloads
E
2
3500
<< Jltlar Fleqnncy
>>
trI
ABOVE:High resolutionjitter spectrum for SA-15S2LE:
SACD(blackspectrum)and 24-bit/48kHz digital
input (red spectruml - jitter is higher at 48k than 96k
Power output (<1%THD,8/4ohm)
Dynamic power (<l%THD,
8i4l2/lohm)
138W/2s0W/410W/114w
Freq.resp. (20H2-l00kHz,SACD/amp)
+0.2d8to -0.7d8/+0.2d8
to -l8dB
r 0 8 . s d B( 0 d B F t/ 8 9 . 3 d 8( 0 d B W )
o.oo2-0.005%
(row)
/ 0.05-0.02%
.tifter (CD/SACD/48k
di9 in/96k dig in)
6W/325w @ 2x90W(3sw idle)
4 4Ox123x419 | 4 40x"l23x4 44 mm
DECEMBER20ll ! www.hifinews.co.uk| 53