Marantz SA11S1 - technically flawless, musically short...

Japanese, never tired of technical jargons, filled this player with a mouthful in the tech spec section. So many custom made parts, so many hand picked parts, so many new tech jargons, so many mouthful of abbreviations.

If you really want to feel what you paid for, I guess you FEEL it the moment you pick it up. This player weighted 14kg and exuded top notch build quality with no loose parts felt when carried. Indeed, with no screw heads protruding in front, top and sides, I can say much efforts have been put in making this player.

If that is not enough, rays of blue lighted up the sides of the front section where the front loading mechanism was located. Overshadowing 3 buttons on each side of the front fascia. With such massive and tastefully done build quality, pay 10K also worth lar!

What greeted me was nothing short of massiveness. In fact, the imaging is much larger than what my XA5ES projected. At least 2 times larger to be exact. However, that size also took up the sonic space where airiness and spacial info took place as in my XA5ES's presentation.

This player seemed to take prime in projecting the instruments rather than the air and space encapsulating them, making the soundstage direct and a bit forward. The instruments and voices were densed and solidly positioned. Though forward, they were not in-your-face kind of projection, instruments were still vividly seperated.

Although the presentation was direct, the rhythm was a bit too polite. Music was rendered in such non-colored way, it was neutrality nearing blandness. Pace just lost bite to the music! This, to me was more suitable for dissecting rather than making music.

A Toyota or a Honda, they are still Japanese cars. Japanese is good in making things without characters but compliant to high build quality. Highly recommended if you treasure sophistication, build wise.