Marantz 7 - All Original?

[phillyjoel]

I recently got this Marantz 7 at a thrift store and would like to know more about it. Had it tested out and is fully functional and sounds great but the guy couldn't tell me much more about the insides.

Are all of the parts original? I can take more photos if needed.

Thank you :]

 

[shrinkboy]

at....a.....THRIFT STORE?

 

[phillyjoel]

at....a.....THRIFT STORE?

YES.

 

[vaathi]

Supposedly one of the best preamps... I have SS version of the same.

 

[tom1066]

at....a.....THRIFT STORE?

YES.

Man you are lucky, one of the best preamps out there (and with the wood case!). I spent a long time searching for one and then paid market price for mine - I know this isn't dollars and sense but I'm almost nervous to ask what you paid for it.

 

[phillyjoel]

Man you are lucky, one of the best preamps out there (and with the wood case!). I spent a long time searching for one and then paid market price for mine - I know this isn't dollars and sense but I'm almost nervous to ask what you paid for it.

I paid no more than what most "radios" would sell for at a thrift store.

Does it look all original inside? Is there a better place/person to ask that question?

Thanks!

 

[biscuithead]

I paid no more than what most "radios" would sell for at a thrift store.

Does it look all original inside? Is there a better place/person to ask that question?

Thanks!

Soon enough, some experts will join in, and answer that...

Congratulations on obtaining what I've been looking for (and probably half of all AK members) for about 20 years... a Marantz 7 at a thrift store. Go back and see if he/she has the 8b that this was probably paired with. I will offer you 10x your money....

 

[tom1066]

I paid no more than what most "radios" would sell for at a thrift store.

Does it look all original inside? Is there a better place/person to ask that question?

Thanks!

I am by no means an expert but it does look all original to me. AK Member Crooner is one of the experts on the marantz 7 around here. Check out this thread he did in the tube forum:

http://audiokarma.org/forums/index....restoration-thread.727823/page-4#post-9862074

 

[CohibaJoe]

at....a.....THRIFT STORE?

......WOW

 

[bryans12v]

Love stories like this. This is what i dream about.

 

[SidSmith]

The diodes under the transformer are not original and replace the orginal selenium rectifier. The orginal rectifier are easy to find, look on the bay.

But that it, the rest is like it was in 1963.

You are a lucky guy, you have accomplished one of my dream !

Take great care of that world class preamp !

 

[crooner]

I agree with Sid. The only apparent "non original" parts are the rectifiers for the low voltage heater supply. But they are vintage enough to be of the "top hat" variety. I recommend Schottkys in this position. Check my ultimate Marantz 7 restoration thread for more ideas.

Congrats on the find. Amazing that it made it past the thrift store receiving area. Items like this are usually sold to a local reseller or posted on eBay.

 

[damacman]

Holy cow - you gotta' be kidding me! I've had two over the years and enjoyed them immensely. Have fun.

 

[Randy Kling]

I agree with Sid. The only apparent "non original" parts are the rectifiers for the low voltage heater supply. But they are vintage enough to be of the "top hat" variety. I recommend Schottkys in this position. Check my ultimate Marantz 7 restoration thread for more ideas.

Congrats on the find. Amazing that it made it past the thrift store receiving area. Items like this are usually sold to a local reseller or posted on eBay.

Hi.Crooner, Randy Kling asking ,about part for upgrading Marantz 7 pre I have found Arizona caps, Hamfest,and pots from Warsaw Poland. The rest I've sent days trying to locate ,Abigail Favor where can I get the rest of parts to complete up grade, Thank you Randy Kling

 

[crooner]

Hi.Crooner, Randy Kling asking ,about part for upgrading Marantz 7 pre I have found Arizona caps, Hamfest,and pots from Warsaw Poland. The rest I've sent days trying to locate ,Abigail Favor where can I get the rest of parts to complete up grade, Thank you Randy Kling

Hi Randy, send me a Private Message with more detailed info if you can. Thanks!

 

[twiiii]

Is it a Model 7 or 7C? The 7C was a great tube pre-amp. Some thought it sound was a little forward. The ones I heard proved to be that way but I never new if it was the pre-amp or the 8B or model 9's it was teamed with. A lot folks thought Mac power amps were more musical, maybe so. So maybe it was the amps I was hearing. I liked the smoothness of Marantz controls and the two position filters compared to the single choice with other offerings. Marantz paired up with AR, KLH, and EV was a better choice than with JBL, Altec and Klipsch. Bozak was a good choice for Marantz, too. I will say the 7T was a big step up from the 7C. It was quieter, had magnitudes of lower distortion. The high end was cleaner and the bass was firmer with more punch. That all said I enjoyed many hours listening to friends model 7C. Would I have given up my C-22, no, but the 7C was a great edition to any system at the time.

 

[SidSmith]

The 7 are the 7C minus the cabinet. 7T was a step forward objectively, but not in sonic. That is not saying that it is bad, absolutely no, just not up to 7 level in term of realism.

The Marantz amplifiers were mostly design to be coupled with electrostatic speakers such as the infamous KLH model 9 and Sid Smith personly coupled them with Quad ESL-63.

The Marantz 7 is a popular choice for those who got a very high effiency system.

 

[Pio1980]

The 7 are the 7C minus the cabinet. 7T was a step forward objectively, but not in sonic. That is not saying that it is bad, absolutely no, just not up to 7 level in term of realism.

The Marantz amplifiers were mostly design to be coupled with electrostatic speakers such as the infamous KLH model 9 and Sid Smith personly coupled them with Quad ESL-63.

The Marantz 7 is a popular choice for those who got a very high effiency system.

I think you meant the models 8/ 8b for efficient speakers.

 

[SidSmith]

No, I talk about the model 7. It's musicality is prized by many japanese meloman whom exclusively listen to their music on very efficient system (<100dB/1w/1 meter)

The 8B was designed to be used with medium-high efficiency (+/- 95 dB) and electro stats.

 

[Pio1980]

Certainly, a low residual noise floor in the line gain drive section after the controls would be desirable for high efficiency speakers.
Btw, I think this is the reason he put triode connected 6BH6 small signal pentode in the front end of the amps 5 and later, very low residual noise.