Seems about right. Unmodified and great cosmetics pushes it up some. fwiw, I have a standing offer north of 20K for my pair (in top condition)...I'm not selling.
I like my 8b a lot too.
Original Marantz Model 9 paired with later version
- Thread starter Chrisxo55441
- Start date
Seems about right. Unmodified and great cosmetics pushes it up some. fwiw, I have a standing offer north of 20K for my pair (in top condition)...I'm not selling.
I like my 8b a lot too.
jstang
Honey,I can't hear you...
Really... so many people bought one peice at a time in their system....as they saved up money to build up the system. Not every one dropped all the cash in one shot... also so many people had mono systems in the early 60s that it would not be a surprise for mono 2 or 5 system to be upgraded with a single 9. Then the confusion of time mixing units...
I wonder how many pairs are really mixed? Or were sold new as mixed.... think not many.
I wonder how many pairs are really mixed? Or were sold new as mixed.... think not many.
crooner
Tube Marantzed
I don't know but the Marantz 8B was less than the cost of single Marantz 9. For someone on a budget, it would be a logical choice rather than a single 9 in mono...
And I think this reflects in the production numbers. The Model 9 was advertised as part of "The finest amplifier system in the World". Notice the Model 8B in a small picture on the bottom, advertised at a lower price. That was more down to earth for most folks...
And I think this reflects in the production numbers. The Model 9 was advertised as part of "The finest amplifier system in the World". Notice the Model 8B in a small picture on the bottom, advertised at a lower price. That was more down to earth for most folks...
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jstang
Honey,I can't hear you...
Marketing does not limit how people buy or use a product... there were plenty of people that held on to mono systems well after the stereo wave first hit...
How many “Meet the Beatles” were sold in the initial 1964 pressing as Mono? Years after the 9 was first sold...
How many “Meet the Beatles” were sold in the initial 1964 pressing as Mono? Years after the 9 was first sold...
crooner
Tube Marantzed
Marantz catered to a small niche back then, the perfectionist crowd. Early in the game they facilitated the conversion to stereo by introducing the Model 6 stereo adapter and the more compact Model 5 in 1958.
They also kept the Model 2 available well into the stereo era, perhaps to entice early mono owners to convert to stereo by buying another identical amplifier.
The Beatles main market were kids listening to compact, inexpensive equipment.
They also kept the Model 2 available well into the stereo era, perhaps to entice early mono owners to convert to stereo by buying another identical amplifier.
The Beatles main market were kids listening to compact, inexpensive equipment.
jstang
Honey,I can't hear you...
So are you suggesting that none or next to none of the early 9s were sold into mono systems.... at a time when mono was still the prevalent source material....
I don’t subscribe to that... mono was king for many an audiophile for longer then one would think. But when stereo hit, it hit hard. Plenty of stories of old school mono people who never upgraded.... many of us are clinging on to 2 channel systems in this surround sound world....
Nor do I think the mix pairs came solely from mono singles only.... some got married up just out of convenience or out of people picking units that sound better.... and selling off the ones they did not want... or because that was how they were sold.
Also don’t think there are that many mixed pairs out there... closer serial number pairs seem much more the norm.... mine are very close and would never be broken up....
I don’t subscribe to that... mono was king for many an audiophile for longer then one would think. But when stereo hit, it hit hard. Plenty of stories of old school mono people who never upgraded.... many of us are clinging on to 2 channel systems in this surround sound world....
Nor do I think the mix pairs came solely from mono singles only.... some got married up just out of convenience or out of people picking units that sound better.... and selling off the ones they did not want... or because that was how they were sold.
Also don’t think there are that many mixed pairs out there... closer serial number pairs seem much more the norm.... mine are very close and would never be broken up....
jstang
Honey,I can't hear you...
Never owned a Mac...listen to a friends’ but that limits you to their setup.... I need to live with a system long term.
When I was a teen in the 70’s , I used go to the library ( remember those? Used love just roaming around and read....never knew what you would find, but anyways...).
There used to be an audiophile/audio section.. lots of books on hearing, sound, electronics and audio gear.... hard cover books... plus magazines of the day. Some ATT and WesternElectric reference books on audio...after all they pretty much set the bar on engineering this stuff in 20/30’s.....
Read many of those bocks.... they were great because they would give detail plans on how to build from scratch, because many people did build from scratch back then....many of the systems baseline in the books were mono. Although most of the hard cover books were from the early 60s.... they included detail build designs on speakers and tube systems...
Being a 70s stereo teen... I kind of turned my nose up to the tube & mono systems in those books. Marantz, MAC, Fisher ....home built.... Who knew, I didn’t at the time...
But I wish I could find those books/mags today... they had detailed reviews on these systems when brand new...
When I was a teen in the 70’s , I used go to the library ( remember those? Used love just roaming around and read....never knew what you would find, but anyways...).
There used to be an audiophile/audio section.. lots of books on hearing, sound, electronics and audio gear.... hard cover books... plus magazines of the day. Some ATT and WesternElectric reference books on audio...after all they pretty much set the bar on engineering this stuff in 20/30’s.....
Read many of those bocks.... they were great because they would give detail plans on how to build from scratch, because many people did build from scratch back then....many of the systems baseline in the books were mono. Although most of the hard cover books were from the early 60s.... they included detail build designs on speakers and tube systems...
Being a 70s stereo teen... I kind of turned my nose up to the tube & mono systems in those books. Marantz, MAC, Fisher ....home built.... Who knew, I didn’t at the time...
But I wish I could find those books/mags today... they had detailed reviews on these systems when brand new...
i was thinking in 5-10 years i could let the 9's go but if someone offered me that much they would be gone tomorrow, sons coming up for college in a couple of years and ive pretty much got him covered but my daughter is a few years behind him so ive been planning on cleaning house in the next few years anyway.
there are 2 sets for sale right now so i would assume there are a few more, even if they sound the same i still dont think i would buy them, it must affect resale value somehow, i think maybe some people dont know there is different versions ( i didnt until recently ) and buy them without knowing and the sellers may not even know, maybe just think the tube shield came off one.
I dunno if Sid and Saul did running changes/ "improvements" as discussed, or as appears, once firm, kept the designs and builds consistent thru the series production. I suspect the latter.
As to whether they used the same vendors for the opts up to the point the production came in-house with the 8B and 9 I also do not know. The choice of the tubes alone may or may not swamp any other differences in the sonics between two otherwise similar examples.
As to whether they used the same vendors for the opts up to the point the production came in-house with the 8B and 9 I also do not know. The choice of the tubes alone may or may not swamp any other differences in the sonics between two otherwise similar examples.
jstang
Honey,I can't hear you...
I would say I own a very early 10b and a very late 10b.... both are over the top clean.... both sound great....
But both have a very slight difference in sound, feel and appearance..... simply put caps and some mechanical parts changed over time. Revisions are unavoidable as suppliers come and go....
As PIO said.... It was up to Saul and Sid to make sure the end product met theirs and ours expectations...
But both have a very slight difference in sound, feel and appearance..... simply put caps and some mechanical parts changed over time. Revisions are unavoidable as suppliers come and go....
As PIO said.... It was up to Saul and Sid to make sure the end product met theirs and ours expectations...
RDSChicago
Well-Known Member
For you Marantz 9 owners, I was thinking of having my pair re-tubed and was hoping to hear some specific tube recommendations? My pair is fully restored. Thanks.
crooner
Tube Marantzed
Ideally, of course, you'd want NOS EL34's, such as Mullard dual halo XF2's. But I've had great results with the current Mullard reissue. Buy them properly matched and burned in from a reputable source...
i like vintage 7308's in the 6DJ8 spot, i have Amperex and Valvo, 6922 are nice too. +1 on the XF2 dual halo thats my favorite but XF2 and XF3 single getters are excellent as well. RFT EL34's are pretty close to Mullards in sound to me and usually can be had a bit cheaper. I been using SED Winged C's EL34 in my 9's the last few months at @onemugs recommendation and they sound pretty good as well but not as good as Mullards to me but they were 1/3 the cost so well worth it.
crooner
Tube Marantzed
I almost got a set of EH 6CA7 fat bottles to try on them, but Jim McShane discouraged me, saying they weren't that good sonically...
I have an octet of early 2000's SED's that I might try on them, sometime soon...
I used to be a fan of the east German RFT's but one died on me a few months back, so no more of those for me. The set was very low hours. A shame...
crooner
Tube Marantzed
Oh, by the way, the reason I switched to the Mullard reissues, was the failure of one dual halo XF2 last year. It died quietly, with not much fanfare. The set had a few thousand hours on them, so perhaps it was its time to go. I keep a NOS Mullard XF2 dual halo set stashed away, that I should install. But I keep talking myself out of it!
EDIT: in case you were wondering, the reissue Mullards sound very good. Not quite the same as the real deal, but they are not overly bright or anything. The errors are of omission, which is good.
EDIT: in case you were wondering, the reissue Mullards sound very good. Not quite the same as the real deal, but they are not overly bright or anything. The errors are of omission, which is good.
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