Marantz, New York
The first Marantz audio product was designed and built by Saul B. Marantz in his home in Kew Gardens, New York. The company had a major influence in the development of high fidelity audio systems, and reached the high point of their success in the mid to late 1970s. During the 1980s, while owned by Philips, a pioneer in compact disc technology, Marantz built some very well received CD players, but other products in the line were not as successful as in the past.
Marantz: the short history
The original page is brief, so here is what it leaves out. Saul Marantz sold his first preamplifier, the Audio Consolette, in 1952 and founded the company in Queens in 1953 with one product, the Model One. Sidney Smith joined after answering an advertisement for that preamp. The Model 7 preamplifier followed in 1958, the year stereo records reached the public, and according to Sound & Vision it sold more than 130,000 units over a run of more than twelve years. The Model 8 stereo power amplifier came in 1959, the mono Model 9 shortly after, and the 8B in 1961 or 1962.
Superscope bought Marantz in 1964, and from 1966 production moved increasingly to Japan in partnership with Standard Radio. The original page's reference to Philips ownership in the 1980s is consistent with later history but outside our sources.
| Founded | 1953, Queens, New York |
|---|---|
| Founder | Saul B. Marantz |
| First product | Audio Consolette preamp (sold 1952) / Model One |
| Model 7 preamp | 1958 |
| Acquired by | Superscope, 1964 |
| Japanese production | From 1966 |
Questions collectors ask
When was the Marantz Model 7 introduced?
In 1958. Sound & Vision reports that it sold more than 130,000 units over a production run of more than twelve years.
Who owned Marantz after Saul Marantz?
Superscope Inc. acquired the company in 1964.
Sources: Wikipedia: Marantz; Sound & Vision: Is This the Holy Grail of Classic American Hi-Fi?; Stereophile: Listening #111.
