HALL OF FAME

Every year we choose a product that deserves special recognition for its enduring excellence and exemplar status

Marantz PM6007 £479

Marantz has ruled the roost over the £500 integrated-stereo-amplifier market for well over a decade now. Its weapon of choice over that time has been the 6000 series of amplifiers, of which the PM6007 is just the latest.

The Midas touch started with the introduction of the PM6002 in 2008, and ever since then this model line has consistently dominated its sector, leaving a trail of What Hi-fi? five-star reviews and Best Buy Awards.

True to that pedigree, the PM6007 is now a two-time winner of our Best Buy at this sweet-spot price, apeing the success of its immediate predecessor – and the machine from which it is evolved – the PM6006 UK Edition. That’s quite some record for the now-japanese specialist hi-fi company that was founded in New York in 1953 by Saul Marantz.

And, as a first step into the realms of ‘proper’ hi-fi, there can be few better examples of a product that provides a splendid synergy between build quality and performance for those looking to buy on an affordable budget.

The PM6007 may be very much the immediate descendent of the PM6006 but, as is the way with such things (or, at least, as ought to be the way) it improved on the older model in a number of ways.

A new digital-to-analogue converter (DAC) comes with the versatility of two digital filters that allow users to fine-tune the sound they get from either of its two optical or one coaxial inputs. New components and upgraded circuitry also combine to improve the performance from the already-impressive PM6006.

Of course, you wouldn’t particularly notice these changes (or any changes) from looking at the two machines side by side, but the differences are clear when you listen to both in comparison testing.

As we say in our review: “The clearest evidence of the line’s evolution lies in the PM6007’S performance. Its sonic character is as familiar as its casework: smooth, full-bodied and balanced, with a pleasing spaciousness. Like its predecessor, it’s about as agreeable and rewarding a performer as you could ask for at this price.

“Where it pulls away from the PM6006 UK Edition, though, is in its greater clarity, precision and rhythmic punch. Marantz has traded some of that smoothness for a bit more oomph, as well as tightened up the bass.”

And the result is a more spirited presentation that hi-fi enthusiasts looking to take a step up on performance, perhaps, from an all in one system or a wireless speaker, should delight in.

Marantz’s engineers deserve high praise here for taking an already fine product and making improvements pretty much across the board.

As the PM6007 joins the ranks of hi-fi royalty, we can affirm that it is a truly deserving entrant into our Hall of Fame.

Marantz’s engineers deserve high praise for taking an already fine product and making improvements pretty much across the board