As fringe benefits go, its tenuous at best to suggest that the lack of customer demonstrations during this lockdown has allowed us to be a little more than indulgent when borrowing our branch stock, but if there is a silver-lining to our current situation, then this must be it!

Currently I’m using a Bluesound Node 2i in my system at home, which is a superb product in every way. It offers an exceptional interface with the BluOS - operating system - and a very capable DAC, that is even more impressive when you figure in a price of around just £500; simply put the whole package makes streaming a joy.

Having had a Bluesound Node 2i in my system at home for nearly two years, I haven't been able to resist the temptation to try and improve the performance of my principal source component and as the operating system is such a joy to use, upgrading the DAC was the obvious step. I have only tried a couple of alternatives in the past. Naturally the Chord Qutest was my first thought, and, as you would expect, the improvement is a definite step forward. A worthy audition if you are considering a DAC upgrade yourself. The other DAC I tried was the Audio Note DAC 0.1x which offers a valve infused output stage. I must admit that this was the immediate appeal, as it was clear the Audio Note would offer a very different flavour. In comparison the Node 2i has a crisp and dynamic delivery and without being side tracked too much, the upper register was beautifully realised, with a clean and transparent vocal and a beautifully realistic appraisal of the instruments, even if the Audio Note is restricted to decoding at only Red-Book standards. Both DAC's offered something worthwhile, but news of what really read like a whole new concept in DAC technology has been to difficult to resist and so I did a little bit of lobbying to arrange an early demonstration unit when the SA12 Special Edition came to our shores. The amplifier the PM12 Special Edition and SA12 player were Japanese only models initially.

The upper echelon of the Marantz range are always an exciting proposition. Build quality is always exceptional, the fit and finish equally so and a little look under the hood shows the plethora of lessons learnt from the design of products past, with those lessons rigorously re-applied to ensure the best sound possible. As indicated earlier, my principle interest in the SA12 Special Edition, was the "fancy" DAC, and I will mention more of my thoughts in a few moments. As a CD player, naturally with the capacity to play Super Audio CD’s, you will see much more than faint echoes of the range topping SA10, that priced at £6000; which is literally double the price of the SA12. While the SA12 can't offer you the exacting copper casework specified for SA10, or benefits such as balanced XLR outputs, the execution is very similar. The DAC architecture is based on the same concept, and while component parts will differ and the output stages may as well, think of the SA12 as the baby brother to a masterpiece. No where is this quality more obviously illustrated than the CD mechanism. It is smooth and assured, making barely a sound as it opens and closes, the surest sign of the attention that has been lavished on this premium disc-spinner. "It's got a great action" and you would absolutely be forgiven for marvelling at the mechanism, even if you’re not planning on using the transport; just as I secretly might have done!

Build quality aside, the DAC is a key element of the SA12 Special Edition and it offers a useful range of digital connections for use with other components, with Coax and Optical inputs, for use with a streamer, and an asynchronous USB-B, when using a laptop or PC. Technically, the DAC is a powerhouse with the USB-B connection capable of decoding PCM and DXD file formats up to 32bit/384kHz, with DSD2.8MHz, DSD 5.6MHz and DSD11.2MHz. The Coax and Optical connections will support files of up to 24bit/192KHz - "Hi-Res" - and this is how I have enjoyed the SA12, via a Chord Clearway Digital coax’ cable from my Nod,e with the digital filter set on filter two, (of two), which has a sharper roll-off and appears ever so slightly more dynamic to my ear. As I have indicated the DAC in this case is something new, taking the digital data from say, a disc and, forgive me for removing a couple of steps in the process to save the column inches, converting from PCM to a DSD style bitstream. This new development in DAC technology is known as Marantz Musical Mastering, or MMM for ease. It has also been referred to as the "DAC that's not a DAC", by one of the principal architects of this radical design. The finer details are still "patent pending", so a more detailed explanation isn't possible, but what I can say is that when it comes to listening, this is a special experience.

There is no escaping the fact that the DAC in the Node 2i is exceptional, and not just for the price point, however, the addition of the SA12 decoding a Tidal stream has been nothing short of superb. To describe the sound in my system leads me to an almost contradictory conclusion, a warmth, very reminiscent of the Marantz sound signature as many understand it to be, yet with a real sense of power and control, which is almost, conversely clean and certainly clear. All the fine detail is clear to hear, vocals are sweet, they are further forward in the mix and the sound-stage, and instrument placement, are very precise. There is a cohesion and warmth, making for a transparent and detailed, easy listen! The bass delivery is rich and warm, as you would expect without ever being woolly and uncontrolled. This is not a one note presentation, even if it is best described as warm, bass tones are easy to discriminate and yet the pace is ever-present and what you have here is tonally rich, never dry and never missing the emotion. Ultimately it makes a piece of music a performance, a real event and yet the player still manages to offer a lovely easy listen with no long-term fatigue. When I am at home now, the stereo is on all day and I stop to sit down and listen properly, much more frequently, a testament to the benefits that a superior source component can do in any system, it's just a shame that as we will be reopening very shortly, the SA12 will have to vacate it’s slot on my rack. It will be missed!

As an aside, while I haven't had call to try the SACD replay with the SA12, I have played several standard CD's and the performance is just as positive an experience as when streaming. The SA12 offers something rather special and is available to hear at the Oxford branch, but equally if you are looking for a top class Integrated amplifier, the matching PM12 Special Edition is just as accomplished. Featuring some very potent Hypex amplifier modules, that have been thoroughly fettled by the Marantz engineering team, both would be worthwhile demonstrations, they are a winning combination.

Thanks for reading. Best wishes and stay safe as the world slowly returns to normal.

Andrew, Jon and Luke - Audio T Oxford

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Marantz can be found at the following Audio-T stores