I will give some input on the Music Angel/ Marantz 7 preamp only not the integrated on this older thread. Maybe it will help others who are considering buying this fine preamp that is still currently in production.
First of all this is quite a hefty pre & its exterior casing looks very well made. The wood faceplate adds alot of character & class. Interior-wise it carries alot of quality parts like Wima & Nichicon caps coupled with a large E-core transformer that is metal encased to avoid magnetic field stray. Uses two 12AX7s, one 12AU7, and a 6Z4 for tube rectification. It has three pairs of inputs and two pairs of outputs. The three knobs on the front do the following; Power off/on/off, volume, & input selector. The input selector has four positions, the fourth is used to mute the preamp.
The sound is quite remarkable and is on par with much more expensive tube preamps. The Music Angel is suppose to clone the sound of a Marantz 7 that routinely sells between three & four thousand dollars used on A'gon but I can't confirm this since I have not heard a Marantz 7 but because it is made in China would explain its relatively cheaper price tag. But hold on, this preamp really sings and has very good dynamics to boot. Soundstage is very big and airy and transparency is there in spades. Really excels with softner music like jazz, classical or any audiophile music for that matter with an added sweetness. I have not swapped the stock tubes with quality NOS tubes but when I do, I anticipate a huge improvement over what already is quite good. I will add more comments once I tube roll. Stay tuned!
First of all this is quite a hefty pre & its exterior casing looks very well made. The wood faceplate adds alot of character & class. Interior-wise it carries alot of quality parts like Wima & Nichicon caps coupled with a large E-core transformer that is metal encased to avoid magnetic field stray. Uses two 12AX7s, one 12AU7, and a 6Z4 for tube rectification. It has three pairs of inputs and two pairs of outputs. The three knobs on the front do the following; Power off/on/off, volume, & input selector. The input selector has four positions, the fourth is used to mute the preamp.
The sound is quite remarkable and is on par with much more expensive tube preamps. The Music Angel is suppose to clone the sound of a Marantz 7 that routinely sells between three & four thousand dollars used on A'gon but I can't confirm this since I have not heard a Marantz 7 but because it is made in China would explain its relatively cheaper price tag. But hold on, this preamp really sings and has very good dynamics to boot. Soundstage is very big and airy and transparency is there in spades. Really excels with softner music like jazz, classical or any audiophile music for that matter with an added sweetness. I have not swapped the stock tubes with quality NOS tubes but when I do, I anticipate a huge improvement over what already is quite good. I will add more comments once I tube roll. Stay tuned!