Clean sound; excellent on vocal and instruments textures; good pace and rhythm.

Basslines not clearly defined; limited depth perspective.

This is the creme-de-la-creme of Marantz's mid-hifi designs. All the good qualities present in Marantz's 63-series CD players are fine-tuned and refined(within a given budget, of course).
Music sounded clear and lively with good pace and rhythm, which, makes listening a very involving experience.
But of course, there are many players within its price range that offers better deeper soundstage perpective but all other sound qualities essential to make a CD player of this price range musical are here.
In short, Ken Ishiwata and the rest of the boffins at Marantz have struck a fine balance between offering qualities present in a high-end player whilst maintaining an affordable price for the budget-conscious audiophile.
Kudos to Marantz!

Similar Products Used:

Arcam 7SE; Marantz CD63SE; Pioneer PDS-505 Precision.

You're all aware of it's strengths

system fussy, especially because of the ultrasonic/requantisation noise the digital filter produces.

As with all Marantz CD players the power cord is of the detachable type, the telefunken figure-of-eight type connector. Depending on what phase- which way round this connector is plugged into the back of the CD player, will determine the tonal character of the replay sound, One will be of a big bold upfront sound, the other way round will be the traditional Marantz sound -smooth and lucious, This is
at least a basic tool of system matching. If you have never tried this and your CD63ki is as you set it up originally and you have never tried reversing the polarity of the power cord connection....Try it! you may find it produces a sound more matched to the rest of your system.
Several other OEM's are also now introducing this type of detachable power cord so as to allow a certain element of experimentation with the sound, some examples being Denon, Pioneer, and I've heard of some Sony Models.
Viz the ultrasonic/requantisation noise this Marantz and earlier bitstream based Marantz models generated (See HiFiChoices tech editors reports on this subject), This type of filter pushes all requantisation noise beyond the audio band but will escape with the signal, this requires that the matching amplifier be of the Wide and stable bandwidth type to be able to "shrug" off this intrusive hi-frequency energy. Otherwise the "tonal sound" maybe grainy and slightly coarse as this Hi-Freq data interacts with the amplifier!

Similar Products Used:

Marantz CD72/Pioneer PD901 (legato link conversion)

Bought to replace ancient (and expired) Sony 501 in No.2 system (Quad 33/303, Rogers LS3/5A + Yamaha sub-woofer). Got it very cheaply and it was worth every penny. Makes a rich, detailed sound, noticeably superior to the Sony (well, one expects some improvement in 15 years, doesn't one?). If you can get one at a good price, it's well worth considering.

Bought to replace ancient (and expired) Sony 501 in No.2 system (Quad 33/303, Rogers LS3/5A + Yamaha sub-woofer). Got it very cheaply and it was worth every penny. Makes a rich, detailed sound, noticeably superior to the Sony (well, one expects some improvement in 15 years, doesn't one?). If you can get one at a good price, it's well worth considering.

Accurate treble, Sweet Mid & Good Low.

Maybe doesn't sound as good as those in the higher range like Marantz CD-17(Obviously right?).

I have got this Marantz CD63MkII-KI Sig second-hand at a very low price. Previously, I have tried Rotel RCD-965BX which is very smooth and atmospheric compared to Marantz CD63SE which is warmer but not as smooth. Unfortunately, the Marantz has got itself famous by having 9 out of 10 CD63SE break down with pickup problem(as I'm told by the agent and engineers from Marantz). Mine break down just after about a year. It cost S$190 regardless of SE or the KI-Sig series.

Nevertheless, I got myself the Marantz CD63MkII-KI-Sig after much persuasion that it's made in Japan and there will not be any pickup problem. I believe and gosh...the sound is quite different from the SE series. The vocal although is not as warm but is smooth with all the details pouring in. The high is not that harsh as the critics said. Bass is enough and always manage to keep in pace with the music. It really depends on your system set-up. For this kind of money, it really kills off the competition. I dare to say this 'cos I have been listening to all kind of players over the year. I will never regret on this purchase.

Play KD Lang's Craving and you will really find her singing in front of you. Eric Clapton's Blue Eyes Blue really portrays him snapping his fingers in front of you if you close your eyes listening to it. In New Age, Ottmar Liebert's every strung of the guitar will bring smiles to your face 'cos the mid is so good! In rock, playing Hotel California from Eagles' Hell Freezes Over album really gives you the kick although it's not really that low. Overall, it's a good buy. Five stars for this superb machine by Ken Ishiwata.

System Used:
Audiolab 8000AMkIII
Marantz CD63MkII-KI Sig
Mordaunt Short MS25i
QED Qnect2 interconnect
Nordost Flatline Gold speaker cable for tweeter
Soniclink Silver Aero S300 speaker cable for woofer

Similar Products Used:

Rotel RCD-965BX & Marantz CD63SE.

Incredibly clear. Impressive detail and soundstage

none so far

Have the CD62 mkII KI hooked up to Marantz PM7000 and Yamaha NS200 speakers. this system is great with all types of music. i listen to mostly Rock and Jazz and this cd player performs way above its price. I listened to a number of players that were 3-4 times the price that i felt couldn't compete with this. Buy this player if you want a great deal, a classic cd player for sure! Thanks Marantz!

Similar Products Used:

older Denon, Sony and Pioneer stuff

Quite detailed, especially in the mid-range

Muted vocal, short bass, bad on classical music.

I have been using my friend's Arcam alpha 6 for a while, and was impressed by its clarity. I read the review on Marantz on this site, and decided to give it a try. Upon direct comparison, Arcam wins hands down. The Marantz vocal is slightly mute, and its weakness is especially revealed when I tried Pavarotti (Ave Maria by Gounod). It reduces Pavarotti to a shouting singer trying to learn how to sing!!

In my opinion, this player is overhyped. Avoid it if you listen to classical music or vocal. If you like Jazz without vocal, the Marantz seems to be on par with the Arcam Alpha 6.

I am trying to sell it (three days after I buy) and buy something else.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam Alpha 6

all round enduring ability to induce an emotional response of the ' inane grin ' variety with most listeners... regardless of musical genre.

haven't found any yet after three years listening... and believe me, many friends of an ' audiophile ' disposition
have spent many hours trying , with all but the true audiophile snobs having to reluctantly conclude that the KI is indeed a rare and exceptional bit of kit.

having the undivided attention of your local hi-fi dealer is without doubt a significant advantage when considering your next investment . This is particularly true when said dealer is aware that you are prepared to consider spending up to £2000 on a cd player in the pursuit of audio nirvana ! As it happens I found just such a dealer, complete with the usual audiophile pretensions / aspirations (delete as appropriate), who
was happy to make available for home demonstration the kit listed in ' similar products used ' above. I should point out at this time that said dealer was convinced that this offer was unlikely to result in the rejection of such esoteric ' must haves ' ! After much to-ing and fro-ing over several weeks and many hours spent with fellow thrillseekers auditioning the players loaned , I was left ultimately unimpressed and disinclined to make a purchase. Each loan machine had its merits but none was able to musically or emotionally generate
the ' X ' factor .... until that is our frustrated dealer suggested that I might consider listening to the lowly Marantz KI Signature for a middle ground comparison.
The rest is history, the signature had more ' X ' factor the any machine previously auditioned , it engaged in a way that made you forget ' Hi-Fi ' and listen to the music ! I cannot think of a more worthwhile audio discovery than rediscovering the music ......... If you can find one secondhand , buy it , you will only be dissapionted if you allow pretentious audiophile bores to condemn your purchase because it bears the name Marantz and not Conrad someoneorother ! Let your ears be the judge not what your consumer led aspirational peers tell you sounds good !
My kit - Audiolab 8000a , Mission 752's bi-wired with Audioquest Indigo cable , Cambridge Audio Silver 60 interconnects.

Similar Products Used:

teac vrds10se, meridian 506, quad 77, copeland cda277, naim cd3

Warmth, transparency, good bass

For the price, not much. Sounds too similar to CD63SE.

I have the CD63KI for more than 4 years having bought it when it was first launched back in early 1996.

It has served me well without any problems whatsoever. I found that it added a touch of warmth to the sound and is transparent. The bass however may be a bit plummy depending on your amplification.

The main weakness was that I felt that it sounded pretty similar to the CD63SE in that the price difference (in 1996) may not be that worth it. May be overrated in the English magazines. Withe reduced price that it is currently being sold at, it is a definite bargain. 5 stars at the present price. 4 stars at the old price of 500 pounds.

Overall, I find the CD63KI an excellent budget CD player.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam Alpha One, Alpha 6, Pioneer CD703

An analogue like performance. Good transparency. Excellent soundstage. A real classic

Chipy looks. Not very good build quality. Slightly overblown bass.

Used with Cyrus SL as a preamp, Cyrus XPA power amp and AVI Biggatrons speakers. I can only replace it with something much more expensive (over £2000). It is the only player (and I have listen to many, from £400 to £60,000) at that price range that you can experience all the emotions of a recording. I can not forget the 3 dimensional sound stage in which I could point the exact position of the musicians. It really plays music as an analogue source (which I am pretty keen on). The bass is probably a little overblown but the outgoing midband is so life like that you can almost touch the singer! The transparencey is excellent for the price.
On the other hand, the build quality could be better and the plasticky feel souldn't be there. But I really fell in love with this player.