Marantz CD6000 OSE

The CD6000 OSE is a CD player manufactured by the Marantz Corporation of Japan. The letters OSE refers to the Original Special Edition parts and construction, which became very popular amongst audio enthusiasts.

The CD6000 series starts with the basic model called HDAM, and there were three upgrade versions consisting of OSE, OSE LE (Limited Edition), and OSE KI Signature, named after Ken Ishiwata. The KI version is the most sought after because it has the greatest number of upgrades. This is a high-end performance CD player utilising high quality capacitors and components within the circuitry pushing the sound quality to its highest extreme possible.

The OSE version uses the Marantz HDAM Modules (High Definition Amplifier Modules) for the audio amplifier circuitry. This is a Marantz invention consisting of a copper shielded power output stage for each channel. These modules use copper shielding to prevent external noise entering the amplifier circuits. The shield encases around 14 transistors in total. All of this electronic engineering extravagance helps to keep the signal-to-noise ratio to less than 110 dB.

Inside the copper shield, the amplifier circuitry consists of a pair of MOSFET transistors 2SK170 and 2SJ74, forming the power output stage of the amplifier. These transistors are in a Class AB arrangement between a ±12 V split rail power supply.

The input stage to the amplifier is as good as it gets and consists of a pair of FET transistors 2SK369BL. In addition, 2SA970 and 2SC2240 pair of bipolar junction transistors in a push-pull configuration drives the power output stage. All of this indicates that the designers goal was to provide the ultimate in sound quality.

The advantages of using MOSFET over Bipolar transistors is obvious, however, if you are new to all this then this GCSE article, Transistor as a Switch, might help dispel some of the mystery.

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