Daniel Hertz – Maria 350

Maria – a paradigm shift in audio amplification personally designed by Mark Levinson

Like the iconic Mark Levinson LNP-2 Preamplifier and Cello Audio Palette, Maria sets a new sonic standard with minimalist design and astonishing quality of finish equivalent to the finest watches and cameras.

As legendary audio journalist Bert Whyte said about Mark’s work in 1972, Maria is, “monetary considerations aside… the premier choice.”

The Daniel Hertz Maria is a high performance amplifier, hand made in Venice, Italy with artisan materials and craftsmanship never used before in an audio product.

Maria sets a new standard of excellence in sound quality and design, with many exclusive advantages for those who refuse to compromise their music. The Daniel Hertz Maria amplifier is named in honor of Mark Levinson’s mother, Maria Hertz Levinson, who in 1966 sold her cello to get the money to buy him the Italian double bass c. 1680 that he plays today. Mother’s love is a category of 1.

The Holy Grail – the sound and feeling of pure analog audio from digital content.

DH C Wave Technology (Continuous Wave Technology) is the result of 30 years of research and development by Mark Levinson and a team of experts in audio and health fields. C Wave is the first upgrade to digital audio since it was introduced in the 1970’s. C wave is the highly innovative, disruptive and proprietary technology that the world has been waiting for: a way to get the emotion of pure analog audio from all digital sources including streaming, movies, and internet audio. Imagine YouTube music sounding like the best pure analog high speed open reel tape recordings.

C Wave is a subtle process, not a sound effect or gimmick. Pure analog audio is based on a continuous waveform, digital audio is based on a sampled, non-continuous waveform. The human brain likes continuous waveforms but has a stress reaction to the non-continuous waveform of digital audio. Stress stops emotion and lowers the immune system. C Wave is a finely tuned reverb algorithm that fills in the spaces with original musical information, so the brain responds like to pure analog.

Sound

The sound of Maria is lightning fast, extremely smooth with no “electronic” sound, and has astonishing punch, dynamics, deep bass, imaging and detail. The sound of Maria is unavailable at any price from “high end audio” amplifiers typically using old 1970’s technology.

C Wave

DH patented C Wave technology offers the sound and feeling of pure analog audio from all sources including digital content, opening the door to streaming with natural sound previously impossible to obtain.

New technology

The new Daniel Hertz amplifier technology offers the most natural sound with stunning dynamics, punch, detail and imaging, with no electronic sound, beyond the limitations of typical “tube” and “transistor” equipment. Many engineering advances and refinements add up to maximizing the benefits, to obtain a unique listening experience.

Digital to analog conversion with 384kHz native resolution,
no separate DAC

Class D is a concept, like a V8 in car motors. Typical Class D chips may be disappointing, but DH is not. The exclusive Daniel Hertz Mighty Cat Class D amplifier IC (integrated circuit) converts digital audio to analog with no separate DAC, providing native resolution of 384kHz. Some 384kHz DAC’s alone cost 25,000 euros. The DH Maria offers resolution second to none, in a highly integrated design with the most elegant signal path that eliminates sources of coloration and degradation.

All preamplifier functions

The main functions of a preamplifier include input selector, precision volume control, optimum input parameters, optimum output parameters, high linearity, low distortion, low crosstalk, low noise and high headroom (no clipping). Maria includes the functions of the most expensive preamplifiers – and much more – with maximum performance, reliability, and ease of use.
¼” headphone output on the front panel

A ¼” headphone jack is provided on the front panel on the right. A polished stainless steel knob screws into the front panel so the jack is covered when not in use. The DH Maria’s embedded software includes headphone tuning capability to optimize the performance of any headphone.

1 megohms analog inputs

The DH Maria has 3 analog inputs with 1 megohms input impedance to connect any device with analog outputs such as a phono preamplifier, analog tape deck, digital recorder, analog tuner, cassette deck, or a CD, SACD or DVD player with analog outputs. The 1 megohms input impedance (first introduced by Mark Levinson with his company Cello, Ltd. In the 1980’s) virtually eliminates loading of the input signals to obtain the cleanest possible sound. Maria is optimized not only for reproducing digital content, but also pure analog and digitally mastered LP’s. Maria faithfully reproduces all content regardless of the format.

Digital inputs and WiFi

While hard wired usb and coax connections provide the best sound quality, Maria has WiFi and Bluetooth with excellent sound that offer the convenience of wireless.
The WiFi module can connect directly to a WiFi enabled device, or via a router. Connecting the module to a router enables the device to simultaneously access the internet and play through Maria.

The Secret Sauce

In partnership with Intersil (now Renesas), a major US semiconductor company, and a team of top-level engineers, Daniel Hertz developed a proprietary semiconductor called Mighty Cat, a visionary idea from founder Mark Levinson. Mighty Cat is a high-performance Class D amplifier IC (integrated circuit) with internal blocks that run the embedded, exclusive Mighty Cat software suite that is part of what makes DH disruptive. Mighty Cat is the “brain” of Maria and all DH amplifiers. Mighty Cat has fully programmable architecture which enables a new level of performance, precision and flexibility in music reproduction, as well as many conveniences and practical advantages. Mighty Cat enables re-programming and updates at any time in the future, making it a living product.

Mighty Cat Embedded Software Suite

Maria is programmed via a DSP port on the rear panel which connects to a Windows 11 PC running the Canvas III master control software program.The blocks in the Mighty Cat software suite allow control over every aspect of the signal flow, including speaker tuning, headphone tuning, active crossover calibration, and more.

Daniel Hertz Speaker Connectors

DH speaker connectors, made in house, go beyond “high end audio” standards. Instead of adding 8 soldered metal speaker connectors like typical cables, DH speaker connectors sandwich the bare speaker wire between two brass plates that are tightened with a DH tightening tool made of stainless steel and Delrin, for the best signal transmisson that never degrades. Threaded brass rod connects to the power amplifier output stage inside the chassis, where it is fastened with brass nuts, only millimeters away from the speaker wire, for the shortest possible signal path.

Build

Maria is built with proprietary new Daniel Hertz technology on the inside, and a new type of chassis on the outside that embodies the uncompromised excellence of Maria’s performance and sound quality, with hand fitted mirror black Waveglas TM chassis and hand polished stainless steel watch case quality knobs and buttons.

Features

Maria includes an independent, internal, no compromise separately tunable headphone amplifier with a ¼” jack on the front panel, that enhances the sound of all good headphones, especially the top high performance models.

Maria’s embedded Mighty Cat software suite includes DH exclusive C Wave technology (patent accepted and approved 2024), which upgrades all digital audio signals on the fly, including streaming, to have the sound and emotion of pure analog audio.

Inputs: 3 analog 1 megohms inputs, digital coax, wifi and Bluetooth. Speaker outputs: DH in house made speaker connector outputs on the rear panel.

Headphone jack: ¼” headphone jack on the front panel.

Maria’s internal, separately tunable headphone amplifier is second to none in sound quality, with precision tuning available to enhance the sound of all good headphones, especially the top high performance models.

Although compact, light weight, low heat, and highly energy efficient, Maria 350 effortlessly drives the largest, most demanding and expensive speakers on the market, with pure analog sound from streaming, as well as the DH Eva (compact) and Amber (floor standing) models.

Maria 800 drives the DH bi-amplified speakers M1, M4 and Chiara. The active crossovers  can be programmed to drive any bi-amplified speaker with full control of crossover points, slopes, and levels.

Maria comes with power cord (for the country of use), usb cable, and carrying case. When a Maria 350 delivered with DH speakers, a 4m pair of cables is included. When Maria 800 is delivered, 4m pair x 2 is included for b-amplification.

Maria 800 (4 channels):
500 Watts per channel (4 ohms) rated power. Maximum power is higher.

Dr. Daniel J. Levinson and Maria Hertz Levinson

On the right, Dr. Daniel J. Levinson and Maria Hertz Levinson, parents of Mark Levinson, in Berkeley, California, c.1945. Because the name Mark Levinson is owned as a corporate trade name by a large company, Mark used Daniel (his father’s first name) and Hertz (his mother’s maiden name) to name his new company Daniel Hertz. Mark is free to use his personal name in association with his designs and work in audio.

Heinrich Hertz, the first to demonstrate the electro-magnetic wave in 1888, is a relative of Mark through the Hertz family. In his honor, the term for cycles per second (cps) was named Hertz (Hz, kHz, MHz, GHz).

Daniel (1920 – 1994) was a psychologist , one of the founders of the field of Adult Development psychology, and the author of a number of influential books in the field of psychology. He was assistant professor of psychology at Harvard University for 16 years, and a professor of psychology at Yale University for 24 years.

Maria Hertz (1916 – 2017) was born in Austria. She left with her family after the Nazi invasion in 1938 and moved to the U.S. in 1939 to pursue her studies. She had a long career as a research and clinical psychologist and worked (along with Daniel and others) on the well-known books The Authoritarian Personality and The Seasons of a Man’s Life.

In 1966, Maria sold her cello to raise $250 to buy the old Italian double bass (c.1680) that Mark found in Spain when on tour with jazz pianist Paul Bley, and still plays today.

Daniel and Maria imparted their love of jazz and classical music to their sons Mark and Doug.