Denon PMA-510 (1983–1985)
The Denon PMA-510 is a stereo integrated amplifier from the early-to-mid 1980s, a period often regarded as the golden era of Japanese hi-fi. It's a straightforward, well-specified piece. It puts out 55 watts per channel into 8 ohms. Frequency response runs from 5Hz to 100kHz, and total harmonic distortion is rated at 0.02%. Signal-to-noise ratio is 110dB, and the damping factor is 50.
The front panel is a brushed aluminum fascia with four push-buttons for input selection. The four inputs include both moving-magnet and moving-coil phono stages, which was a notable inclusion at this price point. The MM input has a sensitivity of 2.5mV into 47k ohms, and the line inputs sit at 150mV into 25k ohms. Two tape decks are supported, and the record-out switch lets you record from any source regardless of what's being listened to, plus dub between decks. A pre-out is on the rear and a headphone jack is on the front.
The PMA-510 is compact at 434 × 93 × 307 mm and weighs 6.6 kg. It will drive speakers from 4 to 16 ohms. *Audio-Collection* (p.48) described it as looking like the archetypal Japanese amplifier of the era, noting the clean layout and the useful tape-dubbing flexibility. Interestingly, the same publication later remarked that the higher-spec PMA-540's fascia seemed rather cluttered compared with the simpler PMA-510 — suggesting the 510 was admired for its restraint.
Several things aren't documented: the original retail price, any detailed circuit topology, and where it sat in Denon's wider lineup. There are no surviving user reviews of note, and no common failure points are recorded.
- **Power:** 2 × 55W into 8Ω
- **Frequency response:** 5Hz – 100kHz
- **THD:** 0.02%
- **S/N ratio:** 110dB
- **Inputs:** Phono (MM/MC), 3× line
- **Outputs:** 2× tape (rec/play), pre-out, headphone
- **Dimensions:** 434 × 93 × 307 mm (W×H×D)
- **Weight:** 6.6 kg
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