Mark Levinson 33H vs Musical Fidelity KW Mono Amps

I've never heard the Mobile Fidelity, but I have owned a pair of 33H's since they were first introduced in 1999 (give or take). I really don't think you'll ever find a better amplifier. Also, you should be aware that the 150w rating is at 8 ohms. Power doubles at 4 ohms and doubles again at 2 ohms. Therefore, chances are, it's a lot more powerful than you think.

I replaced a pair of Classe' M-1000 monoblocks(1000W@8ohms)
with 33H's a few years back. Although the Classe amps were rated almost 5 times more output than the 33H, there was no contest. The current capability of the 33H and 33 Levinson amplifiers are outstanding.

Best,

Paul :-)

I have had the kw mono's at my house while my friend was renovating his house.
I own both the ML 33( on 220V 60amp) ML33h (110V 20amp) and the ASR II Emitter Exclusive. The kw didn't belong in the same room. Power ratings can be misleading. The 33h @150w and the 33@300w have so much more depth, bass slam & resolution that the 1000w was weak by comparision. Just my opinion. My friend after hearing the ML's in my system sold his kw's.

Good luck,Rugyboogie

Rugyboogie -
That's about as good a comparison as one can get. To expand your comment one step further. . .
How much difference is between the 33 and 33H, relative to power, slam, and occaisional aggressive listening periods?

George, I was a very happy camper with my 33h for 8 years. When the 33 were installed it was almost sad to find out how much we had been missing . My wife made the comment and asked if the sub was on. It was not. The 33 has WAY more slam . The unit in my opinion MUST run on 220v 40 amp to really let this amp be all that it can be. If you can go for the 60 amp breaker do it.

Quick question by a novice: can someone explain why a 150W amp is able to deliver more sonic depth and power than a 1000W amp ?? Moreover, ML 33h good enough to drive my Magnepan 3.6R or do I need to go for the 33?

I bought a pair of Mark Levinson 33h recently and enjoy it a lot. Recently the amp will power off after 30 minutes playing. Can anyone tell me how or where to repair them? Thanks in advance, lan

05-02-11: Avloverdad
I bought a pair of Mark Levinson 33h recently and enjoy it a lot. Recently the amp will power off after 30 minutes playing. Can anyone tell me how or where to repair them? Thanks in advance, lan

Give these guys a call. No way would I trust Harmon Kardon Mark Levinson to service a real Madrigal Labs Mark Levinson..One of their lead techs has many years experience servicing Mark Levinson (Madrigal Labs).

http://www.pyramid-audio.com/brands.html

Avloverdad,

You must send the amp to Harman America. They will not give out the schematics to anyone on the 33 or 33H amps. I made the mistake of sending one of my 33's to Bill Thalman and he was uanble to pry a schematic out of Harman. Save yourself some money and send it to them. By the way they will replace every part and IIRC they guarantee the repair bill to be capped at 1200 bucks. Make sure that it really is your amp though. It could be your speaker and it could be your power transfomer on your pole. I had a street light that would go out on my pole and it would cause one of my Levinson 33's to go into standby mode.

Hope this helps,

Johnny

Hope this helps,