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Mark Levinson & Others

Was considering purchasing one of the newer Mark Levinson integrated amps but I have noticed a lot of them for sale on the used and open box market. Particularly the 585 and the 5805 models, although I am looking at the 5802 model. Is this a bad omen? I know this is not the ML of the past.

Also looking at the Krell K300i but when I called the US authorized Krell repair center, I was surprised when the tech advised me against purchasing any of the newer Krell products. If you are interested in Krell he said to buy the older stuff and refurbish it, that's worth it. I see a few of these units coming on the market now as well.

These are both companies that are newer entities of themselves. Are people purchasing these amps with high expectations, going on their past reputations only to find that they’re not what they were hoping for, for whatever reason?

128x128navyachts
gregp858
30 posts
 

I was considering Mark Levinson myself as my dealer was just raving about them. I auditioned the 5000 series equipment. I didn’t audition the 500 series. I use to service consumer electronics. IMHO the new Mark Levinson equipment is completely overpriced! Also doing a lot of digging, a lot of software issues with the 5805. I don’t know the total extent of that issue. From a service standpoint I feel the 534/536 is poorly designed in the fact that the filter caps live on the amp board mounted over the output transistors sandwiched right against the power transformer. I see faulty power supply caps prematurely! They are really priced out of range considering the competition of many brands depending on your tastes. Look up the review on these amps and look at the pictures that they display. These are not your vintage Mark Levinson. To me it’s not par with build quality vs price tag. Anyone else’s take or opinions? Regards, Greg 

linnlp12
79 posts
 

As mentioned in prior post, they (536) sounded great to my ears.  The 526 now heard the linestage and DAC.  Think this preamp is special.  The 536 really sounded great, hope I have the means to purchase at some point in future.  I cant comment on design.  Sound wise I wouldn't hesitate. 

no_money
638 posts
 

i had 2 5805 units that failed completely right at 6 months. They gave me a great deal to move up to a 585.5

I would steer clear until someone owns up to what caused these failures. I was one of MANY in my area alone. 

 

the 585.5 is great and has been solid for over a year now.. 

 

smoothtech
8 posts
 

No_Money

Did you like the 5805 when it worked? Is the 585.5 really a big step up for you? I was thinking 5802 but cannot find any info on its reliability and hearing your story might make me skip the headache and jump up from the start. Or I'm going another way completely. 

 

jl1ny's avatar
jl1ny
396 posts
 

I initially wanted a big ass Krell FPB 300 or 600 (one day!) but couldn’t find one that was in exceptional condition inside and out. I eventually scored a Levinson 335 that was completely serviced and cosmetically perfect. It’s a little tank but way more acceptable in size than the Krell and the street lights don’t dim when it’s playing. Plus it barely gets warm even during long listening sessions. I love it. I have it paired with a Levinson 380S pre. I had read some forum posts claiming that Levinson can be dry and un-involving. I dunno about that, maybe I got the synergy right with all my components and cabling.

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