Which way to go - Levinson or Odyssey?

I inquired about a factory tune-up/checkout on my Lev No. 23 amp. I was quoted a flat rate of $1200 to completely refurbish the amp regardless of what needs to be done. The problem is I just wanted a factory checkout and this is the only option I've been told. Kind of like an all or nothing deal....

Since the amp seems to be working fine, I did not pursue it further when I heard the $1200 flat rate. If it ever blows up, then yeah, might be interested, but not just for a checkup and a statement of "we'll replace anything that's going bad". Well, what if nothing is going bad then it's $1200 to blow the dust out of it and say, "works good".

Don't get me wrong, love the amp...

I just made up my mind about purchasing any M.L> equipment to be SURE. For a comparision, I had my KSA 250 Krell amp in for OVERHAUL. They replaced like 20+ caps ect. The amp came back sounding better then it was new, $400 plus ship...
Krell service is top notch, I had a amp that was packaged incorrectly and got damaged by UPS, Krell would not realease the amp the UPS instead they had to do an ON site inspection by a independant firm. They krell remachined the front panel for $100. M.L. Pry would have chared 5 times that.
Good Luck

Frank,
That is very useful to know.
Thanks,
Eric

Just for your reference. I had just sent my ML #37 and ML #333 back to Madrigal for repair. The tray on #37 was getting stuck, and a capacitor went bad on the #333. I've had both for about 8 years now. so they are out of the warranty. When I called up about the #37, they told me that the maximum repair cost was $1200, but they didn't think it will cost that much. By the time the unit was fixed, they charged me $1200, siting that the actual cost was over $1600. I asked them what was done on it because I was not expecting the bill to be that large based on the first conversation we had, they told me that they had replaced the entire transport mechanism, updated the software, and upgraded several boards to the latest edition. I think all that was uncalled for and they probably just wanted to get the maximum amount of money from my pocket.

They told me that the maximum repair cost of the #333 will be $900. I'm expecting a call from them any time now telling me that the cost IS $900. You might want to look into getting a local tech to service the amp if possible. I tried, but the guy told me that it was be cheaper to send it back to Madrigal.

FrankC

FWIW:
No experience with Levinson. I have the very top of the line Odyssey Stratos Extreme Monos, which retail for around 2700 per pair. Wonderful amps, and Klaus Bunge is wonderful too. If you like leaving your amps on then Odyssey is a good choice. They are a class A/B (or something like that) design, which means that they run slightly warm, but not hot, and mine are in an enclosed cabinet, on all of the time, because Klaus recommends leaving them on all of the time. His have a 20 (TWENTY !!) year, TRANSFERABLE warranty, if you can believe such a thing, and from personal experience (as a SECOND OWNER, no less!) I KNOW that he honors that incredibly long--yet nevertheless transferable--warranty. I am convinced that despite all of the positive reviews these have gotten that they are still not given enough recognition for how great and high end they truly are. The Odyssey Stratos is NOT just a behemoth amp built like a tank that lasts forever, it has power (and current), finesse, quickness, smoothness, imaging, and detail. At least the Extremes do (those are the only ones I've owned). My highest unqualified recommendation.

If you want to leave your system on 24/7, the class A Mk.9 is an expensive & hot way to do it. Also if the Mk9 ever needs service, be prepared to sacrifice your 1st born to pay the bill.