Opinions about Daniel Hertz

In case some might misinterpret, the ML products discussed here and the ML products from Harman are completely different and separate. Harman’s new 5000 series ML componentry is designed by excellent, experienced engineers, the price is now affordable by more, and the sound is great, some of my favorite.

From reading comments here I would not go anywhere near Levinson stuff.  Well let me tell you put-downers and haters that I own an ML23.5 and it is a great amp, really great. There is no bling, no 'show' just a plain looking form follows function amp.

I bet some of you mouthing off have never heard his early stuff.  ML was taken over by the giant Harman group and are producing components designed not by Levinson himself but by other audio engineers and marketed under the ML name yet nobody seems to find fault with that. ???

Mark Levinson left the company many years ago ( 1984 ). In 1980 ML was in financial trouble, and he asked Sanford Berlin to invest in his company. Berlin invested 480,000 and others invested another 300,000. He asked Berlin to invest and aid in the management of the company. His older original amps were good. After that he started the Cello company, and a couple of others. Since 1984 he has had nothing to do with the Mark Levinson company.

Mark Levinson is more of a marketer than a designer. Jonathan Curl was one of his engineers at the beginning of ML. The JC-2 preamp was Jonathan’s design. After JC left the name was changed to the ML-1.

"According to John Curl, he and Mark Levinson had an argument about intellectual rights and the refusal to pay any royalties to him regarding the JC-2 resulted in a conflict between the two then the breaking of relations and a name badge change from JC-2 to ML-1."

According to Wikipedia:

• JC-1 Moving Coil Cartridge Preamplifier (design credit : John Curl)
• JC-1AC Moving Coil Cartridge Preamplifier (design credit : John Curl)
• JC-2 Straightline Preamplifier (design credit : John Curl)
• LNC-1 Electronic Crossover (design credit : Richard Burwen)
• LNC-2 Electronic Crossover(design credit : Richard Burwen / Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-1 Preamplifier (at first a rebadged JC-2 due to IP by John Curl, design credit : John Curl / Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-2 Class A Mono Amplifier with regulated power supplies (design credit : John Curl(JC-3) / Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-3 Stereo Power Amplifier(Dual mono design first series with optional ML-2 style frontplate as an option, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-5 modified Studer A-80 professional tape recorder with custom electronics
• ML-6 Dual Mono Preamplifier (basically two ML-1’s created after a Japanese customer pointed out that in mono the ML-1 sounded better. Also available in silver look)
• ML-6A Dual Mono Preamplifier (open frame modules instead of the potted ones before, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-7 Preamplifier (stereo ML-6a, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-7A Preamplifier (update by Madrigal, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-8 Microphone Preamplifier (input Brüel & Kjær microphones)
• ML-9 Power Amplifier (design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-10 Preamplifier (design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-11 Preamplifier (budget model forced by new management, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
• ML-12 Power Amplifier (budget model forced by new management, design credit : Thomas Colangelo)
  https://audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/mark-levinson-lets-be-more-honest-have-a-higher-value-of-ethics.9414/page-3

   

First Impressions on Daniel Hertz Maria 350 Integrated Amplifier and Eva Speakers (youtube.com)