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Mark Levinson Sound that Speaks for Itself

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  #51  
Old 01-17-2021, 11:22 AM
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Default Mark Levinson 532 H issue.

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Originally Posted by brad1138 View Post
I should clarify, when I say "off", I mean standby.

brad1138,
After scanning this thread, it’s pretty clear (at least to me) that you will never be satisfied with this purchase. I totally get it. My advice: You need to move on.

You stated don’t ever want to do business with Audio Classics again. They have a good reputation generally, though, so maybe you should see if they will take the amp back. Worth one more try.

Harman screwed you out of the warranty for some BS e-bay nonsense reason. Unless their written warranty policy specifically excludes internet sales, a nice letter from your lawyer might provide them with some needed mental clarity.

The ‘repair’ was clearly done by an idiot technician who doesn’t know electronics and just ‘shot-gunned’ the fix without understanding the problem fully or even finding root cause.

You won’t get any satisfaction from the repair center - they will just claim this is how they all work - and they could even be correct. They just want you to go away.

Even if this all gets cleared up there will be doubt in your mind every time you turn on this amp and listen - it just won’t be right.

All of this is a real bummer, and there is only one way out. Life is too short to deal with a company that is a shell of what it once was, besmirching a fine name in the process.

I wish well whatever path you choose to take.

Tom
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Last edited by W9TR; 01-17-2021 at 11:35 AM.
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  #52  
Old 01-17-2021, 12:20 PM
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In farness to the the tech he may not be able to duplicate the circumstances which caused this failure, he may not have tried hard enough or it may be the result of FM (f'ing magic). I don't know but I'm betting the output was shorted accidentally. AC or Levinson should repair or replace it free of charge, especially AC who sold and certified it was OK.
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  #53  
Old 01-17-2021, 02:19 PM
brad1138 brad1138 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by W9TR View Post
brad1138,
After scanning this thread, it’s pretty clear (at least to me) that you will never be satisfied with this purchase. I totally get it. My advice: You need to move on.

You stated don’t ever want to do business with Audio Classics again. They have a good reputation generally, though, so maybe you should see if they will take the amp back. Worth one more try.

Harman screwed you out of the warranty for some BS e-bay nonsense reason. Unless their written warranty policy specifically excludes internet sales, a nice letter from your lawyer might provide them with some needed mental clarity.

The ‘repair’ was clearly done by an idiot technician who doesn’t know electronics and just ‘shot-gunned’ the fix without understanding the problem fully or even finding root cause.

You won’t get any satisfaction from the repair center - they will just claim this is how they all work - and they could even be correct. They just want you to go away.

Even if this all gets cleared up there will be doubt in your mind every time you turn on this amp and listen - it just won’t be right.

All of this is a real bummer, and there is only one way out. Life is too short to deal with a company that is a shell of what it once was, besmirching a fine name in the process.

I wish well whatever path you choose to take.

Tom
Thanks, I appreciate that.

The crappy thing is, even if I get AC to buy it back, I am out $2,000 in the cost of repair and shipping. This is a lot of money to me, the most I have ever spent on anything outside of a car and house. I can't really afford to bail on it and then afford anything near its (supposed) quality.

I did reach out to Audio Classics and have been corresponding with a Steve. I let him know about being told it was "normal". I am waiting for his reply to that.
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  #54  
Old 01-17-2021, 02:47 PM
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I would really exercise the Harman warranty situation. If you check all the boxes that would satisfy their warranty policy and they are not honoring it, you should write a nice letter to the president. Unfortunately they are owned by Samsung so your recourse may be limited.
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SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC

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  #55  
Old 01-17-2021, 03:51 PM
brad1138 brad1138 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by W9TR View Post
I would really exercise the Harman warranty situation. If you check all the boxes that would satisfy their warranty policy and they are not honoring it, you should write a nice letter to the president. Unfortunately they are owned by Samsung so your recourse may be limited.
That avenue is pretty much dead. The WCSC did what they could, apparently the decision was made by the top person at Harman, they gave me his name but I don't remember it now.
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  #56  
Old 01-17-2021, 03:55 PM
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The WCSC said to leave it on all the time. Normally I would, but I have heard it isn't good to leave amps on w/o a source powered on in front of it. Also, I have it connected to the 2 channel preamp via RCA, and also an HT Prepro via XLR. I switch between them as needed. I don't like switching the RCA/XLR switches on the amp with it being powered on. But as long as nothing is playing, it would probably be fine.

That said, no guarantee that will help. They couldn't tell me how it happened in the 1st place.

Last edited by brad1138; 01-18-2021 at 11:56 PM.
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  #57  
Old 01-17-2021, 04:21 PM
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Default Mark Levinson 532 H issue.

Quote:
Originally Posted by brad1138 View Post
That avenue is pretty much dead. The WCSC did what they could, apparently the decision was made by the top person at Harman, they gave me his name but I don't remember it now.


Get his name. Find a lawyer to write a nice letter for you. At the same time contact your state consumer fraud office. If you meet the letter of the ML warranty you have recourse, but only if you take the initiative.
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Main System:
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Amati Homage VOX Center,
Proac Response 1sc Rears,
Three MC2301's for L,C,R
MC 602 for the rears
C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80
Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic
Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation

SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC

MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material.

Lake House:
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OnDeck:
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Last edited by W9TR; 01-17-2021 at 04:33 PM.
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  #58  
Old 01-22-2021, 09:28 PM
william t william t is offline
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Brad- I have a 532H due in to me Monday from AC-- what should I check on (for me and your knowledge of the amp)--sent a friend request as well.
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  #59  
Old 01-23-2021, 09:46 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brad1138 View Post
The WCSC said to leave it on all the time. Normally I would, but I have heard it isn't good to leave amps on w/o a source powered on in front of it. Also, I have it connected to the 2 channel preamp via RCA, and also an HT Prepro via XLR. I switch between them as needed. I don't like switching the RCA/XLR switches on the amp with it being powered on. But as long as nothing is playing, it would probably be fine.

That said, no guarantee that will help. They couldn't tell me how it happened in the 1st place.
When I was working I had to struggle thru issues like this and would not rest until I found a solution. I would like you to try something, connect only one source to the power amp. Doesn't matter if it's the pre-pro or two channel pre-amp, we want to see if it operates properly/differently like this. It's worth a shot?????
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  #60  
Old 01-24-2021, 02:35 AM
brad1138 brad1138 is offline
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I had the house to myself today and this evening, I spent a lot of time with the system. I pulled the Proceed and compared the 2 amps for a number of hours.

As hard as I tried to like the 532H more, I just could not. It sounds a bit muffled by comparison, and still less dynamic. Instruments "popped" more with the BPA2, their location was more defined in the soundstage. More detailed and "pleasing" all the way around.

That is not to say the ML sounded bad, the differences might be considered small to the average person, but they were definitely noticeable to me.

The 532H is certainly much better than before the repair, but it still can't top (or equal) the BPA2.

I am going to just sell the ML, I should be able to get $3,000 to $3,500 for it. Who am I to argue with Harman International and their service center... If they say it works fine, I will sell it as such.

I will lose about $2,000 in the end, but if I hired a lawyer, it would probably cost close to that, and be a hell of a lot more of a pain.

What makes me the most sad, is I will never know if the 532H sounded as good as it should. I will likely never hear my system as good as it could have been. I certainly can't afford a new ML, especially after losing $2,000... And I don't think I can ever trust Levinson again.

I think I'm going to try a new Parasound Halo A 21+ from a local dealer I used to work for. That will make them happy, being as I never buy anything from them. That is also the amp Tekton uses to drive their top end speakers at shows.

I will demo it first and compare it to the Proceed, if I don't like it as much as the Proceed, the Proceed will become my permanent amp for the Moabs, and I will look for something used in the $500 to $1,000 range to drive my 2nd system.

Last edited by brad1138; 01-24-2021 at 02:48 AM.
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