Mark LevinsonML 2usedMark Levinson ML 2 - Monoblock PAIRPAIR of Legendary Class A Mono Block Power Amplifiers (1977-81) Though the cabinets have seen some wear, these are still some of the best sounding and highly collectible amps ever made. Original bo...4499.00

Mark Levinson ML 2 - Monoblock PAIR

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Ships fromChicago, IL, 60657
Ships toUnited States
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PAIR of Legendary Class A Mono Block Power Amplifiers (1977-81)

Though the cabinets have seen some wear, these are still some of the best sounding and highly collectible amps ever made.

Original box, packing and manual are not included.

Local sale only.

Due to its unparalleled sound quality and outstanding speaker driving capability, the ML-2 was soon adopted as a reference amplifier by a number of leading audio magazines and loudspeaker manufacturers.

They are a matched pair : s/n 3135 & 3136 and these have been completely refurbished with new input transistors, power supply parts, etc.

Here are some notes from the bench tech:

Input: The one part of this design that is just a tiny step below "oh my God perfect" is how they made the balanced input. It's actually purer to connect it UNbalanced but coming in the XLR plug with pin 2 hot, pin 1 shield, and pin 3 left open.

Output: Someone added a cheap plastic pair of banana jacks on both of these and they were not hooked to anything inside. I left them disconnected - just use the beefy output jacks instead. In spite of the heat these things generate they look utterly new inside.No brown circuit boards, no toasty spots, the thermal performance is perhaps the most incredible part of this design. It actually runs cool inside the box! All the heat is on the outside, and the outside is beautifully designed to shed heat as fast at this thing can make it. It's probably obvious but never, ever run this thing with restricted ventilation. This amp needs to be sitting out in the open. I'll say it again - this is an absolutely classic design and was way ahead of it's time.

Original Design Notes from the designer:

In a day and age where huge volume production and maximum profit are the basis of most manufacturing companies the ML-2 represents an approach which has practically disappeared. Less than ten pairs of ML-2 amplifiers are made each week. completely handcrafted from the finest materials by a small group of dedicated people. The exact number of ML-2's produced each week cannot be guaranteed because the standards are so high for both electrical and cosmetic Integrity that the slightest flew in a finished unit will require it to he rejected or reworked. Yet. this Is the only way In which a product of this caliber can be built truly without compromise. The reason why the ML-2 is so superior to other amplifier designs ties in the basic design goal. We were not interested in building an amplifier which was just better than usual or especially good in a certain area. Our goal was to create a product which could literally not be improved upon by any method known to us, regardless of price. The ML-2 represents the linear approach we know to every facet of power amplifier design based on many years of research and careful listening. It is what the staff at ML wanted for their personal systems.

Before putting the ML-2 on the market, we compared It to the finest vacuum tube classic amplifiers of the past to the most respected solid state amplifiers of today: and against every conceivable variation of the existing design. While specifications were considered, our criterion was mainly found in a real-life situation: in a living-room listening to our favorite records and tapes. The ML-2 was designed for low distortion under actual conditions of use. Less than 20dB of overall negative feedback Is employed. Just because an amplifier sounds good when new does not mean it will stay sounding that way. In professional circles long-term stability and reliability are considered fundamental virtues. Getting the ultimate in sound quality and stability and reliability exceeding the finest professional standards is the approach taken by Mark Levinson Audio Systems. Ltd. since 1971. We have learned from the pioneers of professional audio, from the makers of the finest test equipment and from the aerospace and computer industries. The cost of such equipment is high — Initially — but invariably represents the lowest cost in the long run, and in the meantime delivers the satisfaction you have a right to expect.

Power amplifiers are traditionally rated in Watts. Used in a proper context, this term has real meaning, but in the world of consumer audio it has more of often than not been used as a sales tool to mislead the uneducated consumer. In the USA. the ML-2 might be culled a 25 Watt amplifier (rated power into a 8 ohms); in Europe a 50 Watt amplifier (DIN specified into 4 ohms); in reality it Is a 100 Watt amplifier developing its rated power into 2 ohms. Since the theoretical efficiency of a Class A design is about 25% the ML-2 consumes 400 Watts of power from the AC power line. Power Ratings as per FTC Regulations:

25 Watts Into B ohms continuous sine wave power 20Hz to 20kHz with no more than .1% THD

50 watts Into 4 ohms continuous sine wave power 20Hz to 20kHz with no more than .25% THD

100 Watts into 2 ohms continuous sine wave power 20Hz to 20kHz with no more than .5% THD

There are a number of reasons, however, why conventional Watt figures are unimportant:

1) To arrive at a figure of Watts, the impedance of the speaker must be specified. What are generally called "8 ohm speakers" are in reality often 3 ohm to 16 ohm devices. In some cases they present impedances of less than 2 ohms. Some amplifiers, rated at 200 Watts. can't develop over a few Watts Into some popular speakers without severe distortion.

2) The lower the impedance of the speaker the more output current is required on the part of the amplifier. Many "high power- amplifiers can only handle 3 to 5 Amperes of output current at high load lines. The ML-2 can safely handle In excess of 8 Amperes at high load line (Vce — 55V). When other amplifiers are running into nasty-sounding V.A.-limiting the ML-2 keeps going end going.

3) Most amplifiers are doing well to boast 50.000 micro farad of capacitance in the power supply.The ML-2 develops the equivalent of ONE MILLION MICRO FARADS (one FARAD) in its power supply.

4) Some power amplifiers have little or no regulation in the power supply. The ML-2 features a COMPLETELY REGULATED power supply, giving it the reserve that is required to reproduce music accurately.

5) Watts are calculated assuming that the speaker is behaving like a resistor on a test bench. speakers do not behave this way. When driving a resistor both maximum voltage and maximum current appear at the same time. When driving a speaker this usually does not occur, causing the amplifier to see phase angles of significant proportion. The ML-2 is designed to drive the largest phase angles presented under the most demanding conditions, without stress.

6) In many cases, a conventional amplifier will allow the speaker to kick back energy into its output stage, wasting a large part of the power it develops and causing distortion which is clearly audible. The ML-2 has an extremely low output impedance even at very high frequencies and under severe signal conditions, and therefore is not subject to this problem.

7) Some amplifiers work well at high output levels but work poorly at low power levels, where most of the music is during listening. This is part of the reason why many audio purists still prefer the sound of triode vacuum tube power amplifier designs of more than twenty years ago. The question is not really how many Watts, but what quality?

8) Instability in power amplifiers is quite common. resulting in all kinds of problems ranging from destruction of speakers and the amplifier itself to minor anomalies in the sound quality. When instability causes DC shifts in the output stage of a power amplifier, the actual magnet in the woofer of a speaker may be slightly degaussed. causing it to lose efficiency and performance. The ML-2 is designed to be stable under any and all operating conditions.. Should an unsafe condition arise, it will shut off before any damage to itself or the speaker can occur.

9) Protection circuitry is employed in most power amplifier designs to avoid costly damage to the unit or speakers. Most protection circuits are ineffective and allow damage to occur. However. many amplifiers feature protection circuitry which is triggered by musical signals, comes on too soon and causes distortion. The. ML-2 is. either on or off. Not one of the hundreds of units in the field has ever damaged a speaker of any kind.

Power output: 25 watts per channel into 8Ω (stereo)

Frequency response: 20Hz to 20kHz

Total harmonic distortion: 0.1%

Dimensions: 483 x 216 x 546mm

Weight: 29.6kg

Year: 1977

This is on display and ready to be auditioned in our showroom. If you are in the Chicagoland area, please come by and take a look and listen.

Saturday Audio Exchange has been in business for 38 years!

We buy, sell, and trade new and used home audio equipment. If you have something you think we might be interested in, shoot us a message.

Local pickup is always welcome. We ship using UPS ground. If an item is too big we ship it freight.

Local pickup customers and Illinois residents are subject to Chicago sales tax (10.25%). All shipments are fully insured and international deliveries must have their full value declared.

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Payment must be made within 48hrs of auction end, or negative feedback will be left and item will be re-listed.

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