WOULD IT BE DUMB TO BUY A MARK LEVINSON NO 23.5

Hello jeffvegas,

Well, I recently bought a pre-owned Levinson 326S preamp for half of its $10K new price in 2005 and couldn’t be happier with it. That’s about 15 years old so I don’t think you’re totally nuts. The old Levinson gear holds its value for a reason; it’s high quality stuff.
Of course, there’s a lot more that can go wrong with a 30 year old ss class A amp than a ss class A preamp half its age. As I understand it, leaking old capacitors, especially in its power supply section, are the main area of concern with older ss amps. I’d suggest searching out a well respected and perhaps independent repair shop(owned by a former Levinson repairman?) and ask how much they’d charge for a complete 23.5 amp overhaul/restoration.

First, listen to the as-is 23.5 amp with your current preamp and speakers if you’re able.  Next, add the rehab and shipping costs to the $2,500 price.  The next step would be to make your decision based on your audition and the rehab included adjusted price to value basis.   If you think it's worth it, have the rehab done immediately, using it as little as possible in the meantime.

Good luck,
Tim

Great amp but they are VERY expensive to recap and service due to the fact the Levinson does not provide schematics to non authorized service centers. From what I am told, you will need to budget $2 to $2.5K for a future recap. 

Any time I've heard Levinson amps they were sterile and lifeless. I think you can do better for 2500.00.


Oz

I had the 23.5 for awhile, way back when. I just saw one listed last week (could be the same one), and couldn't believe how much they wanted for it. It was a good amp, especially for driving low impedance speakers. I thought it was a bit on the warm side of neutral. Personally, I wouldn't pay $2.5k for it. I'd rather spend a bit more on something more recent and not worry about what @testpilot  mentioned above. If you have to spend another $2.5k down the road to get it fixed, you now have $5k into it. After putting a total of $5k into it, how much do you think you could resell it for? Probably only $2.5k at the most. You could have used that money for something more current (1-10 years old), and better. As Suse Orman would say "Denied".

Pass its ancient history and needs a rebuild.