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The big Pass Labs XA160 ran very warm, its chassis being almost too hot to touch after the usual one-hour preconditioning at one-third power (53W) into 8 ohms. Interestingly, the distortion rose very slightly during that period, from 0.14% to 0.2%, but as it plateau'd rather than continuing to rise, I imagine this reflects the amplifier's transfer function settling in as the active devices came up to their operating temperatures.

The XA160's voltage gain into 8 ohms was 26.25dB for both balanced and unbalanced signals. (I shorted pins 1 and 3 of the XLR…

Spoiled. K-10 and I are so spoiled.

Studio Traps or no, I found the very top of the No.32's frequency band a hair less alight and bright than those of some other preamps. But again, the beauty of the…

Description: Line-level preamplifier with optional phono stage. Inputs: 3 pairs balanced (XLR), 5 pairs single-ended (RCA, optional), 2 pairs phono (XLR or RCA), 2 Controller/DC cable connectors, ground terminal. Outputs: 2 pairs balanced (XLR), 2 pairs single-ended (RCA), 1 pair record-out (XLR), 2 pairs record-out (RCA). Controller connectors: IEC AC mains receptacle, ground terminal, 2 Controller/DC cable connectors, three 3.5mm mini-jacks (for IR input, trigger out, trigger in), 3 Mark Levinson Link communications connectors, 6-pin RJ-11 RS-232 port, two 8-…

Analog source: SpJ tonearm/La Luce turntable; Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum, Forsell Air Force One, van den Hul Grasshopper IV Gold, Clearaudio Insider cartridges.
Digital source: dCS 972 D/D converter and Elgar D/A converter at 24-bit/192kHz; Burmester 969, Forsell Air Reference CD transports.
Power amplifiers: Linn Klimax Solo 500 monoblocks, Accuphase M2000, McIntosh MC2000.
Loudspeakers: JMlab Utopia.
Cables: Interconnects: Cardas Golden Reference, Synergistic Research Designer's Reference Active Shielding, XLO The Limited, TARA The…

After I reviewed the "S" revision of the previous top-of-the-line Mark Levinson preamplifier, the No.380 (Stereophile, November 1997, Vol.20 No.11), I bought the review sample. Naturally, therefore, I was interested in hearing how the $14,950 No.32 Reference stacked up against the $6495 No.380S. So I arranged to use the review sample of the No.32 for a few weeks before it needed to be sent to Jonathan's Manhattan loft. I left the preamp warming up for two days before I did any serious listening, and the formal comparisons were performed just before it was…

Unless otherwise noted, the measurements presented are for balanced operation in the standard gain settings (+6dB balanced, +12dB unbalanced), the level control set to maximum.

The output impedance of the Mark Levinson No.32 at its line output measured 13.9 ohms in the left channel, 14.2 ohms in the right (and 10.3 ohms left, unbalanced). The results for the balanced output impedance are just slightly higher than specified, but in any event are so low that they are still outstanding. The line-level input impedance measured a usefully high 103k ohms (96k…

During the period I was reviewing the Halcro dm10, VTL TL-7.5 Reference, and BAT VK-51 SE preamplifiers, John Atkinson decided it would be enlightening to have me listen to these state-of-the-art contenders in comparison to the venerable Mark Levinson No.32 Reference (reviewed by Jonathan Scull in January 2000). How, we wondered, would the new boys stand up when compared not only with each other, but also with a long-term resident of Class A of "Recommended Components"? So, over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend,…

Like Bob Dylan's, Neil Young's 1990s recordings were a mixed bag: some good (Sleeps With Angels), some less thrilling (Mirror Ball). Notorious not only for his recorded missteps (anything on Geffen from the mid-1980s), Young has also been known to…

"That which is non-existent can never come into being, and that which is can never cease to be. Those who have known the inmost Reality know also the nature of is and is not...

"That Reality which pervades the Universe is indestructible. No one has power to change the…