The Mark Levinson No. 626 preamp and Mark Levinson No. 632 power amp were launched at AV Designs last Friday.
Also launched that day were the JBL Summit Makalu floorstanders, Summit Pumori floorstanders and Summit Ama bookshelf speakers.
JBL’s new speakers from the Summit series use a patented new dual-diaphragm, dual-motor compression driver mated to a large format Sonoglass High-Definition Imaging horn for the high notes.
The new woofer design features cast-frame utilizing a triple-layer Hybrid Carbon Cellulose Composite Cone (HC4), a design made from a proprietary formula of carbon-fiber and pure-pulp front and rear surfaces, sandwiched with an internal core of closed-cell foam.
The Summit Ama features JBL’s D2815K 1.5-inch (38mm) compression driver and an 8-inch (200mm) woofer.
The Summit Pumori also uses the D2815K 1.5-inch (38mm) compression driver, but it features two woofers an 8-inch and a 10-inch.
The Summit Makalu features JBL’s higher-grade D2830K 3-inch (75mm) compression driver and two woofers — an 8-inch and a 12-inch.
Meanwhile, the Mark Levinson No. 626 preamplifier features Mark Levinson’s proprietary Pure Path fully discrete, direct-coupled, fully balanced, dual-monaural signal path design with a discrete, balanced R-2R ladder volume control.
It is the first Mark Levinson model to incorporate the new Precision Link III digital-to-analog converter using the ES9039PRO. It also has a high-quality Class A MM/MC phono preamplifier and a Class A headphone amplifier.
The Mark Levinson No. 632 stereo amplifier is a Class A/AB dual-monaural design with 250 watts into 8 Ohms output.
The new Mark Levinson components have a striking new design featuring a Tectonic industrial design with signature red accent lighting.
Two demo systems were set up. The JBL Summit Ama was driven by the Mark Levinson No. 5805 integrated amp with music provided by a Mark Levinson No. 5101 SACD player (acting as a DAC) and an Innuos Zenith streamer.
The bigger system comprised the JBL Summit Malaku floorstanders driven by the Mark Levinson No. 632 power amp, No. 626 preamp and the Innuos Nazaré flagship streamer/server. A Mark Levinson No. 5105 turntable was also used to spin some LPs during the demo session.
Suffice it to say that the high notes were very detailed but quite smooth (unlike earlier iterations of the compression driver) with powerful bass. The sound had lots of clarity and drive and I noted that the speakers were rather forward sounding. As usual, the JBLs were great for rock songs.
To book an audition, call AV Designs at 03-6241 1237.
