Soliciting Member Perspectives: Levinson vs Bryston vs Audio Research


Wanting to start a discussion for which there are obviously ZERO absolute answers.  I want to hear various member perspectives on these three marquis brands of audio equipment: pro's vs con's, likes vs dislike & your emotional/visceral experiences.

Why?  #1, I think it would be fun & edifying.  #2, I am contemplating modifying the direction of my primary 2-channel system in my 'Man Cave' & your thoughts & opinions will be useful.

Please try to avoid pretentiousness, condescension & remember, these are your opinions & not necessarily facts.

Thanks in advance & I hope this proves to be as fun as I think it can be.
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I have owned lots of ML stuff, including the rear stuff from way back when. I found it well built,reliable but while it seemed " accurate" it never had as much soul or musicality as I look for today. I also owned a AR SP 10 which was at the other end of the musical spectrum. It was very warm and natural sounding but not as detailed at the frequency extremes as I like. I know this is a very small sample size, but this is what I have found in  my system. As for Bryston, I have never owned or spent enough time with any of there products to have a valid opinion. 

                                                   my best to all, Jerry
I have a great opinion of ARC only because I have owned a SP3-A1 for 36 years. I also own a D100B. With Maggie’s 1.7I speakers, I can’t say enough about the combo of the old classics with the new technology speakers. The Cambridge CD player the 1/2 track Revox and the new Rega P3 make me very happy. The most important part of a system IMO is the speakers. It will only sound as good as the speakers. I have no experience with Bryson or ML.

Happy listening 
Bryston seems to be a preferred name in the UK. Curious about that one too. They have a tie-in with PMC speakers which I currently have a crush on. AR stock seems to be descending. Dealers here are not pushing it. Levinson-well I have it in the car and enjoy that but their gear is beyond my budget. 
Ericshch; Thanks for the heavy lifting. All those grammatically incorrect posts are unnerving to me also. Their just too many of them. haha