Levinson 20.5 monos - Time for a Refurb?

I'm glad you found something you like, but you have to ask yourself; Would the Levinson sound better than the Lamm if it were refurbed and didn't have those tired, old capacitors in it?

Why do you say the the Lamm's "should be" better?

Shut up Herman!! ;--)

Herman,

I did get to listen to a pair of 20.6s at my dealer's that just came back from a Levinson refurb. They got better over a period of 72 hours of re-break-in and they did sound very good, but still recognizable as 20.5/20.6s. I can't say that they sounded better than before the refurb (Levinson refused to say that also by the way), but they certainly did not sound worse.

The Lamms are a 2004 or 2005 design and are Vladimir Lamm's reference state-of-the-art best that he knows how to design and build. Listening verifies that our best high end audio engineers have not stood still these past 16 years. They have actually found ways to improve their products. Also, some of us believe the tubes in the hybrid design do make the length and decay of notes more realistic while the solid state devices make the attack of the notes more realistic.

Lastly, it was not a question of finding something I like. It was a question of finding something I like even better than my 20.5s

Best,

Ed

Ed, I believe that would be 'tube' (singular), no? Do you know if there's somewhere Mr. Lamm explains the technical reasons for this particular design decision? I've always been curious about that.

Good question, Nsgarch. I have not read all of his interviews, but it is not answered in FAQ on his website. An Audiogoner wrote somewhere in the discussions section that he bought the M1.2 hybrids and then had thoughts about selling them and buying one of the all tube Lamm mono block sets. He said he called Vladimir to discuss the matter with him and then said he could not repeat what Vladimir had told him but he did want to say that after the conversation he decided to keep the M1.2 hybrids.

singular or plural regarding the tubes is a matter of definition. If you are talking about just one mono block, it is singular as each mono block has one tube for the second stage.

My own thoughts about hybrids have been to try to get the best of both worlds: SS for the attack and tubes for the extension and decay of the note.

I certainly like the sound of the Lamms in my system and they are going to keep getting better for awhile during the break-in of the PAD Aqueous Anniversary speaker cable.

But if I have not said it already, I'll say it now -- and if I have, then I'll say it again, the difference the SRA Craz racks made is an even bigger difference than the Lamms have made. Who would have thought that isolation racks would make an even bigger difference than a major component upgrade!

Best,

Ed