The Mark Levinson Nº 585 has swept up best in class awards and countless accolades around the world, and is now widely regarded as perhaps the finest integrated amplifier ever made. Now, the Nº 585.5 redefines the playback quality of a classic medium; by adding the same Pure Phono stage found in the award winning Nº 523 and Nº 526 preamplifiers taking the reprouction of any source material to new heights of realism.

Architecture

The foundation of the No 585.5 is its fully discrete, mirror-imaged, dual-monaural analog circuitry featuring individual signal switching relays for each of its five stereo inputs: one XLR and three RCA plus a Stereo Pure Phono stage. Volume controls use discrete R2R ladders and low-noise analog switches for the widest possible bandwidth and maximum signal integrity. The fully-differential Class AB power stage includes an oversized 900VA toroidal transformer with individual secondary windings for the left and right channels.

Amplification

Each elegantly simple amplifier channel utilizes twelve output transistors and multiple smaller local capacitors that allow them to be placed physically closer to the amplifiers for greater transient response when power is needed immediately. This robust architecture results in a conservative power rating of 200W per channel. System integration and expansion are possible using the stereo RCA pre-outs which can operate full-range or with an included switchable, second-order, 80Hz crossover filter allowing for seamless integration into 2.1-channel systems with powered subwoofers.

Pure Phono: Class A for a Classic Medium The Pure Phono stage is a discrete design with no op-amps and operates exclusively in class A throughout, employing tantalum nitride thin-film resistors and polypropylene capacitors with exceptionally low tolerances.

A fixed-gain moving magnet (MM) section with five capacitive cartridge-loading settings, and a moving coil (MC) section with three gain settings and 10 resistive cartridge-loading settings ensures optimization for any cartridge. And an ultrasonic filter intelligently compensates for rumble and warping. The Pure Phono stage also contains physically separated channels and balanced inputs for sonic purity.

Audio Chassis

Building upon this superb analog platform, the Nº 585.5 adds equally outstanding digital audio capability. An ESS Sabre 32-bit O/A convertor with proprietary jitter elimination circuitry and fully balanced, discrete IN circuitry forms the heart of the digital audio processing stage. Six digital audio inputs are provided including one AES/EBU, two coaxial and two optical plus a USB audio processor capable of asynchronous data transfer of high resolution DSD and PCM files at up to 192kHz/32 bits resolution. For low-resolution audio formats, proprietary Clari-Fi'" signal processing reconstructs information and bandwidth lost in compressed file formats restoring them to higher fidelity.

Control

System integration and communication ports include Ethernet, USB, RS-232, IR input, and 12V trigger input and output. An iconic Mark Levinson custom cast aluminum system IR remote is included with the Nº 585.5.

Construction

The chassis of the Nº 585.5 utilizes card-cage architecture to isolate critical low-level analog and digital circuitry from the power supplies and amplifier modules. The steel and aluminum construction features internal amplifier heatsinks and Mark Levinson's iconic black and silver anodized aluminum front panel with its intuitive twin-knob control system and unique red display. A newly designed 3-piece anodized brushed aluminum top cover exudes durability, elegance and quality.

Nº585.5 Highlights

Pure Path Phono pre amp – a discrete design with no op-amps and operates exclusively in class A throughout

High resolution sound from class A/B amps

Ethernet, RS-232, IR and 12V trigger ports

Fixed-gain moving magnet (MM) section with five capacitive cartridge-loading settings

4 analog inputs

Discrete analog circuitry throughout

Mark Levinson extruded aluminum remote

Moving coil (MC) section with three gain settings and 10 resistive cartridge-loading settings

6 digital inputs: USB, AES/EBU, S/PDIF

200W at 8 ohms; 300-350W at 4 Ohms

Ultrasonic filter intelligently compensates for rumble and warping

32-bit/192khz performance, including DSD over PCM via USB 80 Hz high-pass option allows proper operation of a 2.1-channel system

Designed and handcrafted in the USA

General Specifications

RIAA frequency response            20Hz to 20kHz, ±0.3dB

Infrasonic filter defeatable, 15Hz, 2nd order (12dB/octave)

Input resistance (Moving Magnet Mode)             47kΩ

Input capacitance (Moving Magnet Mode)          selectable; 50, 100, 150, 200, or 680pF

Gain (Moving Magnet Mode)     40dB @ 1kHz

THD+N, 20Hz to 20kHz, 2VRMS output (Moving Magnet Mode) <0.03%

Input resistance (Moving Coil Mode)      selectable; 20, 33, 50, 66, 100, 200, 330, 500, 1000, or 47k

Input capacitance (Moving Coil Mode)   50pF

THD+N, 20Hz to 20kHz, 2VRMS output (Moving Coil Mode)          <0.02%, 50 or 60dB settings, <0.04%, 70db setting

Gain (Moving Coil Mode)             selectable; 50, 60, or 70dB @ 1kHz

Output Power   200W RMS per channel @ 8 Ω, 20Hz – 20kHz

Damping Factor                >400 @ 20Hz, referred to 8 Ω

Frequency Response     20Hz – 20kHz, ±0.13dB; 2Hz – 250kHz, +0.2dB/–3dB

Signal-to-Noise Ratio      >98dB (20Hz – 20kHz, unweighted); >103dB (20Hz – 20kHz, A-wtd), referred to full output – maximum volume setting

Voltage Gain      40.7dB (maximum volume setting)

Total Harmonic Distortion             <0.01% @ 1kHz, 200W, 8 Ω; <0.1% @ 20kHz, 200W, 8 Ω

Preamplifier Section (Analog)     Input Impedance

Preamplifier Section (Analog)     Input Overload

Preamplifier Section (Digital)      DAC Board - same as No 585

DAC output voltage @ full scale (0dBFS)                3.7VRMS

DAC frequency response             20Hz to 20kHz, +0 / ¬–0.2dB

DAC THD, full scale (0dBFS)          <0.0001% @ 1kHz, <0.0003% @ 20kHz

DAC SNR (referred to 3.7VRMS / 0dBFS output)                >120dB (A-weighted)

PCM sample rates/bit depth       32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, or 192kHz; up to 32 bits

DSD        Native or DoP (DSD over PCM), single- and double-speed (2.8 and 5.6MHz)

Audio Specifications

RIAA frequency response            20Hz to 20kHz, ±0.3dB

Infrasonic filter defeatable, 15Hz, 2nd order (12dB/octave)

Input resistance (Moving Magnet Mode)             47kΩ

Input capacitance (Moving Magnet Mode)          selectable; 50, 100, 150, 200, or 680pF

Gain (Moving Magnet Mode)     40dB @ 1kHz

THD+N, 20Hz to 20kHz, 2VRMS output (Moving Magnet Mode) <0.03%

Input resistance (Moving Coil Mode)      selectable; 20, 33, 50, 66, 100, 200, 330, 500, 1000, or 47k

Input capacitance (Moving Coil Mode)   50pF

THD+N, 20Hz to 20kHz, 2VRMS output (Moving Coil Mode)          <0.02%, 50 or 60dB settings, <0.04%, 70db setting

Gain (Moving Coil Mode)             selectable; 50, 60, or 70dB @ 1kHz

Output Power   200W RMS per channel @ 8 Ω, 20Hz – 20kHz

Damping Factor                >400 @ 20Hz, referred to 8 Ω

Frequency Response     20Hz – 20kHz, ±0.13dB; 2Hz – 250kHz, +0.2dB/–3dB

Signal-to-Noise Ratio      >98dB (20Hz – 20kHz, unweighted); >103dB (20Hz – 20kHz, A-wtd), referred to full output – maximum volume setting

Voltage Gain      40.7dB (maximum volume setting)

Total Harmonic Distortion             <0.01% @ 1kHz, 200W, 8 Ω; <0.1% @ 20kHz, 200W, 8 Ω

Preamplifier Section (Analog)     Input Impedance

Preamplifier Section (Analog)     Input Overload

Preamplifier Section (Digital)      DAC Board - same as No 585

DAC output voltage @ full scale (0dBFS)                3.7VRMS

DAC frequency response             20Hz to 20kHz, +0 / ¬–0.2dB

DAC THD, full scale (0dBFS)          <0.0001% @ 1kHz, <0.0003% @ 20kHz

DAC SNR (referred to 3.7VRMS / 0dBFS output)                >120dB (A-weighted)

PCM sample rates/bit depth       32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, or 192kHz; up to 32 bits

DSD        Native or DoP (DSD over PCM), single- and double-speed (2.8 and 5.6MHz)