Mark Levinson No.39 CD Player

FAULTY FOR SPARES ONLY – NO RETURNS PLEASE

Here we have a very high quality but faulty CD player from specialist US brand Mark Levinson. It works purely as a transport through its digital output but the DAC (digital to analogue converter) no longer works. The original owner says it hasnt been repaired previously but to us there are signs that at some time a repair has been tried. We regard the unit as beyond repair.

The unit is in good cosmetic condition with a couple of minor blemishes and it is therefore being offered for sale as it is, on a spares or repair basis – no returns please. In addition it will be supplied with its original remote control, manual and mains cable.
Mark Levinson Say….
The task of a CD player is easy to define it must recover the correct data from the disc and convert that data to a series of analogue voltages with neither amplitude nor timing errors. As simple as this sounds, achieving it in reality has been extremely difficult – as evidenced by the significant sonic differences between various CD players. Conventional CD player design depends heavily on the quality of the oscillator used to control the rate at which the disc spins. This oscillator exists in an extremely “noisy” electrical environment close to the motor that spins the disc. The electrical noise introduces timing errors in the delivery of the digital signal that have come to be known as “jitter.” Subsequent handling of the digital audio signal in traditional CD player designs cannot improve upon this “jittery” signal, lacking a better reference. To the contrary, the various stages of signal processing between the laser pickup and the actual conversion to analogue can only contribute additional jitter of their own.
The Mark Levinson Nº39 leaps beyond conventional digital audio technology by employing a proprietary, closed-loop jitter-reduction system in conjunction with a double speed CD-ROM drive. Using a custom made crystal oscillator with better than five part-per-million accuracy, the digital signal is re-clocked immediately before its conversion to analogue, eliminating transport-related jitter from the digital audio signal. This same crystal oscillator controls the all-digital servo used to control the rate at which the disc spins, and the digital to analogue conversion process.
In effect, the design of the Nº39 turns the accepted status quo on its head. By placing the all-important reference clock immediately prior to digital to analogue conversion and slaving all the mechanical subassemblies to it rather than the other way around, the signal presented to the outputs of the Nº39 is uncontaminated by electrically- or mechanically- induced jitter. The sonic advantages of this design are immediately apparent in the clarity, warmth and stunning dynamic contrasts exhibited by the Nº39.
The Nº39 shares the handsome industrial design of other Mark Levinson components such as the Nº38 preamplifier. The combination of the hand-brushed, black-anodized aluminium faceplate and bead blasted custom-machined buttons make operating the Nº39 a tactile as well as a sonic pleasure. A large, easily read display provides information as to the operational status of the Nº39 from across the room, making the supplied remote control more genuinely useful than on products lacking such a display. In keeping with its sophisticated design, the Nº39 also incorporates a Madrigal-designed loading mechanism. Contrasting strongly with the bulky, plastic drawers commonly used, the slim 1⁄8 inch drawer is machined from a solid piece of aluminium and rides on highly polished bearings.
The Nº39 incorporates a fully balanced analogue volume control similar to the one used in the Mark Levinson Nº38 and Nº38S preamplifiers. When activated (by turning on the variable output function under setup: sound), the output of the Nº39 may be attenuated in precise 0.1 dB steps through most of the range. Combined with the low output impedance of the Nº39, it then becomes possible for the CD player to drive a power amplifier directly from either its balanced or its single ended outputs.

For a review from U.S. publication Stereophile please click here