WOULD IT BE DUMB TO BUY A MARK LEVINSON NO 23.5

Great amp but they are VERY expensive to recap and service due to the fact the Levinson does not provide schematics to non authorized service centers. From what I am told, you will need to budget $2 to $2.5K for a future recap. 

Any time I've heard Levinson amps they were sterile and lifeless. I think you can do better for 2500.00.


Oz

I had the 23.5 for awhile, way back when. I just saw one listed last week (could be the same one), and couldn't believe how much they wanted for it. It was a good amp, especially for driving low impedance speakers. I thought it was a bit on the warm side of neutral. Personally, I wouldn't pay $2.5k for it. I'd rather spend a bit more on something more recent and not worry about what @testpilot  mentioned above. If you have to spend another $2.5k down the road to get it fixed, you now have $5k into it. After putting a total of $5k into it, how much do you think you could resell it for? Probably only $2.5k at the most. You could have used that money for something more current (1-10 years old), and better. As Suse Orman would say "Denied".

Pass its ancient history and needs a rebuild.

It is a ’student seeking truth and thinking they found it’ kind of amplifier. (and we are all students)

It is another layer of the onion.

Thus, it is not a perfect amp, it is a step on the stairs upward.

At the same time there is no reason that it should not be purchased and enjoyed. Everyone does it differently and at a different pace.

For some it may be seen as a large enough plateau to have or stage a life cycle upon. That the walls are far enough away that it is not felt to be a box to climb out of, but an open field of dreams.

If one looks with careful enough eyes, and attentive enough mind, then this analogy can be applied to just about anything.