Riviera Audio Laboratories Levante

INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER

- HERB REICHERT

SPECIFICATIONS

Description Hybrid (tubeBJT-MOSFET) stereo integrated amplifier with no global feedback, output switchable between class-A and class-AB. Analog inputs: 1 pair balanced (XLR), 4 pair unbalanced (RCA). Outputs: 1 pair 3-way loud speaker binding posts; one 1/4 (6.3mm) unbalanced headphone output. Output power: 30Wpc into 8 ohms (14.8dBW) in class-A, 120Wpc into 8 ohms (20.8dBW) in class-AB, 200Wpc into 4 ohms (20dBW).

Dimensions 17.3 (440mm) W × 5.1 (195mm) H × 19.3 (490mm) D. Weight: 66lb (30kg).

Finish Metallic Sand Gloss/Gold or Dark Titanium/Silver.

Serial number of unit reviewed LEV DM0109. “Made in Italy.”

Price $16,500. Approximate number of US dealers: 10. Warranty: 3 years, parts and labor.

Manufacturer Riviera Audio Laboratories s.r.l. Web: rivieralabs.com US distributor: Tone Imports Tel: [phone] Web: toneimports.com

I remember, around the time I started at Stereophile, telling Art Dudley that I wanted to review “a lot of power amplifiers” because amplifiers are the “blood-pumping heart machines” that “reanimate the artistry” of musicians: Horowitz, Björk, Bill Monroe. Whereupon he looked over his glasses and spied me with bare eyes like a stern parent and said, “Just be sure to not review any amplifiers that weigh more than 65 pounds.”

I warned Art that this could be a problem because I