Proceed to be re-branded as Mark Levinson

Years ago, the Proceed brand was used by Madrigal (owned by Harman International) for more affordable and/or experimental AV components in their high-end product lineup.

Today, Proceed is respected as one of the elite brands in all of high-end AV, but after a disastrous run at making a high-performance DVD-Video transport called the PMDT, Madrigal has decided to endthe Proceed brand name by merging it, in part, with the Mark Levinson brand.

Select Proceed components will now be re-badged under the Mark Levinson brand, including the AVP2+6 preamp, the CVP2 video switcher and the HPA2 and HPA 3 power amplifiers. Gone will be the PMDT DVDmachine, ironically, soon after Madrigal finally smoothed out the software bugs that plagued the unit. Other Proceed components that will not make the cut are the BPA2, BPA3 and the AMP5amplifiers.

With an ongoing and successful relationship with Lexus for car audio and video, the Mark Levinson brand has never been more valuable in the eyes of the public. Luxury lifestyle clients who oncethought Bose was “the best” because it was found as the premium audio option in their Mercedes are now becoming aware of brands like Mark Levinson. With the Proceed line being integrated into theMark Levinson line, there will be more affordable price points for Mark Levinson gear.

With the PMDT out of the line-up, this leaves the new Lexicon DVD-Audio and SACD combo-player as the only video-capable source in the high-end Harman lineup. Currently, this is a competitivedisadvantage for Madrigal vs. the competition, which includes Meridian, Classe’, Krell and others that have integrated DVD/CD players that go along with their AV preamps. System designers and AVenthusiasts like the system’s simplicity, physical integration and performance improvements (like direct digital connections on the Meridian gear) that come from a direct pairing. Count on Madrigalto find a high-end OEM source for a DVD-Video, DVD-Audio and SACD transport sometime in the future.

Service and support will be provided for Proceed electronics through Madrigal.