driving Verity Audio Parsifal Ovations?

Thanks.

The Luxman 509u puts out 120 wpc at 8 Ohms, doubling to 240 wpc at 4 Ohms. The Parsifals are relatively sensitive (89), are rated as 8 Ohm speakers with a minimum impedance of 4 Ohms, so the Luxman amp should be a good match.

I am less sure about the merits of 30 wpc class A power vs. 120 wpc class AB power.

Regards,

Mark

Thank-you for all your suggestions.

I have heard the Parsifal Ovations driven by the 20 wpc pure class A Luxman 550A integrated, and this sounded surprisingly wonderful. The 30 wpc big brother to that amp would be a better match (590Aii), and though I have not heard this combination, I would be willing to live with it. The Luxman 590Aii basically incorporates the Luxman M-600A amp, which is the baby brother of the M-800A.

The Luxman integrateds are very heavy, the 550 weighs 48 lbs, and the 590 weighs 66 lbs. This suggests that the transformers etc are much more massive than say the Bel Canto integrateds that all weigh-in at only 12 lbs.

I know that it is very simplistic to compare the weights of amplifiers, but surely there is some correlation between weight and performance? Do heavier amps with bigger power supplies/transformers not have more headroom than lighter amps with similar power ratings? How would you, for example, compare the 150 wpc Bel Canto integrated at 12 lbs to the 120 wpc Luxman 509u at 63 lbs? Is there a specification that better expresses what I am grasping at?

I am not trying to pick on Bel Canto integrateds as I am not familiar with them, I simply noted that they were pretty light compared to the Luxmans when I looked them up.

Is there more to weight than just over-engineering?

Thanks - I was making the assumption that they were both class AB.

The M800A weighs 107 lbs, in keeping with its large power reserves. The insides look like a work of art! You must be very happy with yours!

The lower powered (30 wpc) M600A weighs 58 lbs, and the 30 wpc L-590Aii integrated weighs 66 lbs. These two units share the same amplification capabilities, and though considerably lighter than the M800A, they are not lightweights either and it would not surprise me to learn that they produce much more than 30 wpc into 8 Ohms.

As I mentioned earlier, I heard the smaller 20 wpc Luxman 550 integrated driving the Parsifals, and they made beautiful music together. I am sure that the 30 wpc L-590Aii would be an even better match, though it looks like the M800A would be even more ideal.

Given my global budget for a new system (and I prefer to buy new), the only way that I can afford new Parsifals is by making compromises elsewhere in the system. A high quality integrated is a very reasonable place to compromise without feeling any regrets.

What I find interesting on this forum is that Luxman's integrateds are mentioned quite frequently. Of even greater interest, is that of the two top integrateds (which cost the same $10K), the class A 30 wpc L-590Aii receives far more mention than the 120 wpc class AB L-509u.

Regards,

Mark

Thanks for the suggestions.

I have a Sonic Frontiers 50 wpc tube amp, and though I love some aspects of the tube experience, I will not miss tubes burning out or blowing-up and taking out parts of the circuit with it. In my 17 year old relationship, it has had to go out for service at least three times, and it has been re-tubed even more times than that. I am ready for the ease and (hopefully) rock solid reliabilkty of a high quality solid state amp.

The combination of the Parsifals with the Luxman 509u integrated (or 590Aii) and DU-80 cdp (or D-06) is what I am leaning towards.

Regards,

Mark

Thanks Steven. I think that your tube amp is at a much higher quality level than mine, so hopefully it will not be damaged when a tube burns out. Tubes are wonderful when all goes well (which can be years at a stretch).

As I mentioned earlier, I have heard the Parsifals driven by the 20 wpc class A Luxman integrated (550), a combination that worked surprisingly well. It was for demo purposes only as it was the only Luxman integrated on hand in the shop. I would certainly go with a more powerful Luxman integrated amp, and would be interested to hear Don's opinion on this.

Enjoy the MQ-88!

Regards,

Mark

Thanks for the input. The M800a would be ideal, but trying to explain this to the family budget committee is far more difficult than justifying the purchase of an integrated amp. Integrateds have a much higher WAF.

I am not sure that I would buy an M600a (plus pre-amp) over a 590Aii integrated given that they are basically the same amp/pre-amp at very different price-points. The M800a is a very different matter!

I have heard back from one of the owners of Verity Audio, and he assures me that either of the Luxman integrated amps (509u or 590Aii) would be "a very good match for the Parsifals".

Regards,

Mark

I have been enjoying the Verity Audio Parsifal Ovations for several months now, driven by the Luxman 509u integratd amp and Luxmn D-06 cdp. As a system it sounds wonderful, and the electronics match well with the speakers.

I enjoy classical music (piano, chamber) and jazz. I listen to a lot of solo piano, and I often feel like there is an actual Steinway D playing live in front of me.

Interestingly Redbook can sound as good as SACD to me when it is well recorded. Some Chandos and Hyperion recordings from the early 90's sound superb.

To be honest, I have stopped listening to the equipment and worrying about individual components. I now lose myself in the music and thirst to hear more. This is a system that conveys the essence of well played music.