Lamm LP2/2.1 vs Luxman EQ-500

Hi Don,
I don’t have direct experience with either but have always admired the work of Vladimir Shusuren of Lamm. He maintains a small, ultra high quality company dedicated to the finest in High End Audio. He knows what music sounds like and is able, as a fine artist, to apply it to his designs. Luxman is also very good but a large, more mass produced product relatively.
I have also loved the sound of Zesto Audio phono stages. Another small and super company. And, IMO, the most beautiful components. Their new Andros Deluxe is a great PS. I will never forget the sound of their original Andros at RMAF. I spent hours in their room. It was the best sound at the show and not a very expensive system. It had the Fritz speakers. I wound up getting all Atma-Sphere. Amp and preamp with built in PS. Otherwise, for sure, I would get the Zesto Deluxe!
Cheers,
Mike

Merry Christmas!

@mglik   No experience with either but your recommendation is a Zesto? lol  

Look, I think Zesto products are nice as well...in fact I own one of their SUTs, but how on earth can you recommend against the Lamm or Luxman with no experience hearing either against a Zesto?

3 Easy, On this forum, anything goes.  No response should be surprising or necessarily useful to the OP.

@lewm 

You really hit the nail on the head. A useful response here is possible, but most prefer to just shout out what they own or want to own, without regard to the question from the OP.

OP good luck with your question. All I can say is the Luxman is excellent and I have not heard the Lamm

@jperry 

All I can say is the Luxman is excellent and I have not heard the Lamm

Agree with your post of course.  Heck, I own the Luxman EQ-500 and love it but I've never heard the Lamm so it would be ridiculous for me to recommend it over the Lamm.  Obviously many others on this forum don't maintain similar guardrails. lol

I will second the Zesto.  I heard the line at Adirondack Audio and the entire line is truly special. Besides the superb sound, the components are all drop dead gorgeous. 

I own an LP2 and have never heard the Lux. I took at look at it though and it’s very similar in some ways. Tube rectified, which is a must for me, low output level for MM so you can use a Decca cartridge if you want. But they are two different beasts in terms of control. The Lamm has none. That’s a problem for some but hasn’t been for me, both with my Decca Super Gold and a Denon DL103. They sound great at whatever the Lamm preset is (I think you can order what you want). I also own a Lamm preamp and I have been in this hobby for 30 years and I’ve never been happier nor more content. Hope this helps a bit in your decision making. There probably is no wrong choice. Oh and the Lamm will kill any Zesto. I’ve heard them both in the same system. No comparison.

Hello everyone...  I'm hoping everyone was able to have a safe and wonderful holiday!

I truly appreciate everyone taking the time to reply to my post. Unfortunately, it seems as though no one has had the opportunity to compare the Lamm to the Lux.

I thinking that instead of me asking for a "comparison" between the Lamm and the Lux; that maybe if you are fortunate enough to have experience with one or the other, you might be willing to share....

1.  What do you like most about it?
2.  How does the sound compare to other phono stages that you've had?
3.  Do you feel it's missing anything or do you think this is your end game phono?

I think both of these would be fantastic to own.  I'm just trying my best to make the best decision I can.

Wishing you all the very best of health and happiness,
Don

Hi,
 A very happy EQ 500 owner here! If you type in Luxman EQ 500 in Search, you will see my comments. It is my end game phono stage even with the stock tubes and the performance has been raised when I installed NOS Amperex tubes. There is no comparison to the Herron VTPH 2A or the Tavish Audio Adagio that I have previously owned, although they are fine phono stages. As for the Zesto...although I have never heard their phono stages at home, I have heard them at several HiFI shows and the sound was excellent!  I ended up purchasing the 1.2 preamp,with the thought of getting a phono stage later on. After about a year, I traded for a Luxman preamp, because the Zesto just wasn't "doing it for me".  From the time I set up the Zesto, I was disappointed in the "feel" of the knobs and even the looks from up close. It felt rather chintzy and the metal sculpting was of a very thin gauge. Sonically, I came to realize that it was not the most transparent sounding, plus the sound staging seemed rather limited.The Luxman cured all of that, as it should, since it cost double of what the Zesto cost.
The EQ 500 is the most quiet phono stage I have ever owned and also the most dynamic!
Good luck with your decision.

Hello grk!

Happy New Year!  Thank you so much for your reply and sharing your thoughts with me about the EQ-500 especially in comparison with the other phono stages that you've had experience with.

The Lux certainly does sound like it is a wonderful piece and I can certainly appreciate you finding this to be your end-game phono stage :)

Thank you for taking the time to reply to this thread :)

Best Wishes,
Don