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Luxman 550AXii and 509X

I had the good situation of being able to borrow the demo units of the Luxman 550AXii and the 509X from the dealer and listen to them side by side at home. I went with purchasing the 550AXii new. Just wanted to share my observations..

1) Build quality is nice for both. The 509X looks more modern with the beveled edges and super nice solid top. 

2) The VU meter on the 550AXii has gentle smooth movement, on the 509X it feels like it's in a rush

3) Sound quality, for me the 550AXii is the clear winner, it is more authoritative in spite of lower wattage at 40W. The 509X feels a little sterile and lacking bass, although it is very clear. Some might prefer that.. 

4) Went through multiple genre of music, and the 550AXii shines in all that I listened. The 509X fell short on deep house, and I had to hit the loudness button for classical music. 

rman9

Showing 3 responses by ryder

ryder
1,687 posts
 

The numbers for Class A Luxman are conservative. For the L-590AXII rated at 30W(8 ohms) / 60W(4 ohms), the real output on test bench was revealed to be 95W(8 ohms) / 165W(4 ohms). The numbers between the 550AXII and 590AXII won’t vary much.

Link below.

https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.luxman.cz/download.php%3F48,cz&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwjw6v28rtv3AhV7SmwGHQ0yDiQQFnoECAAQAg&usg=AOvVaw1XauqQ6hOd3t5Ep3a1Ud5B

 

ryder
1,687 posts
 

Man9, I am aware that the 550AXII is compared to the 509X. I am bringing in the 590AXII to the mix to suggest that the 550AXII is likely more powerful than the official rated output of 20W since it is a Class A just like the 590AXII. I have the 590AXII and it surely punches above its weight and sounds much more powerful than the numbers suggest.

ryder
1,687 posts
 

The SQ-N150 looks wonderful with high build quality, just like the other Luxman units. Good to know it is capable of driving inefficient speakers. Perhaps in small rooms it wouldn’t be too much of an issue. I believe most owners use high efficiency speakers with the SQ-N150.

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