Byegolly
LFD: I had one for three years with no problems. Sold it this year for 80 percent of what I paid. Replacing it with Luxman. |
Luxman are my new favorite electronics. Reintroduced for import three years ago, the build quality is equal to their best offerings from the 1970s and 1980s. I love the entire line from the last three years and I like that they are ultimately about musicality rather than specifications. They just sound great.
The phono stage is one of the best I have heard. Ultra quiet.
Their CD and music servers mate well with their components. Very neutral and bring out rich textures out of ordinary CDs.
This will be a system you will cherish.
Rotel is a well engineered product but made of Chinese parts. I suspect it will not hold up to time. I have seen this with NAD and Cambridge Audio.
The only other electronics I have heard that match Luxman are LFD from the UK and McIntosh from here in the US for sonics and build quality at this price point. |
No. It is a Japanese product wired for their electricity. With that said, you should have no problem using a standard transformer. I recently bought the Neoclassical CD and integrated amp and have had no problems.
If you want to stay in the US electrical grid, take a hard look at the McIntosh 6300. Very close in performance with a similar "retro" look. |
Kiza
I played the Class AB amp at 100 watts (505), the 20 watt N100 Neoclassico tube amp, and Class A 20 watt (I believe it was model 550). I did not preview the 590.
I auditioned a wide variety of speakers as well. These included ATC 11s and 19s, Harbeth 40.1, KEF 201s, Spendor A1 and A6s, Zu Essence, Devore 8s and 9s, and B & W 805s and 801s.
I thought the ATC and Harbeth sounded best with the 505.
100 watts easily drive both speakers. Really added nice mid range depth to vocals (the English BBC side to these speakers) which married well to my audio content (acoustic, punk, indie, reggae, funk).
I liked the Devores and Zus with the N100. The Devores threw a better soundstage in a small room environment, very neutral and "human", and the Zus had better dynamics in vocals, piano and cymbals. More lively, not hot. I have never been a fan of this company, Zu, but the new line is wonderful at 3,500/pair with tubes like Luxman.
Almost all the speakers listed above sounded great with the 550, except for power hungry ATCs were a tad understated and not fully formed. Spendors and B & W sounded fantastic.
Agree with your comments about the Luxman over the 6300, but to my ears, I thought the differences were narrow versus wide. The 6300 sounded great with speakers who relish solid state clarity. I thought they were very quiet with the sound emerging from blackness. The Luxman had an added lushness. It seemed you could hear more detail, but not in an analytical sort of way. |
My son lives in Tokyo and brought me back the N100, which are 40% cheaper there. Have had no problems so far. I mostly listen to it on headphones. |
Leben is incredible, as well as Almarro. I love the N100 Neoclassical by Luxman. |
I auditioned both. You need to carefully match the 550 with speakers. It perfers the more efficient English speakers. |
You should have the freedom to buy any product in any country, based on the strength of that currency against yours. Why not buy at the country of origin? I believe this the free market principle. |
Hands down, the Leben is the better unit. Along with Luxman, I think they are the best Japan has to offer in mid-priced gear. (Obviously, the Luxman has better bass and slam due to it being solid state).
With that said, I was really impressed with the Almarro 205 and 318 powering their own speakers. Very musical and organic. Played Stevie Wonder and Dave Brubeck and loved the musicality of both amps. In many ways, I preferred the 205 model. I look at Almarro as a nice entry level tube product, which will run circles of other entry level products I have seen.
Leben sounds a tad more "there" in every category you can think of. I heard it power DeVore Gibbon Nines effortlessly.
I ultimately chose the Luxman because it has: superior built-in phono satge, more compact design, and matching CD player. |
Ryder, I have a Japanese N100 tube combo/CD. My son lives in Tokyo. I use it in a den where space is at a premium. Incredible sound for the size. I am going to buy their domestic 505 or 590 for my bonus room; I like their products so much. Do everything right--no flaws that I can hear. |
Chas1: check out the N100 Neoclassical on their website. Six Moons just did the first web review. Don't know if it is being imported yet. Very streamlined and compact. |
LFD is not is the same league. The Luxman will run circles around it. |
Plays all music genres--great with electronica, classical, rock, indie or jazz. Very musical sounding--proper reproduction of piano, guitar, vocals, drums. Great tonal range--very organic and lush--"musical". Plays complex music with ease, like Radiohead's Amnesiac. Mates well with English speakers. Well thought out front panel, back and remote control. |
After reading this chain, I decided to do a retail test as well.
I brought out four pieces of music: Paul Kelly, May 1992, Spoon's Ga Ga Ga, Booker T's Potato Head, and MGMT's debut album.
I used Luxman's CD player to standardize the input. I then heard the Luxman's 507 and 590s with the D-8 CD player, versus Leben 300 SX and 600, driving Devore Nines speakers in NYC last week.
Devore tends to sound more relaxed rather than forward, are musical forgiving, and somewhat efficient. They work well in small room setups.
Overall, I was very impressed by the level of detail by both brands and all the "musical" attributes you associate between the brands around a Japanese sound. Everything sounded acceptable to my ears--you could have long listening sessions with both. Also, it should be noted that there is a significant price difference between the integrated amps, so you have to factor that Luxman costs thousands more.
What sets apart the Luxman brand is its high slew rates. I can't think of a better product that produces the magical quality of sustain and slam to give the music real dynamic character. This is especially present in the AB amps like the 509. The Leben has a warmer tonality, more mid to high range, but really excelled with organic recordings like Booker T. This was constant for both the 300 and 600 models. The Luxmans were able to play all music extremely well, including the cheesy electronica of MGMT, with more presence, end to end. I loved the 590 for presence of sound stage and natural timbre.
I think the Leben sounded better from a headphone amp perspective. I brought a pair of Sony 7506s and found I was very immersed with the overall sound.
I have a Luxman N100 valve system in Japan (my son lives in Tokyo and I have business interests there) and the Leben seems a tad richer. With that said, I would rank Luxman 590 as the best sounding amp in the shootout. I view Leben as a better "starter" system if money is an issue, but Luxman is clearly in a class by itself. |
Chashas1
I agree, and mentioned specifically above there is a price difference in the thousands. I have not actually seen the 38 SQ at retail. It is a very known model to the Japanese.
It appears not to be distributed here yet. PS: The founder of Leben worked on the 38 model so I would imagine that the sound profile is very similar. |
Chas
A friend told me that the 38 is now for sale on musicdirect.com. Don't know them as a retailer, but they are showing both the amp and CD player. They also show my N100 combo. It is roughly 35 to 40% higher than what I paid in Japan. |
I listen to it 100% of the time in headphone mode. Superior playback, all the way. |
Chashas1
In the age of a truly global economy and currency weaknesses, why would you care if someone buys off-shore in the native OEM country. I don't see the harm, if you are smart enough to execute the trade. The US dealer offers the ability to hear the device and service it. Given the high standards of Luxman, this seems as an unwanted mark-up. |
