Seeking opinions on the Luxman PD151 and EQ500 combination

which cartridge? several make an mc-5 model it seems.

the luxman phono eq500 has impressive features, I’d like to hear it. Stereophile said this:

"especially for the LP enthusiast who uses an analog front end with multiple tonearms and an assortment of cartridges—it’s difficult to imagine another contemporary product offering this combination of flexibility and superior sound. In addition to being a pure delight to use, it was easily one of the best-sounding, most musical phono preamps I’ve ever had in my system. If your budget can stretch this far, the Luxman EQ-500 is a must-hear."

IF you change your TT, especially Jazz, I’d encourage you to consider having two arms, both Mono and Stereo ready to go back and forth in any listening session. The Luxman PD444 TT is amazing, I set one up for my friend, I would be quite happy with it, we put two Micro Seiki 505 arms (12" and 9") which I also have great respect for, they have easy arm height, tracking, anti-skate, and the headshell fitting has an adjustable collet for azimuth.

My TT is deeper than normal, the Luxman is wider than normal. Built in Switch for the Two Arms makes setup easy.

http://Luxman PD444 Vintage Knob Info

Join Vinyl Engine, free PD444 Info/manuals here

it's a question, which mc-5 cartridge?

History of one arm Luxman PD441 and two arm version PD444

I found out about PD444 after I got my JVC TT81 in Large PL-2 Two arm Plinth. In my setup deeper worked better than wider, but it is still tempting to have one. Less wide allows me to keep my promise to let Donna keep her plants on top. One tray moves to/from Tape Player to TT depending on which one is in use.

I insist on a Dust Cover, so many high end TT’s do not include one.

Luxman Dust Cover is hinged, you can use it closed or left up/open during play, or, my friend leaves his unattached, lifts it off during play. My Large Heavy Dust Cover must be lifted/played off (my preference), you need a designated place for it during play, notice mine on it’s edge in front of the Tape Player (felt dots on contact points).

I miss Chakster, found this about the Luxman PD444 he thinks it's the one to get/keep.

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chakster

6,144 posts

07-19-2020 at 01:56pm

@xaak I could buy whatever turntable, but I use two PD-444 and my Denon DP-80, Victor TT-101 and Technics SP-10 mkII (and many more turntables) were near and easy to compare to PD-444. I use so many different tonearms and cartridges, but I hate belt drive turntables believe it or not, over 20 years ago I had enough time with belt drives (never again, i came to Direct Drive for a good reason), also I think vacuum pump is inconvenient. I prefer Direct Drive and already have the best of them (not all, but some of the very best). I wish I could buy Denon DP-100 in the next 10 years.

By now I don’t think turntable of such high class like PD-444 must be replaced and there are NO turntables like that for two tonearms designed so nicely to swap and adjust tonearms quickly. For me it’s the best TT in the lab (I got 8 tonearms at the moment and still searching). For me cartridges and tonearms are far more important that the drive (if the drive is DD, especially coreless DD)."

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IF not going to add a second arm, then the PD441 is a better choice than the PD151 I think. Smaller size and price, great technology concealed in simple elegance. An arm like the Micro Seiki 505 gives you performance, adjustments, removable headshell for a variety of cartridges.

213cobra, Phil, member here, has had great things to say about the PD444 over the years.

Lewm,

Good point about NEW, no age concerns. Anybody own that TT?

Thankfully that PD151 TT has a removable headshell, a big plus so having spare cartridges pre-mounted is easy enough.

Headshell with Adjustable Azimuth is a good option

Pat's, mine is black, this says Last One?

other adjustable heaadshells, don't forget the finger lift like my friend did.

woots

congrats. 

that Sumiko Songbird cartridge has excellent specs for an elliptical stylus. Is yours the Low Output or High Output version?

https://sumikophonocartridges.com/product/songbird-low-mc-phono-cartridge/

if you know it's condition/playing hours, I would consider keeping it, even if it means selling your existing setup without a cartridge, or installing a new cartridge to increase potential buyers.

Do you have the few inexpensive tools and skills to mount/align cartridges? If not, YET, I encourage you to learn to do it yourself, the more your collection grows, the more important and satisfying it is.

I prefer DD, but it sure seems like a terrific belt drive choice, gotta love a platter weighing nearly 9 lbs, one of the things that made my Thorens TD124 so great (wish my wood floors were not so springy, it’s bearing was too sensitive to vertical vibration).

Stereophile Review of PD151 II

"What matters is the result, and even when I held my stethoscope against the top plate adjacent to the motor, I couldn’t tell whether the motor was on or off. It’s that quiet." read that again, that’s amazing.

I would buy the optional heavier counter-weight now while still in production. You never know what you might collect, and if you ever sell it in the future,

"The tonearm comes with a standard counterweight suitable for cartridges weighing up to 10gm, while a heavier weight—part number OPPD-HW2—is available as an option for cartridges that weigh between 9gm and 19gm. I used two cartridges during the review, an Ortofon Cadenza Blue and Luxman’s own LMC-5, and found the standard weight suitable for both. Luxman provided an extra headshell, the OPPD SH2, which allowed me to switch easily between the Ortofon and Luxman cartridges with minimal recalibration."

And I’d buy a spare headshell, to have two OEM, as well as another brand like Pat’s or vintage with azimuth adjustment.

Best to check and learn about it’s arm height adjustment, also from the review:

"The pin that locates the headshell vertically in the armtube will typically have some play, making precise, repeatable azimuth setting difficult, and the way the collar holds the headshell into the armtube can change the front-to-back angle of the headshell depending on how much the collar is tightened. I found that with the Luxman arm, tightening the headshell collar firmly resulted in the headshell surface being about 1.5° out of parallel with the armtube. This isn’t really a big deal because you can easily compensate by raising the height at the back of the arm, but it’s something to be aware of when adjusting the stylus rake angle."

"Luxman says that all four feet should be lowered at least slightly to allow the isolation function of the feet to work as designed."

this surprised me, did yours come with the optional dust cover?

"The OPPD-DSC151 dustcover is offered as an optional extra; at nearly $800, I guess it’s nice that Luxman gives you the option of going without it if your budget is tight. That’s a lot of money for a dustcover"

"Summing up
There’s a funny New Yorker cartoon by Alex Gregory in which a man is showing his friend his vinyl-based stereo and says, "The two things that really drew me to vinyl were the expense and the inconvenience." If that’s how you feel, the PD-151 MK II may not be the right turntable for you. Turntables can be a bit diva-like, sounding off some days and demanding attention and tweaking. The PD-151 MK II is the opposite of that. And while it isn’t exactly cheap, it’s affordable by current hi-fi standards, and it is convenient and easy to live with. Once you have it set up and dialed in, you can expect it to be about as unfussy and long-lasting as turntables come. It just plays your records superbly, without fuss, bother, or artificial pizzazz. It looks beautiful, feels beautiful, and is beautifully made; but most importantly, it also sounds beautiful."

This is exactly what Lewm had in mind in his post above.

OP,

Glad you got the dust cover, you were lucky to get that call and smart enough to get a few quick answers and jump on a great opportunity, one you will forever appreciate.

I see that the word ’low’ is printed on the top of the Sumiko Songbird cartridge body, (high version if it doesn’t say low) which is not visible after it is mounted (unless it shows thru the slots). Low or High, I would keep that cartridge and move it to a spare headshell to play on the new Luxman.

If you have room, perhaps keep the existing TT, put a MONO cartridge on it, ready to go. I learned here, and it is more than true, playing Mono LPs with a true Mono cartridge is a little/lot/hugely better depending on the specific Mono LP. Recording techniqes and manufacturing were excellent in the 40's and 50's, the distinction of individual instruments and voices, lack of noise, is always better and sometimes far improved on some of my Mono LPs.

Lewm,

I also am an advocate of ’do your best’, ’good enough’ ’avoid attempting perfection’, ’don’t let the over-priced thingy scare you’ and encourage people to acquire the few inexpensive tools and skills (practice until confidence is gained) to mount and align their own cartridges.

Arm parallel ’when playing’, i.e. stylus in the groove, cantilever flexed by the specified tracking weight. One of the two included allen wrenches fits a set screw that allows arm height adjustment, not as easy as a hand tightened lever, but simply trial and error until it’s "close enough for government work".

OP’s dust cover has hinges. Even though I don’t like the appearance, I would play it with the cover left up, and verify the table remained level when the cover’s weight was in that position. You, like my friend with his PD444 (also has hinges), would not use the hinges and carefully lift off and replace the dust cover which is what I must do with my JVC dust cover. Mine has cutouts designed for hand held movement, the Luxman cover does not. Of course I’ve tried to hear/prove differences, I simply cannot get the idea of reflected microphonics out of my imagination, so up or off it is: off my visual preference despite the inconvenience.

I agree you cannot predict sound qualities from specs, however wide channel separation and tight channel balance are cartridge performance measurements directly relating to good/better/best capability to create the pseudo imaging 2 channel sound involves/requires. If a company can repeatedly manufacture and achieve those parameters, that is remarkable.

I have slight preferences among my half dozen cartridges, and choose one over another for specific music, or just to hear it for a while. I have never had a cartridge with great imaging capability not be a keeper. My friends bring their cartridges here, I can play with all 3 arms in the grooves, and simply switch the SUT input to choose which signal is active, so back and forth comparisons within seconds is possible here.

I made a chart for hours played, forgot I made it. If I stop thinking ’damn that thing sounds great’, that’s when I ship a cartridge in to be checked for wear, and I’m lucky enough to live 35 minutes from Steve Leung at VAS.