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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
ryder
1,684 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

 

rman9 OP
133 posts
 

@ryder Thanks for the great information. You may have misread my post or maybe I am misreading your post. I was comparing the 550AXii to the 509x and not the 590AXii. Luxman no longer sells the 590AXii. In any case, I am stunned by how the 550AXii grabs the whole room and I am just thrilled.. I wouldn't doubt for a second the numbers are conservative.. Thanks again!! 

erikt
256 posts
 

The Luxman L-509x is biased for 6 watts Class A before going AB to rated output.

Depending on speaker pairing, most/all listening can be in Class A.

 

kren0006
1,859 posts
 

I’m not surprised that a 550 might pair better than 509 with Magico. For many other speakers it would likely be the opposite

elliottbnewcombjr
5,211 posts
 

good info, thanks for posting

My Little Luxman SQ-N150 10 wpc certainly punches above it's weight class

 

It's my lowest power tube amp, and in my 10 x 12 office, it has driven two inefficient speakers with ease, prior Wharfedale Diamon 225 87db, and now restored AR-2ax, not sure, but not efficient.

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