I guess you got the brand new one currently listed on ebay then, eh. It's in Japan but can easily be here.
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OK, so the amp is barely warmed up and I’m hearing some of the usual early onset effects. First, they are not destroying my Class D’s yet. For sure, 95% of the common wisdom about Class D sounds is not evidenced here. My previous comparisons, Class D to Parasound said the same. The Luxman barely turned on has a high "shimmer" factor. If you imagine what big sheets of metal they used for thunder sounds and cymbals, you get what I mean. However, as @dgarettson (probably wrong name) can attest, caps often sound like this before they break in. He called them "splashy." After this, electronics often calm down and that air and shimmer goes away. Is that going on here? I don’t know, I’ll know by the end of the week. While it does not make my ICEpower 250 ASP modules sound suddenly bad, there is a lot more shimmer and air, almost a touch brightness. By comparison, the ICEpower sound veiled. However!! I’ve heard this veiling from linear amps as well. So we need to stop talking about Class D like we are in the 1980s. Let’s just treat them like any other class of power amp. Best,E |
For the Record, the ICEpower modules I am using are long in the tooth design-wise, so like any other amplifier, just because I am critical doesn't mean you should apply these criticisms to ALL Class D amps. ICEpower, Texas Instrument, Hypex and others have continued to develop Class D. I've not heard them recently though. |
Hello Erik How much was your Digital amp? What brand and is it a integrated ? as I am sure you know the latest digital is noticably better today then even just 2-3 years ago.  I have a digital integrated from Denmark Gato Audio and they use  Pascal modules ,which then are modified and seperate analog input,output sections . Just sounds like a really nice warm sounding Amp. luxman make nice products they have been out for over some 80 years or close ro it .their Vacuum Tube stuffis very good also. If this model a class AB first 10 watts in pure class A ?   |
This is a surprise . You’ve been so busy defending class d recently . Did @maplegrovemusic I still defend Class D!! The class-wide disparaging comments of Class D are not true. We should evaluate each Class D amp on it’s own merits, along with Class A, A/B and all others. I also have never said all Class D was better than all other amps. I've said some Class D were a lot better than some megabuck amps, and that a lot of Class D amps can bat with the big boys. I got to hear the Mk II version at the dealer before purchasing. I actually drove down to the dealer who is only about 1 1/2 hours away from me. I needed a road trip anyway. So yes, I did purchase it without hearing it in my system first. At almost half off, I was willing to take the risk, and it wasn’t that expensive. @audioman How much was your Digital amp? What brand and is it a integrated ? I am going from ICEpower 250 ASP amps in Ghent cases. Not an integrated. My Mytek Brooklyn DAC was my pre. Now it feeds the Luxman. The 250 ASP modules I purchased (used) from Parts Express were around $200 each. Now new ASP 500 modules run around $350 each. My message is while the Luxman does sound better than the ICEpower 250 ASP modules right now, nothing makes one go "Oh, yeah, this one is linear, and this one is Class D." I stand by my previous statements. The 250ASP are about the same transparency of the Parasound A23 amps. And also better than the Pass monoblocks I’ve heard. :D The Luxman 507ux is better than all of them at this point in my listening. This may change after it breaks in though, as I mentioned, sometimes you loose that detail and air after things settle in. As an audiophile, I shouldn’t have to defend my choice to try out something new. :) Especially if they have meters. I’ve had a fetish for amps with meters since I encountered the Yamaha P2001’s in racks. Oh I miss their style and looks a great deal. In particular, I’m trying to consolidate, and get rid of components, so I started looking for an integrated, and the super sale on the 507ux Mk I came up, and after a lot of research and feedback I jumped on it. |
PS - I can say both that the Luxman sounds better than what I had AND also say I’d have a tough time justifying the full retail price of the jump. Going from ~ $750 to a $6,500 is a big deal for those of us who make a living doing honest work. :D If the sale wasn't going on, I'd probably have done a Rogue tube integrated. Best, E |
Glad you like I it. I have a few of them around my houses, I did pick one up from Mike about a year ago, same as yours. I also have the Mark II version. Not much of a difference unless in a DAC feeding it and speakers can show it, then it's just a bit more lower bass definition and better connection between bass and midrange. I wouldn't get a Rogue. Not same class as Luxman. If you like the Luxman, you ought to try Audio Research VSI75, probably the best bang for the buck in high end audio. Listening off side, like I do when I work, there is zero difference between Luxman L507uX and AR VSI75. But when you sit in the sweet spot, the depth of the imaging is day and hight. Literally day and night. This is why I generally keep Luxmans in my living rooms, kitchens, etc and I always keep Pass or AR gear in my main systems. I really want to try the c/m900 combo just to see if it compares to PASS/AR, but simply can't blow that kind of money right now. But the 507uX is a GEM. But seriously, if you want tubes, go for the AR VSI75. They can be had used for around $4000. And yes, the KT150s are a much better tube that the KT120s. It's the only new tube I feel blows Gold Lion KT88s and Amperex EL34s totally of out the water. |
Also, you're experiencing the law of diminishing returns. Of course your Luxman will sound a 7 times better than your class D amp. Just today my kid wanted to watch a show. Anthem 1120 driving the center vs Parasound A31 (there is a switch in the system, I normally keep on A to keep it simple for wife and kids, have the receiver drive all the speakers). Took me a while to realize it was being driven by the internal amp, but didn't take too long. The dialogue just wasn't as clear. Like the last 2% was missing. Last 2%. |
Hi @andysf Thanks for that, that's' what Mike said. I'm a little surprised, I thought my previous amps took a while. Actually I bought them used so not sure how broken in they were, but for sure, turning them off for 24 hours means I have a 2-3 day warm up time. Being Class D the power isn't an issue. Best, E |
congratulations Eric. I love my 507uxi. i thought it sounded amazing from hour one on. I've had it for 4 weeks now. i recently came from a Primaluna Dialogue HP premium. The Lux is much more to my liking. I've been through many nice ss and tube amps and preamps (pass, plinius, parasound halo stuff, audio research, benchmark's latest amp wonder)....always looking for my own 'absolute sound' (that is, a system that renders music perfectly to ones self). pretty sure I've found it with the Lux. |
@erik_squires Hi Erik, I know Mike very well and he took very good care of you, just like he does everyone. I believe you heard the 507 uXII with the Harbeth 30.2s? I was in on Sunday and heard the 30.2s and then we switched to the SHL5plus. Both Harbeth’s work very well with Luxman. I’ve also heard both of those speakers with the C/M900 separates and it is really good as well. BTW, I purchased the TAD separates from Mike, which includes the Class D stereo amp and I can tell you it is very good. Class D can run the gamut just like Class A, A/B, etc. And Class D can run with the best of those topologies as well. |
Hi @pokey77 Nope, I heard the 507uxII’s with the Wilsons. He had moved the harbeth out of the way for a previous customer. I don't know how the Wilsons were configured, but I was forced to engage the Luxman's tone controls to get the system balanced. Honestly the system set up was not very good, so I kind of had to hope I was hearing other components. Fortunately the Luxman sounded superb once I brought it home. Best, E |
That’s not what I experienced. The 507’s sonic signature has been super even and nothing lost or really gained since day one. I, however, have had a few biological issues myself and currently fighting a sinus issue that is affecting my left ear, strangely, making for Bigtime muting and loss of treble extension. The equipment CAN’T change as much as we do unless something is seriously wrong with power grid or a component is in process of self destruction. The 507  is incredible and once your cold is over you will be all back to ‘normal’. Hang in there. |
The equipment CAN’T change as much as we do unless something is seriously wrong with power grid That's true only if you assume everything that is audible has been measured. Or that the tests have been done to prove or disprove this. I don't assume the first, and have never read of the latter. As an engineer who relies on measurements, I know I hear things which change over time which I have no explanation for. I once left my gear off over a weekend, came back, turned it on, and thought, man, this sucks. 48 hours later the sound came back. No idea why. I replaced caps in a pair of Focal speakers and for about 72 hours heard weird surround effects. Tones and instruments appearing behind my head. No changes to room acoustics from when I heard that to when it ended. The latter case tells me there may have been very subtle HRTF (head related transfer function) issues coming up. If so, no standard measure of capacitors would have easily found it. As for the Luxman, I do have a cold right now, so bad time to judge. :) Also, I kind of want to remind everyone, it's kind of a shame we don't see more invention of how to measure amps, caps and cables. Almost all the measurements I know of except Jitter predate the CD player. They were fine for their era, and not to be discounted, but we live in a world with computers, automated signal analyzers and cheap data capture. It is a real shame we haven't attempted to push the state of the art for discovery and measurement in audio. Best, E |
Non audio pet peeve: The remote. The Luxman remote is early 1980s, and not in a good way. It's heavy, feels good in the hand, but horribly lacking in ergonomic features. Every button is the same size, kind of in random order, and no backlighting. I expect more from gear costing 1/10th of this. At the very least, shaped volume buttons, and a source selector. There are buttons that work for the disk spinners too, but not for the tone controls. Of course, motorized tone controls would be expensive, and honestly, I'm a little in love with how good the tone controls are here, so I'd rather not mess with it, but in the dark with my older eyes, this is one difficult to use remote. Best, E |
I guess we wouldn’t be audiophiles if we weren’t complaining about something, remote controls included. Lol Hopefully things sound better for you soon. As for better measurements, how would one extrapolate such results to actual preception of sound, which is different for every individual? seems like a fools errand to me. I’d rather just spend exorbitant sums of money trying new gear. 😀 |
@dpac996 I guess we wouldn’t be audiophiles if we weren’t complaining about something, remote controls included. Lol True! As for better measurements, how would one extrapolate such results to actual preception of sound, which is different for every individual? First, we need measurements which show differences. Until then, correlating with personal experience will have to wait. This reminded me and I wrote about it here: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/the-carver-amp-challenge-and-the-21st-century-and-it-s-failur... |