New News at TTVJ: Luxman Added To The Lineup!

woohoo! I've been curious about Luxman since I first saw them on AudioCubes II more than a year ago, now I'll finally be able to get them in US-voltage versions. This news will certainly portend new deaths for my wallet....

/scampers off to find local Luxman dealers for auditions

$2,400.00?!

More like $48,000.00

Luxman B-1000f [B-1000f] - $48,000.00 : TTVJ, Todd The Vinyl Junkie

The Luxman P-1 Headphone Amplifier

I've been a Luxman fan boy since I was a kid, so seeing the proper return of Luxman to these shores was a huge thrill for me ("proper" meaning wired natively for our voltage, which is absolutely key, since their power supplies are a significant part of Luxman components' magic), which I first read about in The Absolute Sound. I was even more thrilled when Phillip O'Hanlon (who's the guy responsible for getting this done, and now the distributor) contacted me to tell me he was considering having their headphone amp (the P-1) natively wired for North American shores, and asked if I'd listen to it to it this way to tell him if I thought it a worthwhile endeavor.

I'll fill in the details soon (in another thread), but, for now, I'll say simply that I ended up buying that P-1, and it is my new personal single-ended reference headphone amp. The Luxman P-1 is, without a doubt, one of the finest non-balanced headphone amps I've yet heard (it does come with balanced inputs, but not balanced outputs). I use it with both my Grado GS-1000 and Sennheiser HD600/650, and, though solid state, it's what the P-1 gives me in terms of outlandishly good timbral detail (that I have turned to tubes for traditionally) that thrills me about it most. It provides much of the grainless delicacy SET amps are sought after for, applied across the full range and driving ability of solid state. In short, I absolutely love this amp.

Also, the fit-and-finish of this amp is fantastic. To get some idea of the kind of the fanatical attention to detail Luxman engineers pursue, read the following reviews (of other Luxman components): Link 1, Link 2.

Congratulations, Todd, on picking up Luxman! Great call, man.

Here are some photos of my Luxman P-1 (click on each of the photos for a larger version):

I should clearly clarify myself - the Luxman digital sources (DU-50, DU-7i, DU-80) are the ones that captivated my attention on AudioCubes II, not the P-1 headphone amp. Though the P-1 headphone amp looks really nice too, and if I ever went back to single-ended it'd probably be at the top of my list.

Would you mind taking a pic of the P-1 back panel, Jude? I'd be interested in seeing that.

I don't doubt that the amp sounds great, and the fit-&-finish are beautiful. However, I have to wonder if the power supply change completely justifies the >$1k price increase (nearly doubling the price) over the standard 100v version. Did Luxman USA have to gut the Japanese version when it got here & drop in a whole new PS?

I asked these very same questions in a conversation with Phillip O'Hanlon some time ago, and he gave me several reasons for the price difference. Some things to consider that were mentioned:

• The transformers are made by hand for the North American market in small quantities by Luxman. Given that Luxman emphasizes the importance of the power supplies in their designs, this might be an important consideration (as opposed to using a non-native voltage unit with a conversion transformer). (This is one O'Hanlon didn't have to explain to me--it's one of the things that kept me from seriously considering the P-1 in the past.)
• The importer/distributor pays shipping, duty, and customs clearance to import Luxman into the US & Canada--which is part of the price of getting it done correctly (in terms of native voltage).
• The importer/distributor does have to pay for the costs of advertising and marketing, which consumers might not consider or care about, but is a real cost to bringing the line here, and a necessity to letting the marketplace know that Luxman is back.
• The importer/distributor offers a three-year warranty, as opposed to a one-year warranty from Japan.
• U.S. units have to meet different standards (like radiation standards) than the Japanese units, so there are differences beyond the transformers that needed to be made, related to shielding and the like. I don't know the fine points of this one, but something of this was mentioned.
• The owner manuals, brochures, and catalogs all have to be translated to English--this is one of those ones that the consumer might not give much consideration, but it's a real cost.
• The importer/distributor has the items triple-boxed by Luxman at the importer/distributor's expense. I can attest to this (with my P-1), and mine was, not surprisingly (if you saw how it was packed) in perfect condition.
• If a Japanese gray-market imported unit needs service, it would need to be shipped back to Japan. The P-1 is quite heavy (maybe safely called very heavy, as far as headphone amps go). And to ship it back triple-boxed and insured to Japan even once would probably be at a substantial cost.

In short, you can save money by ordering a Japan-voltage model. I'd considered it in the past actually. But I consider doing so a compromise, in terms of doing it right, particularly in terms of the power supply--especially now that the North American voltage model is available. I'll take that three-year warranty as gravy, as well as knowing I'll never need to ship this behemoth back to Japan.

Thanks for the response, Jude. Glad you are enjoying your new "toy" so much.

Can you speak to the internals (ie. circuit, parts, discrete/op-amp, etc.)?

Honestly, I have no idea, Jimmy. Even before I bought it, I had permission to open it up and photograph it, but I didn't--frankly, I'm a bit afraid to, as things I open up coincidentally (a) look worse afterward, and (b) stop working.

I'll ask to see if there are any factory-provided photos of the inside. This thing is too gorgeous for me to take a screwdriver to.

LOL! I understand completely, Jude.

I'm curious about the P-1's synergies. High-impedance cans? Low-impedance? Both?

a quick google of this amp turns up class A 'discrete' in the marketing literature. This would lend itself to not being op amp based.

Luxman also makes versions of Bryston amplifiers.
They have a 3bst that looks just like my 3bst, but it says Luxman on it. Good Stuff!!!

...so Jude, do you think that the Luxman is the "tour de' force" for driving GS1000's? (I've yet to find an amp that I like with these phones.) Is it clearly worth the $2K+ for the NA version? Should I take the plunge?

Anyone compared the Lux with other offerings in the same price range (Eddie Current, some of Ray's better stuff, etc.)?

I know that there are individuals here familiar with Luxman and I was wondering if anyone knows a person or company who is qualified for a SS power amp Luxman repair (late 80's R-117). (Hopefully in Chicago). The father of one my brother's friends asked me to look and see if it was a simple repair (loose wire, etc.). Nothing looks out of place, but it might be a power supply and/or chip issue because it does not turn on.. I only was able to take a quick look. Unfortunately, he dropped this on me right before I am moving (even though he asked in July...). It was his "office" amp and he has a spare Luxman for parts along with FULL schematics (including parts, values, and numbers).

PM me if you have info.

I also conclude to the awesomeness which is Luxman and it is great to see them offering in the US officially. I know there is bound to be some very happy speaker enthusiasts! Very Nice.

EDIT: He has the Schematics booklet for servicing.