Luxman vs. Accuphase

Wow, that's over double the price of a new E-360 in Japan. Thanks!

Routeman21, please note that while Luxman has its strengths, it cannot compare with Accuphase in its versatility. I use both digital (PC) and analogue front ends, and my e-450 has made life simple as it use teh plug in DAC board (DAC 30) and the phono board (AD 20), which are both top class. If I want, I can use 2 phono boards, as the two slots are usable for either of the option boards. Accuphase is also a bit more rugged, though there is very little between the two.

I have had the Luxman L-550ax in my system for 3 months now. This is Lux's new iteration of the L-550aII. I replaced a big system, with full blown preamp (EAR 868) and CJ Premier 140 (big tube amp) and haven't looked back. The Luxman offers a very nice sounding selectable MM/MC phono stage (I've got a low output MC cartridge, this was important feature for me), had lots of bells and whistles and knobs and meters, but most importantly for me, has 20 watts of BIG class A (t does run warm/hot) power. In my room, with the Gallo 3.5's, I can't turn the volume past 12 or 1 o'clock. The soundstage, width is maybe a bit narrower than with my old system, the depth is comparable, and the overall quality of the sound is totally dependent upon the recording as it should be. I didn't compare with Accuphase which I'm sure is killer as well. I personally use an Audio Note 3.1 external DAC with my mac mini / JK MK3 digital front end. I'd be surprised if the Accuphase "more rugged" but who knows.

The new Accuphase E-360 integrated is rated at 100 wpc into 8 ohms and only 140 wpc into 4 ohms. I expected 200 wpc into 4 ohms. Am I missing something? Is the E-360 fully balanced? I see that it has two balanced inputs. The unit looked very interesting until I saw the price. Can someone confirm its $10,000 price? As noted above, this is also too expensive for me.

I believe the Luxman L-550xa class A is $5,400 and the Luxman 590AII Class A is about $10,000 (?). Routeman21 above did not specify a price range but it looks like the Accuphase products are more expensive than Luxman. Any comments on the Luxman A/B integrated amplifiers?

I have not auditioned the Accuphase but the posts above imply it sounds better than the Luxman. Any comments on this?

Does Accuphase make a good sounding fully balanced less expensive integrated amplifier?

Routeman21,

When buying my E-550 integrated, I have compared quite a few Accuphase integrated, i.e. E-350, E-450, E-550 and E-408 (the predecessor of E-450), and my preference was E-550 > E-408 >= E-450 = E-350 (by ">" I meaning marginally better). Because of the large price difference between the E-550 and E-408 (8500 vs. 4000 euros) I wanted to buy the older E-408 model. In the end I bough the E-550 as the dealer offered me a very good price for it (the E-550 was about to be replaced by the E-560).

I have also listen the E-460 and E-560 models (the E-560 I have compared directly with a E-550) and IMO my initial assessment is still valid, i.e. the sound difference between previous and current generation models does not justify the huge price difference. Consequently, my advice is to look for dealers that still have models from the previous generation, e.g. E-350, E-450 and E-550. You should be able to get these for 30-40% less money (probably a bit more on the 2nd hand market).

Hgeifman,

Only the top of the line Accuphase integrated, i.e. E-530, E-550 and E-560, which all run in class A mode, double up their current output as the resistance halfs, i.e. 30 watts into 8 ohm, 60 into 4, and 120 into 2. All these three integrated are more powerful than the specs suggest e.g. my E-550 made speakers like Wilson Sophia and B&W 802D cry like babies). However, if one listens to large orchestras or big bands at loud levels than the models from the E-4XX series are more suited, viz. they are much more powerful even though they do not double up their current output as the resistance halfs.

Regarding fully balanced designs, the preamplifier and power amplfier stages of all Accuphase models I have mentioned so far have a balance design (what Accuphase called MCS or MCS+ circuits). However, it seems that only models built like "instrumentation amplifiers" (again Accuphase jargon) can be called fully balanced designs. However, this is can be deceiving. For example, the E-550 model which is not an instrumentation amplifier design is superior to models like E-250, E-350 and E-450 which are designed as instrumentation amplifiers.

Best wishes,
Paul