Luxman d-08u vs berkeley reference 2 dac

@Aerielacoustics, no I haven’t heard the Berkeley dacs. My references for digital sound includes several audio shows and having been a member of central Florida’s Suncoast Audio Society and having heard quite a few very fine member systems. (Yes I know Mike at @ Suncoast, he’s a great guy.) I had conversed with the sales manager @ Luxman USA when I was debating which model to buy and he told me (around Christmas time) that the new models should be available around now. I imagine the worldwide virus pandemic has put those plans in slower motion. I did get to hear the new $15k Luxman SACD player at the Florida Audio Expo in an all Luxman and Magico system and I thought it was the best sound of the show. Couldn’t really compare what I thought of the new player to the D-08u of course, different room, system, etc. Shannere makes a great comparison point, the Luxman signature is like the difference between a Class A amp vs typical class AB. Prior to buying the Luxman d-05 10 years ago, I had been using a Marantz SA-11s1. After just two years it developed a transport problem that Marantz couldn’t fix and I had to junk it. At that point, after having had four different brands of CD or SACD players (Denon, Cambridge, Musical Fidelity) develop drive problems, I did as much research as I could on cd transport reliability and decided Luxman or Esoteric were my best bets because they were the only ones in my price range that were making their own transports. So, for the last 10 years, Luxman has served me well. As you can tell from my system description, I’m not much of a gear churner and most things I buy tend to stay with me a while.

photon46, I am a member of the Suncoast Audio Society and have purchased most of my current system from Mike of Suncoast Audio as well. It's Mike who I'll most likely be relying on for a Luxman audition. I also heard the same Luxman / Magico system at FLAX and wasn't particularly impressed. However, I'm rarely impressed by what I hear at shows and in no way would that experience steer me away from considering a Luxman. I'm currently using a Simaudio Moon 650D that is very good and has performed flawlessly in the two plus years I've owned it. That said, I can't help thinking at this stage of my system, it's there with the 650D, that the most audible gains can be made.              

very interesting comments everyone. Thanks for the input!

Shannere:
I actually tried the luxman dac 06. I compared that directly to the berkeley alpha 2 dac. They were actually very close but I preferred the berkeley by a hair as it was a little more musical in my opinion. It was the only dac in my opinion that came close to the berkeley alpha2 in the 5k price range. The biggest difference i noticed was that at higher volumes, the luxman was not as smooth and composed as t he berkeley. It sounded more digital at higher volumes near ~85db or so. Many people say the berk ref2 dac is on a totally different league than the alpha2 and similarly, the luxman d08u is completely on a new level than the other luxman digital products. I just never had the chance to audition these units in my system. 


Photon: interesting that you mentioned marantz. I had a sa7s1 a few years back and it was very good. Very smooth, engaging, and sweet sounding. When I compared it to my berkely alpha2 dac, the berkeley imaged better and the images were much more pinpoint, albeit the size of the image was smaller.  Mike at suncoast seems to be a great guy. He preferred the luxman d08u emphatically over the berkeley ref2 dac and stated that the only dac that sounds analog like the luxman d08u are the MSB dacs which i never heard and are very expensive. I am glad you love your luxman. Seems to me, there are very few disappointed luxman owners out there. 

Aerialacoustics:                                                  That as my biggest bitch with the lLuxman. the output is quite low.  I run all balanced and the single ended and balanced are both the same voltage    outputting in the lower 2's.  Luckily my preamp has switchable gain

My local dealer just got in the Luxman D-03X CD. The DAC has full MQA. Typical Luxman build quality. It looks like a $5-$6,000 player. Price $3295. Not hooked up yet but I'll stopping by soon to give it a listen. Luxman has been on a roll the last few years w/a lot of high quality electronics. I have the CL-38U-SE tube preamp and the PDA-171A TT. Very satisfied w/both.