Luxman d-08u vs berkeley reference 2 dac

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.

luxmancl38, Wow, $3295 is less than I was expecting. Any word on the price of the new D-10X?