Luxman leaves me wanting
My current system is a Luxman L590-AXII driving DeVore Gibbon Super Nines. My source is Lumin U1-Mini (w/Sboosterj and Denafrips Venus II. Also a Rega P3. Speaker and interconnect cables are circa late 90s Cardis Cross There is a lot that is right about the sound of my set up, but I feel it’s lacking fullness in the midrange. When I turn on the loudness on the Luxman, I get the meaty weight in the mids I’m missing, but at anything but low volume, it alters the sound in a negative way.
I had considered a tube Integrated before I got the Luxman, but liked the L590 when I heard it. Now I’m wondering if I should have gone with tubes. (At one point I had a BAT Pre w/ a Classe amp and loved the bloom in the mids and vocals). I’m attracted to the LTA 40+ from the good reviews and long tube life. I’d be interested in hearing one with my speakers, but there are no dealers, so I could buy and return if I’m not thrilled, but wanted to know anyone has heard the 40+ with Super 9s. Also interested in other options to get a richer sound. Budget is around 8k.
Seeing the title of your post I immediately thought of the Synthesis A40 like @Larryi above. I had the A40 powering a pair of Audio Note speakers whose specs are not far off from the Devores you are currently powering and it made them sing. The internal DAC in the A40 is outstanding and you may find it an upgrade from Venus II with the right cable. I regret selling the A40, I upgraded to the Synthesis 98 DC mono blocks, as I will be purchasing another for my family room system.
John |
@dweller Schiit does make a 4 band tone control/EQ, and with a Luxman you can put it between the preamp and the amp sections, but Luxman's own tone controls are not bad either. I think the OP should experiment a little more with them first. |
One option not mentioned yet is to get a basic equalizer like a Schiit Loki Mini (4 band) or Lokius (6 band). They are inexpensive ($150/$300 respectively) and can be switched in or out of the circuit without twisting the knobs. You could then experiment as much as you want to better tune your Luxman to your liking. The loudness button on your amp only gives you a single fixed version of what they think should happen and it sounds like that doesn't match very well with your expectations. And, there is always the digital option with Room or other devices, but that's a bigger change to your source than just inserting a Schiit equalizer. Just another option for you before you throw some big dollars around. |
I have the Super Nines and two Luxmans: the 550axII and the LX-380. Before I bought the SN's from a dealer in Dallas (who btw demos the Lux-Devore amp-speaker combination) I sent John Devore an email and asked about the Luxman- Devore match up and received a positive recommendation from him. Personally I prefer the 550axII over the LS-380 with the SN's. I have recently added a Musical Fidelity 6si and so far am really enjoying this..but I'm not a super critical listener.. just loving the music. For about $150 the 4 band Schitt equalizer does a very good job but I with the tone controls on the Luxman I don't know why you would need it. There is a Devore YouTube video where he shows the various amplifiers he uses with his speakers. Worth a view. If you get another amp to your liking I'd really like to know what you get! |
Here's another recommendation for the Synthesis A40 or A100. After a very lengthy amp search that involved at least half a dozen highly regarded integrated amps, my search ended when I tried the Synthesis A100 about a year ago. Not only does it have the sound you describe, but its onboard DAC is truly excellent. Additionally, the Synthesis was considerably cheaper than a few of the amps I had in for extended auditions, and yet I much preferred it. I never feel like I am "missing" anything when I listen to my system now. It's a great amp.
|
