anyone heard of Luxman amp.pls help

I don't know the specifics, but Lux Audio became Luxman and then Luxman was later bought out by Alpine of car stereo fame. They maintained the Luxman name for home stereo until they phased the company out. Prior to Alpine purchasing them, their amps and integrated's offered good bang for the buck with their tuners and turntables being "okay". They were not ultra expensive but they weren't mass market "commercially known" products either. After Alpine purchased the company, the power supplies in the amps, preamps and integrated's got a LOT smaller. Since power supplies ( transformers and filter caps ) are about the most expensive components in a high output component, they went there right off the bat in order to cut production costs. As such, the units lost a lot of warmth and dynamic characteristics. Their performance into lower impedances also became markedly less desirable. On the other side of the coin, the tuners after Alpine took over were a marked improvement in performance. Sensitivity, which is where many car audio tuners shine, was much better. Sound quality wasn't bad either, but i'm sure that it can be improved upon by updating caps and wiring.

Either way, i'm sure that what you've got is probably of at least good to decent quality. If you haven't already hooked it up, i would connect it to the worst ( most disposable ) speakers or preferably some 8 ohm resistors and let it idle with it turned on for 48 - 72 hours. After this period of time, if nothing seems haywire with the unit, give it a shot with some signal and see what you think. As Bookert2 mentioned and depending on what you are currently using, you might be in for a very pleasant surprise. Sean
>

Rgairns: Many people think that i'm much older than i really am due to the knowledge that i have on some older products. I am "only" 39 years old, but i've been interested in "hi-fi" since i was about 8 or 9 years old. I remember reading my Dad's "Audio", "Hi-Fidelity" and "Stereo Review" magazines from that time period. I can also remember buying many of the various "Annual Buyer's Guide's" that various companies put out each year on my own. Many of these came complete with pictures for each component and i studied them with a passion. I can remember going into the local Musicraft, Pacific Stereo and Playback stores when i was 12 / 13 years old and answering questions for the salespeople working there pertaining to different models. I also spent time on the phone with Victor of Victor's Stereo as he took the time to educate me in a manner that was both informative but not "condescending" to a young but highly inquisitive teenager.

In that respect, i've been lucky to meet and know many folks that both friendly and "enlightened" as far as audio goes. I try to do the same thing, but i'm sure that some take my posts as being a "know it all" : )

As a side note, I currently own a collection of "Audio" magazines annual equipment directories dating back to 1976. These make for great points of reference should i ever need them.

T-bone: I did not know that Luxman was still in business. I have to wonder how many times they changed hands and if there are still any "original" employee's working there. My guess is that this brand is somewhat like Sherwood, which has come and gone under various ownership many times over. Thanks for sharing this info with us. Sean
>

Probably because it is both faster and actually has the potential for greater current delivery. You have to remember that most music is dynamic in nature. As such, the circuitry that can deliver the highest peaks in a timely fashion while offering the lowest noise floor will sound the loudest / have the most muscle. Sustained power is great, so long as it can deliver that power as needed on a dynamic basis.

Think of your Marantz as a big Cadillac V8 ( 501" ) motor compared to a much smaller, earlier, higher revving Ferrari V12 ( 180" ) motor. While the Cadillac is capable of providing a lot of sheer grunt, you've got eight huge pistons and a very long stroke to work with. As such, it is not very responsive due to the increased mass, but it can do the job if you give it enough time.

On the other hand, the Ferrari revs SO much faster that it is much more responsive under any type of condition that you can throw at it. As such, 12 tiny pistons with a much shorter stroke actually ends up making more power in a far more responsive fashion.

The Luxman is a Ferrari and the Marantz is a Cadillac. The Luxman probably cost more and is rated for less sheer "grunt", but it runs circles around the Marantz in terms of total performance. Sean
>