The "Line Straight" setting on Luxman preamps simply bypasses the tone controls and loudness settings. It does not make them all sound the same, there are big differences in the quality of the preamps in their integrated vs. their separates. I've owned the C-900u and M-900u for many years with no desire to upgrade, they are truly exceptional products with a very high pride of ownership factor. Build quality and operational feel stand out compared to most of their competition. I could understand wanting to get the brand new C-10x to match your M-10x rather than getting a C-900u at this point, but if you're alright with used gear you could save a lot of money by getting a used C-900u which are likely to become plentiful once the replacement is released.
Luxman Preamps
My Luxman M-10X power amp and Blade One Meta orders supposed to come in this month(I ordered them back in Aug). I'm having a hard time deciding what preamp to run the M-10X with. Right now, I have a Luxman 595ASE which I was going to use the front end as the M-10X preamp. However, the 595ASE is a class A integrate and draws full power as soon as it powered up. And it gets hot. So It may not be the best component to use as a preamp.
The best obvious choice would be the current C-900U but the problem I have with it is that a replacement C-10X is on the horizon for next year. However, it will cost quite a bit of money. Since my listening setting is "Line Straight" and do not need any of the tone control from the preamp, does it matter if I'm using C-900U or C-10X or any other older pream with line straight?
Are all "line straight" from Luxman preamps the same? If this is the case, perhaps I can get a 507z, 509x, or future 509z integrate and use it as the front end of the M-10X power amp. The only thing I see here is that the integrates don't have a balance pre-out option like a dedicated preamp.
I’ve owned both the integrateds and the separates, in my opinion the preamp section of the integrated amp is not up to par with the amplifier. To do justice to the amplifier you should really get the matching preamp, which is fully balanced and differential. The integrated just has single ended outputs. I currently have a 590ax II and have tried its preamp output with some other amplifiers, and it isn’t that great compared to standalone preamps. |
Give this a try for 30 days and return if you do not like it, the Benchmark LA4 preamp at $2500. I have one in my office system with AHB2 mono amps and it is my favorite preamp from the many preamps that came through the system in the past 2 years. I was considering getting the Luxman M-10X amp for my upcoming KEF Blade 2 Meta. However, I narrowed it down to a KRELL or CODA amp instead (owned both lower end models before). With either of these new amps I will buy a second LA4 preamp.
I have heard the Luxman C900u preamp with the Luxman m900u amps and loved the amps, but was not interested in the preamp. I do not want a preamp to add to the sound of the system. |
@yyzsantabarbara |
The AHB2 monos will not cut it with the Blade 2 Meta, no matter what that Stereophile review says. I love the AHB2 but it won’t sound over the top great with the Blade 2 Meta. There is not enough power in those amps for the Blades. I had the Thiel CS3.7 recently with the AHB2 and I loved it and hated it at the same time. Not enough power. The following amps had a better power match with the Thiel: CODA #8 KRELL DUO 175XD Parasound A21+ D-Sonic something LSA Voyager 350 GAN All these amps drove the Thiel more dynamically, more oomph! I sent an email to KRELL today and got news that the new KRELL KSA i400 amp was released today. That is what I will use with the Blade 2 Meta and the Benchmark LA4 preamp.
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Some of us are suggesting tubes into your SS amp. Have you or will you consider, or have you ruled tubes out??? Here is a New Luxman Tube Preamp http://www.luxman.com/product/detail.php?id=35
As for one sounding ’better’, I think, not better but ’different’, I preferred ____ Most tube preamps I have had/listened to have been 12_____. This one, like my Little Luxman SQ-N150 uses E88cc I don’t tend to tube roll (unless something sounds bad/wrong), generally they sound great, off I go for say 5 years. Tubes are not big maintenance as some think. ............................................
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