Accuphase vs Luxman
Greetings! Is anyone here familiar with Luxman M10x and Luxman C10x? I currently have Accuphase components consisting of an Accuphase A-48S Class-A amplifier, an Accuphase C2300 preamplifier and an Accuphase DC-37 Processor/DAC. My system is definitely an upgrade from my previous McIntosh MA12000 integrated which I still consider to be a really good component. The Accuphase is clean, precise but not clinical, dynamic and musically engaging. Mids are lush and bass is impactful and focused. It's like a beautiful custom acoustic with incredible sustain, decay and detail that resonates emotionally (what can I say, I love guitars).
But what will the Luxman offer me? I should mention that I have Klipsch LaScala AL5 speakers and an Innuos Pulsar (not Pulse) streamer. I guess I'm just curious and love exploring different avenues.
If it were me I'd look into either upgrading your speaker components or going into better ones. Once I heard the difference in drivers I upgraded to Volti Rivals that use a much higher quality 15" driver, and much better mid/tweeter drivers. Changing just the bass driver in the La Scala would be a large upgrade, something that changing your amp won't do. But once you do that then you'll look at crossover and other drivers and so trading the whole thing up is what I decided. Best to you! |
The Accuphase A-48S is a musical and highly capable amp that is well matched to your sensitive speakers. Accuphase really excels in making superb Class A amps. My Accuphase separates journey started with a C-2450 preamp and A-48 amp. I upgraded the pre-amp to a C-2900 and was astonished at the improvement in sound quality - less veiled, more detailed, more articulate and very refined and musical. I can only imagine what more the C-3900 or the soon to be released C-3900S would do. You may want to keep an eye out for a used C-2900, C-3850 or C-3900. They would all be an improvement over the very capable C-2300. I have owned both Luxman and Accuphase integrated amps - and they both make excellent products - though I have a slight bias in favour of Accuphase. I have no experience with Luxman separate pre-amps or amps, but I love my Luxman D-10x SACD player. |
I have pretty sensitive speakers (95+, Audio Note AN-E SPe HE and Pure Audio Project) and they both sound phenomenal with a 300B Audio Note Meishu Tonmeister Silver (around 10 WPC) If you don't want to deal with tubes, I had a Pass Labs XA25 and a couple of First Watt amps (17-25 WPC) that are lower power Class A SS and they were also fantastic, particularly the XA25 at 25 WPC into 8 Ohms |
@fire_water, here is a different perspective for your consideration. Many in this audio hobby believe the room (acoustic imprint), the speakers, and the source quality to have the greatest impact on resulting sonics and satisfaction. The order of those three may differ by individual, but none of them include electronics as the biggest influence. I don't have direct experience with Klipsch models but reviewers are saying the current LaScala is a real improvement over the previous (AL5) version. Other reviewers and hobbyists consider the Volti models more musically satisfying than their comparable Klipsch models. So maybe the best scratching for your itch could be to audition the AL6 or similar Volti models? |
