(503) 222-2599
← Back to your LP12 build
Previous | Next

Swipe or use the previous and next buttons to browse. Select an image to open a magnified view.

Luxman PD-191A front
PD-191A
Luxman PD-191A — rear product view
Luxman PD-191A — top or internal product view

1 / 4

Luxman · Analog players

Luxman PD-191A

$14,495

Signature technologiesThe Luxman story

On demonstration

On the floor at our Portland showroom. Ask and we will set it up for you to hear.

Luxman · Analog players

The PD-191A is Luxman's flagship turntable: a 5.2 kg diamond-cut aluminum platter on a 16 mm stainless spindle, belt-driven by a brushless DC motor under PID control with a MEMS oscillator as its reference, a 15 mm aluminum underslung chassis with the motor and transformer isolated on their own plate, and the ten-inch knife-edge LTA-710 tonearm Luxman developed with SAEC.

Supplied complete with the LTA-710 tonearm, aluminum headshell with D.U.C.C. leads, rubber mat and DIN-to-RCA phono cable. Cartridge and the 4 mm acrylic dust cover are sold separately.

5.2 kg
machined aluminum platter, 35 mm thick, 0.7 t·cm² moment of inertia
0.04 %
wow and flutter, W.R.M.S., Luxman specification; Hi-Fi News measured +0.03 % speed error
256 mm
LTA-710 effective length, concealed knife-edge vertical bearing; 33⅓, 45 and 78 rpm
54.7 lb
weight (24.8 kg); 19.3 in wide, 15.7 in deep
Arrange a private audition Call (503) 222-2599

Authorized Luxman dealer · Delivery and installation by Pearl Audio · Trade-ins welcome

The story

Luxman announced the PD-191A at AXPONA in April 2023 as the successor to the PD-171A, the turntable that had carried the company's analog line since 2011, and it is a redesign rather than a revision: a new high-torque brushless DC motor, a platter heavier by 1.2 kg, a new chassis layout, an illuminated stroboscope and a tonearm developed from scratch with SAEC. Luxman has built turntables since the PD-121 of the 1970s, and the PD-191A keeps that generation's proportions, a rosewood-stained solid wood front below an aluminum top plate with the speed controls in a row, while the engineering beneath is current. It is the deck Luxman shows with the C-10X, M-10X and E-07, and it is the reference against which the PD-151 Mark II below it is measured.

The platter is 35 mm of machined aluminum with a diamond-cut finish, 5.2 kg with a moment of inertia of 0.7 t·cm², turning on a 16 mm stainless-steel spindle that rests on a PEEK thrust pad inside a brass radial bearing lubricated with organic molybdenum oil. An EPDM belt couples it to a brushless DC motor whose speed is held by PID control: a MEMS oscillator provides the reference, a sine-wave PWM drive turns the motor smoothly rather than in steps, and the controller corrects any deviation continuously. Three speeds, 33⅓, 45 and 78 rpm, are each adjustable by ±6 percent with a screwdriver against the reflected LED stroboscope on the platter edge. Luxman specifies wow and flutter at 0.04 percent W.R.M.S. or less; Paul Miller's Hi-Fi News lab report found 33.34 rpm against 33.33, low-rate stability he described as direct-drive standard, 0.06 percent peak wow and 0.02 percent flutter, rumble of −68.8 dB through the bearing and −72.6 dB through the groove (DIN-B), and five seconds from rest to speed.

The LTA-710 is a static-balance S-shaped universal tonearm with a concealed vertical knife-edge bearing, a design SAEC has refined for fifty years and one that gives very low friction without the stiction of a ball race; Hi-Fi News measured bearing friction under 15 mg. Effective length is 256 mm, overhang 16 mm, tracking error +1.07 to −1.52 degrees, effective mass about 15 g, and it accepts cartridges from 4 to 11 g, or 17 to 24 g with headshell, with 22 mm of height adjustment and anti-skating from 0 to 4 g. The supplied aluminum headshell carries Luxman's D.U.C.C. high-purity copper lead wires, the pre-installed phono cable is audio-grade OFC with a 5-pin DIN plug at the arm, and a heavier counterweight is available for cartridges to 19 g. There is no azimuth adjustment on the arm itself; it is set at the headshell. The arm sits on a removable board, so a nine- or ten-inch arm from SME, Ikeda, SAEC or Ortofon can replace it or be added, and an external arm base takes a twelve-inch arm such as the SME 3012 as a second arm.

The chassis is the other half of the design. The top plate is 15 mm aluminum with the working parts hung beneath it, which stiffens the structure and lowers its center of gravity; the motor sits offset in the lower chassis and, with the float-mounted power transformer, is carried on a thick bottom plate on damping rubber so that neither feeds vibration into the platter bearing or the arm. The center of gravity is 12 mm lower than the PD-171A's. Four large insulator feet adjust up to 5 mm for leveling, the gold-plated IEC inlet is mounted reversed to accept a heavy power cable, and the optional 4 mm acrylic dust cover hangs on cam-and-spring hinges that hold it at any angle. Luxman's own LMC-5 moving coil was designed for this arm, and the E-07 phono stage for this deck.

Paul Seydor reviewed the PD-191A for The Absolute Sound in 2025 with five cartridges, from a Shure V15 V to a DS Audio ES-3, against his Garrard 301 and SME M2-12R, and found it neutral enough to let each cartridge sound like itself, with more authority, scale and grip than the PD-151A on large orchestral and rock material and a lower noise floor; against its predecessor the PD-191A "exhibited a greater impression of sheer authority," and he called the deck and arm "an almost textbook example of intelligent table/arm ergonomics," a design he could live with indefinitely. His reservations were the lack of azimuth adjustment, the choice between a second arm board and one dust-cover hinge, and the arm's limited suitability for cartridges outside its mass range. Hi-Fi News found the arm suits moving coils of the Kiseki and Koetsu class, which sounded more precise without losing their warmth, and that setup takes about fifteen minutes: "any terror associated with setting up high-end turntables has been obviated."

In a system the PD-191A is a complete deck in need of a cartridge and a phono stage. We fit it with Luxman's LMC-5, Ortofon Cadenza and Verismo, Koetsu, Hana Umami and Linn Kendo cartridges, run it into the E-07 or E-250 phono stage or the MC input of an L-509Z or L-507Z, and place it on a rigid, level shelf with the dust cover for a household with children or pets. Choose the PD-151 Mark II for the same drive concept with a 4 kg platter and the nine-inch LTA-309 arm at less than half the price; choose the PD-191A for the heavier platter, the ten-inch arm, the isolated motor plate, 78 rpm and the second-arm option.

Luxman began in Osaka in June 1925 and made its first magnetic pickup in 1931. It built turntables through the 1970s and 1980s, the vacuum-hold PD-300 of 1980 among them, then stopped until the PD-171 of 2011 revived the line 28 years after the PD-350; the PD-191A and PD-151 Mark II are its descendants, built in Yokohama. Read the Luxman story →

Key technologies

  • PID-controlled brushless DC motor. MEMS oscillator reference, sine-wave PWM drive and continuous PID correction; 33⅓, 45 and 78 rpm each adjustable ±6 percent against a reflected LED stroboscope.
  • 5.2 kg diamond-cut platter. 35 mm machined aluminum, 0.7 t·cm² moment of inertia, EPDM belt; 16 mm stainless spindle on a PEEK thrust pad in an oil-lubricated brass bearing.
  • LTA-710 knife-edge tonearm. Static-balance S-shaped universal arm developed with SAEC; 256 mm effective length, 16 mm overhang, about 15 g effective mass, 4 to 11 g cartridges, 22 mm height adjustment.
  • Underslung 15 mm chassis. Working parts hung from a 15 mm aluminum plate; motor and float-mounted transformer on a damped bottom plate; center of gravity 12 mm lower than the PD-171A.
  • D.U.C.C. headshell and OFC cable. Aluminum headshell wired with Luxman's high-purity copper; pre-installed 5-pin DIN-to-RCA phono cable, replaceable for an upgrade.
  • Removable arm board and second-arm base. Boards for nine- and ten-inch arms from other makers; an external base for a twelve-inch arm.
  • Level-adjustable insulators. Four large-diameter feet with 5 mm of adjustment; reversed gold-plated IEC inlet for heavy power cables.

The PD-191A's phono stage is the E-07 or the E-250; the PD-151 Mark II is the step down.

Finishes

  • Rosewood stained solid wood front panel with aluminum top plate

One finish is offered. The 4 mm acrylic dust cover with cam-and-spring hinges is sold separately.

Specifications
Type Belt-drive turntable with LTA-710 tonearm
Motor and control Brushless DC motor; PID speed control with sine-wave PWM and MEMS oscillator reference; float-mounted power transformer
Speeds 33⅓, 45 and 78 rpm, each adjustable ±6 %; reflected LED stroboscope
Wow and flutter 0.04 % or less (W.R.M.S.); Hi-Fi News measured 0.06 % peak wow, 0.02 % flutter, +0.03 % speed error
Rumble Not published by Luxman; Hi-Fi News measured −68.8 dB through the bearing and −72.6 dB through the groove (DIN-B weighted)
Platter 5.2 kg machined aluminum, diamond-cut, 35 mm thick; moment of inertia 0.7 t·cm²; EPDM belt
Bearing 16 mm stainless-steel spindle; PEEK thrust bearing; brass radial bearing with organic molybdenum oil
Tonearm LTA-710 static-balance S-shaped universal arm with concealed knife-edge vertical bearing, developed with SAEC
Effective length / overhang 256 mm / 16 mm; tracking error +1.07° to −1.52°; effective mass about 15 g (Hi-Fi News)
Cartridge weight 4 – 11 g (17 – 24 g with headshell); 9 – 19 g with the optional heavier counterweight; anti-skating 0 – 4 g; height adjustment 22 mm
Chassis Underslung 15 mm aluminum plate; motor and transformer on a damped bottom plate; four insulator feet adjustable to 5 mm
Finish Rosewood-stained solid wood front panel, aluminum top panel
Power consumption 5 W
Dimensions (W × H × D) 19.3 × 5.0 × 15.7 in (491 × 128 × 399 mm), height to platter surface; 7.3 in (186 mm) high with the dust cover
Weight 54.7 lb (24.8 kg); 58.2 lb (26.4 kg) with dust cover
Supplied Platter, headshell with D.U.C.C. leads, rubber mat, belt, platter handles, EP adaptor, counterweight, anti-skating weight, tools, pre-installed DIN-to-RCA phono cable, power cable
Options 4 mm acrylic dust cover; arm boards for other nine- and ten-inch tonearms; external twelve-inch arm base; heavier counterweight; LMC-5 cartridge
Warranty Not stated on the Luxman product page; ask us for current Rhythm Audio terms
Made in Japan
Sold as Single unit with tonearm; cartridge not included

Luxman PD-191A product page and specifications

Where it sits in the range

Luxman's turntables, ordered by price.

  • Luxman PD-151 Mark II: belt drive, 4 kg platter, nine-inch LTA-309 knife-edge tonearm
  • Luxman PD-191A (this model)

The matching phono stages are the E-250 and E-07, or the MC input of the L-509Z and L-507Z integrated amplifiers.

Reviews

Plan your Luxman system with Pearl Audio

Pearl Audio is an authorized Luxman dealer. Ask us to arrange an audition of the PD-191A in our Portland showroom beside the PD-151 Mark II, with the cartridge and phono stage you are considering; we set up and align every turntable we sell. Call (503) 222-2599 or email sales@pearlaudio.com.

Signature technologies

The engineering behind the Luxman PD-191A

Luxman gives its technologies names because each one solves a specific problem. Here is what each does, where it came from, why it matters in a system, and what you may hear.

The underslung chassis and PID speed controlSince 2011

Belt-drive turntables

Luxman returned to turntables in 2011 with the PD-171, 28 years after the PD-350. The PD-191A and PD-151 Mk II hang the motor and transformer beneath a thick aluminum top plate, drive a diamond-cut aluminum platter by belt from a brushless DC motor under PID control, and rate wow and flutter at 0.04 percent or less. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

Luxman built turntables through the 1970s and 1980s, the PD-300 of 1980 with its vacuum disc stabilizer among them, and then stopped; the PD-171 of 2011 revived the line 28 years after the PD-350. The PD-191A, launched in Japan in 2022 and in the US in April 2023, was designed to replace the long-running PD-171 series, and the PD-151 Mk II of December 2022 brought the same engineering to a smaller chassis. Both hang the motor and power transformer beneath a thick aluminum top plate on damping rubber, an underslung arrangement that keeps the vibration sources away from the platter and arm; the plate is 15 mm on the PD-191A and 10 mm on the PD-151 Mk II. A brushless DC motor is driven by sine-wave PWM under PID speed control referenced to a MEMS oscillator, at 33, 45 and 78 rpm with ±6 percent adjustment. A 16 mm stainless steel spindle turns on a PEEK thrust bearing inside a brass radial bearing, and the diamond-cut aluminum platter, 5.2 kg and 35 mm thick on the PD-191A and 4.0 kg on the PD-151 Mk II, is driven at its outer flange by an EPDM belt. The PD-191A has a rosewood-stained wood front and weighs 24.8 kg; the PD-151 Mk II weighs 15.8 kg.

Why it matters in a system

A belt-drive turntable's weaknesses are usually motor vibration reaching the platter and speed that wanders with load and temperature. Luxman addresses the first mechanically, by isolating the motor beneath the plate, and the second electronically, with a control loop that compares the motor's speed to a solid-state reference many times a second. The result is a belt drive with the speed stability usually associated with direct drive, in a chassis heavy enough to sit still.

What you may hear

Paul Seydor, in The Absolute Sound, found the PD-191A exceptionally clean, unperturbed, and quiet, with deep black backgrounds, and wrote that he could happily live with it the remainder of his days. It has been a TAS Editors' Choice for 2025, 2026 and 2027.

Knife-edge bearings, developed with SAECSince 2022

The LTA-710 and LTA-309 tonearms

The PD-191A carries the 10-inch LTA-710, a static-balance universal tonearm developed with SAEC on a knife-edge bearing; the PD-151 Mk II carries the 9-inch LTA-309 built with the same bearing technology. Both take standard headshells, so cartridges can be changed or compared without tools. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

The PD-191A carries the LTA-710, a 10-inch universal static-balance tonearm developed jointly with SAEC, the Japanese maker that has designed tonearms for more than forty years. It measures 256 mm from pivot to stylus with 16 mm of overhang, has an effective mass of 13.73 g, and accepts cartridges of 4 to 11 g. Its bearing is a knife-edge, assembled, in Luxman's words, with high mechanical precision: the arm's vertical motion rests on a hardened edge rather than a ball race, a design SAEC is known for. Luxman has sold the LTA-710 separately since March 2024, and offers a headshell, a mat and a dust cover as options for the PD-191A. The PD-151 Mk II uses the 9-inch LTA-309, 222.5 mm long with 18 mm of overhang, also built with SAEC's knife-edge bearing technology, with an H4 bayonet headshell and a cartridge range of 4 to 10 g. The PD-151 Mk II keeps the exterior of the PD-151 of 2019 but has a new arm and a new motor; the PD-191A is 12 mm lower than the PD-171A it replaced.

Why it matters in a system

The tonearm is where the cartridge meets the turntable, and its bearing friction, effective mass and rigidity decide how faithfully the stylus can follow the groove. A knife-edge bearing offers very low friction in the vertical plane with no play, and a static-balance arm with a universal headshell lets an owner change cartridges, or compare them, without tools, which is how most Luxman turntable owners use them.

What you may hear

Paul Seydor of The Absolute Sound, who reviewed the PD-191A with its LTA-710 and has kept it on the magazine's Editors' Choice list, wrote that the 191A just radiates class and quality throughout.

Moving coil through iron, not siliconSince 2008

Phono stages: super-permalloy transformers and the Articulator

Luxman's phono stages raise moving-coil signals through built-in step-up transformers with super-permalloy cores and begin with a paralleled-FET first stage. The E-250 is the half-width model; the E-07 of 2025 is the flagship, with four transformers, a front-panel load selector and balanced input and output. Both carry the Articulator, which demagnetizes the cartridge and transformers with the music signal. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

Luxman's solid-state phono stages amplify moving-coil cartridges through built-in step-up transformers with super-permalloy cores rather than active gain alone, and begin with a paralleled-FET first stage. The E-250, successor to the E-200 of 2008, is a half-width unit with 38 dB of gain for moving magnet and 57 and 66 dB for high- and low-output moving coil through a two-stage transformer, four MM load resistances and four capacitances, two inputs with the cartridge type set per input, a low-cut filter, a mono switch and RIAA accuracy of ±0.3 dB. The E-07 of February 2025 is the flagship: a non-feedback RIAA circuit with four parallel FETs, four super-permalloy transformers (left and right, high and low impedance), a six-position MC load selector on the front panel from 4.7 ohms to 1 kilohm, one balanced and two single-ended inputs, balanced and single-ended outputs with phase inversion, three power transformers, 3.6 mm copper base plates and a petal-shaped grounding structure Luxman calls PGS, at 13.2 kg. Both carry the Articulator, which demagnetizes the cartridge and transformers using the music signal itself. The L-509Z, L-507Z, L-505Z and L-100 integrateds have MM/MC stages built in, the L-509Z with two MC gain steps.

Why it matters in a system

A moving-coil cartridge delivers a few hundred microvolts, and the first stage that receives it sets the noise floor of the whole record-playing system. A transformer raises that signal with no active devices and no added noise before any amplification happens, which is why Luxman has stayed with the approach; the loading selector and per-input settings mean one phono stage can serve two turntables or two arms.

What you may hear

John Atkinson called the E-07 one of the best-measuring phono preamplifiers he had encountered, and Herb Reichert, in the same Stereophile review, an heirloom-quality product that should please the most discriminating phonophiles. Michael Fremer's advice at Tracking Angle: don't buy until you get a chance to hear the Luxman E-07.

All Luxman technologies and the company story

The Luxman story

Founded in Osaka in 1925 and built in Yokohama today: Class A, LIFES, LECUA and belt-drive turntables.

Founded 1925 in Osaka, Japan; headquartered and built in Yokohama, Kanagawa by T. Hayakawa and K. Yoshikawa · luxman.com

Milestones

  1. 1925 Founded in Osaka In June, the year radio broadcasting begins in Japan, T. Hayakawa and K. Yoshikawa start a radio department at the Kinsuido picture-frame store and incorporate it as Lux Corporation. The LUX-1730 and LUX-735 radios follow in 1928.
  2. 1958 MA-7A Luxman's first fully assembled post-war hi-fi power amplifier, a mono tube design with a patented NFB cross-over circuit, built on the OY output transformers developed in 1952.
  3. 1961 SQ-5A A vacuum-tube integrated with a center level meter and Luxman's own tone-control circuit. The company dates its unbroken run of tube amplifiers from it; the SQ-38 of 1964 follows.
  4. 1966 MQ-36 OTL An output-transformer-less tube power amplifier that stays in production until 1978. The MQ-60 of 1969 and CL-35 of 1970 are the models today's MQ-88uC and CL-38uC honor.
  5. 1975 Fiftieth anniversary: M-6000 A 300-watt stereo amplifier with the C-1000 preamplifier and T-110 tuner. The M-series amplifiers are designed by Tim de Paravicini; the Laboratory Reference Series follows in 1977.
  6. 1980 PD-300 A turntable with a vacuum disc stabilizer, a first for vacuum hold-down. Luxman stops building turntables after the PD-350 and does not return to them for 28 years.
  7. 1984 Alpine Electronics Alpine acquires the Luxman brand; Atsushi Miura leaves to found A&M and Air Tight in 1986. Co-badged products sold through mass retailers cost the brand its high-end dealers. Alpine sells in 1994.
  8. 1996 C-10 and B-10 Flagship separates that hold the top of the line for about ten years. The C-10's fixed-resistor Ultimate Attenuator is the ancestor of LECUA.Luxman C-10X Control Amplifier
  9. 1999 ODNF The CM-2100 car amplifier is the first product with Only Distortion Negative Feedback, which feeds back the distortion rather than the whole signal. Versions 2.4 (2006) and 4.0 (2013) follow.
  10. 2007 Eightieth anniversary; back in the US The B-1000f monoblocks (2005) and C-1000f control amplifier (2006) introduce LECUA1000 and ODNF 2.4. On a Higher Note returns Luxman to the United States after roughly two decades away.
  11. 2009 International Audio Group Luxman joins IAG, which keeps it separate from its other brands and leaves design and manufacturing in Kanagawa. The eleventh-generation SQ-38u launches the same year.
  12. 2011 PD-171 Turntable development resumes 28 years after the PD-350, with a belt-drive design that leads to the PD-151 (2019), the PD-191A and the PD-151 Mk II.
  13. 2020 D-10X The world premiere of ROHM's MUS-IC BD34301EKV converter, run one per channel, with the LxDTM-i transport. The D-07X of 2023 uses the same chip and mechanism.Luxman D-07x SACD / DAC
  14. 2022 LIFES in the M-10X The successor to ODNF ships first in the flagship stereo power amplifier, then in the L-507Z, L-509Z, C-10X and L-505Z.Luxman M-10x Stereo Amplifier
  15. 2025 Centennial The E-07 phono stage, Black Edition CENTENNIAL models, the D-03R, and the L-100 and D-100 CENTENNIAL on LIFES 1.1. Rhythm Audio becomes the North American distributor in February; Luxman enters the Hi-Fi Hall of Fame in May.Luxman L-100 Class A Integrated
  16. 2026 Component of the Year Stereophile names the L-100 CENTENNIAL Joint Amplification Component of the Year and puts it on its October cover. The D-100 CENTENNIAL ships worldwide in April and the B-100 CENTENNIAL mono amplifier in September.Luxman D-100 SACD/DAC
Read the Luxman story
Luxman L-509Z integrated amplifier, front view

Luxman began in June 1925 as the radio-equipment department of Kinsuido, a painting and picture-frame dealer in Osaka, in the year radio broadcasting began in Japan. T. Hayakawa and his brother K. Yoshikawa incorporated the business as Lux Corporation; by the company's own account Kinsuido was the first in Japan to display and sell radio receivers in a store, and its radio manual, the first Japanese radio guidebook, ran to fourteen editions. The first products followed in 1928, the LUX-1730 and LUX-735 hi-fi radios sold with a magnetic-horn speaker, and in 1931 a magnetic pickup for the LUX-1730 electric phonograph. Through the 1930s the firm built its reputation on the parts it made itself, transformers and switches, and in 1952 it developed the OY-type output transformers that collectors still seek out and that Luxman's tube amplifiers carry in descendant form today.

The MA-7A of 1958, a mono vacuum-tube power amplifier with a patented NFB cross-over circuit, was Luxman's first fully assembled post-war hi-fi amplifier. The SQ-5A integrated of 1961, with its center-mounted level meter and Luxman's own tone-control circuit, was a hit, and the company dates its unbroken run of tube amplifiers from it. The SQ-65 of 1962 carried a motional-feedback patent, and the PZ-11 of the same year was Japan's first germanium-transistor phono equalizer. The SQ-38 of 1964 became a fixture of Japanese jazz cafés and began a series that reached its twelfth generation in the LX-380. The MQ-36 of 1966, an output-transformer-less tube amplifier, stayed in production until 1978; the SQ-505 and SQ-507 of 1968 preceded the 500 series; and the MQ-60 power amplifier of 1969 and CL-35 preamplifier of 1970 are the models the current MQ-88uC and CL-38uC are built to honor. By The Absolute Sound's account Luxman was the only major Japanese manufacturer still producing tube amplifiers through the 1970s and 1980s.

LUX Kit, a do-it-yourself brand, sold about seventy products between 1971 and 1980. For the fiftieth anniversary in 1975 Luxman introduced the 300-watt M-6000 stereo amplifier, the C-1000 preamplifier and the T-110 tuner; the M-3000, M-4000 and M-6000 were designed by Tim de Paravicini, whom Luxman employed for amplifier design. The Laboratory Reference Series of 1977 included a DC amplifier, and the PD-300 turntable of 1980 held the record down with a vacuum, a first. Atsushi Miura, who had married the eldest daughter of co-founder Yoshikawa and joined the company in 1956, was running it by the early 1980s. In 1984 Alpine Electronics acquired the Luxman brand; Miura and designer Masami Ishiguro founded A&M Limited in 1986, creating Air Tight. Under Alpine the products were co-badged Alpine/Luxman and sold through mass retailers such as Costco in the US; Stereophile later wrote that high-end dealers dropped the line because of the confusion, and Hi-Fi News that the fit was never an easy one. The engineering went on: the Fluency DA-07 converter and DP-07 transport of 1987, built on a University of Tsukuba professor's function-complementation theory, and the top-loading D-500X CD player of 1990 with a Philips CDM-3 mechanism.

Alpine sold the brand in 1994. The ownership that followed is not well documented, and the present Luxman Corporation was formed from the old Lux Corporation around 2000; what the company built in those years is clearer. The SQ-38s marked the seventieth anniversary in 1995. The C-10 preamplifier and B-10 power amplifier of 1996 remained the flagships for about ten years, and the C-10's Ultimate Attenuator, a fixed-resistor volume control, is the ancestor of LECUA. In 1999 the CM-2100 car amplifier became the first product with ODNF, the feedback circuit that fed back only the distortion. The DU-10 universal SACD player arrived in 2001, and the CL-88 and MQ-88 of 2004 were the first tube separates in eleven years. For the eightieth anniversary the B-1000f monoblocks of 2005, more than thirteen years in development, and the C-1000f control amplifier of 2006, at ¥2,100,000, introduced LECUA1000 and ODNF 2.4. In 2007 Philip O'Hanlon's On a Higher Note brought Luxman back to the United States after roughly two decades away, with the C-1000f at $30,000 and the B-1000f at $48,000 each; what struck O'Hanlon was that the technology really did trickle down to more realistically priced models.

In 2009 Luxman became part of the International Audio Group, which kept it separate from its British brands, Quad and Wharfedale among them, and left design and manufacturing in Kanagawa. The SQ-38u, eleventh of its line, launched the same year. The PD-171 of 2011 revived turntable development 28 years after the PD-350; the P-700u headphone amplifier followed in 2012, and the C-900u and M-900u of 2013, at ¥1,155,000 each, brought ODNF 4.0 and New LECUA1000. The MQ-300 of 2015, with two Japanese-made 300B tubes, marked the ninetieth anniversary. The X generation renewed the integrateds, the L-505uXII and L-507uXII in November 2017 and the L-509X in January 2018, and the CL-38uC and MQ-88uC tube separates of April 2018 reproduced the OY15 output transformers in their original shape. The PD-151 turntable arrived in February 2019 and the CL-1000 tube preamplifier in January 2020. In July 2020 the D-10X gave the world premiere of ROHM's MUS-IC BD34301EKV converter, run as a pair in dual mono, and the same year the L-595A LIMITED reissued the 1990s L-570 Class A design in 300 units each for Japan and overseas.

LIFES, the successor to ODNF, shipped first in the M-10X power amplifier, announced in the US in January 2022 at $19,995, then in the L-507Z of August 2022, the L-509Z that December, and the C-10X of November 2023, the first new flagship preamplifier in ten years. The D-07X SACD player arrived in February 2023 and the PD-191A turntable, with the SAEC-developed LTA-710 arm, reached the US that April; the NT-07 network transport and L-505Z followed in 2024. The centennial year of 2025 brought the E-07 phono stage, Black Edition CENTENNIAL versions of four models, the D-03R, and the L-100 and D-100 CENTENNIAL, the first pure Class A integrated and the first disc player built on LIFES 1.1. In February 2025 Rhythm Audio of Upland, California took over distribution for the United States and Canada, and in May Luxman was inducted into the Hi-Fi Hall of Fame. The B-100 CENTENNIAL mono amplifier followed in September 2026, and in October Stereophile put the L-100 on its cover and named it Joint Amplification Component of the Year. Luxman is headquartered and still manufactures in Yokohama under president Tatsuya Sueyoshi, and each L-100 is built by hand by a team of four.

The complete Luxman story and technology library

Luxman at Pearl Audio

Pearl Audio is an authorized Luxman dealer in Portland. We carry the full line, from the L-505Z, L-507Z, L-509Z and L-100 CENTENNIAL integrateds and the C-10X and M-10X separates to the PD-151 Mk II and PD-191A turntables, the E-250 and E-07 phono stages, the D-03R, D-07X and D-100 CENTENNIAL players and the NT-07 network transport. We match Luxman amplification to loudspeakers in our rooms and yours, set up the turntables and arms, fit and align cartridges, and configure the D-series players and NT-07 as a system. Delivery and in-home setup are part of how we sell Luxman, and service runs through Rhythm Audio, Luxman's distributor for the United States and Canada.

On demonstration in Portland now

The Pearl Audio experience

How we work with you

A system at this level should be heard, thoughtfully matched, and properly set up. From the first audition to long-term ownership, you work with the same people, in person.

  1. 01

    Listen first

    Hear the PD-191A by appointment in one of our two purpose-designed demonstration rooms, with your own music and time to compare without pressure.

  2. 02

    Delivery and installation

    We deliver and install throughout the Portland area, taking care of placement, connections, ventilation and system configuration ourselves.

  3. 03

    Support for as long as you own it

    We support everything we sell for as long as you own it, whether the answer comes by phone, in your home, or through factory service.

  4. 04

    A path for what comes next

    Trade-in assistance and qualifying 100% Trade-Up options give you flexibility when your listening priorities or your system change.

Arrange a private audition

Or call (503) 222-2599 · sales@pearlaudio.com · Meet the people you’ll work with

Search