There aren't many hi-fi brands in the world that can celebrate 100 years in the business. Japanese brand Luxman joins the likes of Bang & Olufsen, Philips and (next year) Tannoy in achieving this milestone, and it is kicking off the party with three hi-fi products and a very special edition package.
First up is the P-100 Centennial, a headphone amplifier boasting fully balanced circuitry with four discrete amplifiers that can drive a variety of headphones. It promises to be the brand's "finest-ever" headphone amp, available for £9000.
The P-100 uses a new, evolved version of Luxman's long-running ODNF (Only Distortion Negative Feedback) amplifier technology, which is a high-quality feedback system that improves sound. The new version (called LIFES) has a completely reimagined circuit design and new, high-quality components – Luxman claims this allows distortion at the output to be reduced by more than half and a higher signal-to-noise ratio, resulting in a quieter amplifier and cleaner sound overall.
The P-100 is designed to drive any pair of headphones, with the standard 6.3mm connector joined by balanced 4-pin XLR and 4.4mm outputs, and even a 3-pin XLR connector when using two P-100s in parallel BTL (bridge-tied load) balanced output mode.
Also featured are an improved volume control attenuator that allows for finer adjustments, a left/right balance control, a sensitivity selector (low, medium and high) and a six-level volume limiter function to protect your headphones and hearing.
Next up is the E-07 phono preamplifier for £5500, which takes over from the stunning five-star EQ-500 phono stage we tested back in 2017. The new E-07 features "carefully selected components prioritized for supreme audio quality" that include custom-developed components that have undergone extensive listening tests and bear Luxman's stamp of approval.
The E-07 promises a high signal-to-noise ratio, with a low-noise circuit design and a chassis design that isolates the noisy power supply from the amplifier sections. The aluminium chassis is made with premium materials and features toggles and rotary switches (which we hope are as beautifully built and lovely to use as in the EQ-500 we enjoyed so much).
The chassis' rigidity is reinforced with thick copper plates and cast iron insulator feet further isolate the phono stage from unwanted external vibrations affecting vinyl replay.
The E-07 has a newly developed step-up transformer for MC cartridges, supports balanced inputs and improves left-right stereo separation. One pair of balanced XLR and two pairs of RCA inputs are included.
To fine-tune the phono stage to your particular cartridge, the E-07 offers load impedance adjustments for moving coil and moving magnet cartridges, as well as a load capacitance selector.
Extra features include a mono mode when playing mono records, a phase inversion switch for the balanced outputs, an articulator function that "defeats magnetization of the cartridge and MC transformer" and a low-cut switch that helps reduce the unwanted low-frequency effects of warped records.
And finally, there is a limited Centennial Black Edition finish for four of Luxman's "most esteemed" current products: the superb five-star L-509Z integrated amplifier, the D-07X CD/SACD player, the NT-07 network transport and the PD-151 MkII turntable.
There will only be 100 units of this special all-black finish made, but there is a catch: these Centennial Black Edition units cannot be purchased separately. They are only available to buy as a four-piece system – you want all your hi-fi to match, naturally – so if you're looking to completely overhaul your audio system, this could be the time.
You'll just have to cough up £35,000 for the lot. All Centennial products are available to buy in the UK now.
MORE:
Read our Luxman L-509Z review
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