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Luxman/Accuphase/Yamaha - Quality?

Suffolk Tony said:
My latest system with the E650 in place. I suppose I could fit in the E800...:rolleyes:

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Nice :cool:

When things ease up one of our clients will be putting Audionet's WATT integrated through its paces with a DAVE and DBL's :)
 
oldius said:
I cannot take seriously a review that suggests 3-4k on cables. I would just want to listen to the amp.
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If you already haven't done so then I hope sometime in the future you'll have to opportunity to experience the WATT integrated. If so, then I hope you'll also enjoy the performance of the WATT with the accessories of your choice.

In the meantime I am perfectly content using the WATT integrated with a standard mains cable, a basic £1 'freebie' interconnect and basic 500 strand speaker cables.
 
Musicraft said:
If you already haven't done so then I hope sometime in the future you'll have to opportunity to experience the WATT integrated. If so, then I hope you'll also enjoy the performance of the WATT with the accessories of your choice.

In the meantime I am perfectly content using the WATT integrated with a standard mains cable, a basic £1 'freebie' interconnect and basic 500 strand speaker cables.
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I would like to hear it.

I held a bakeoff once and somebody brought 3, £9k mains cables with them. We were awestruck by the improvement in sound until the wag behind the rack raised them aloft like a guffawing statue of liberty! I have tried lots and they have made literally no difference whatsoever. Any amplifier of this level should not be affected, whatsoever, by changes in mains cables that are properly constructed.
 
maccar said:
How's it going? any more thoughts?
Mac
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For me the Accuphase sound / presentation is very different to everything else I have owned (which was mainly Naim and Devialet) previously.

The E-800 has a very delicate, nuanced and yet intense sound. And it took me a while to start to appreciate that.

The Accuphase sound doesn’t grab you at the first instance like Naim does, but rather it surround you with the density of the music as you get into it. You don’t immediately appreciate this, especially if you don’t have a quiet listening room. But listening to a well recorded track late at night, even at moderate volumes is a very special experience.

I also found that not every type of music is well suited to the E-800. Whilst Jazz and vocals sound absolutely amazing, I find RB less convincing on the Accuphase vs my Naim amps. My dealer told me that the Accuphase AB amps are more versatile. So if you listen to a lot of hip hop the 480 maybe a better option.

Before taking delivery I was also worried whether the 50w was enough to power my 84db Kudos speakers, especially after watching that YouTube video which said the E-800 lacked power to play loud. Turns out there is plenty of power. In my room I rarely had to turn the volume dial past the 1.5 position (ie 15% of maximum volume) before my wife starts complaining. Most of my late night listening is done at the 10% mark.
 
elevensheep said:
Before taking delivery I was also worried whether the 50w was enough to power my 84db Kudos speakers, especially after watching that YouTube video which said the E-800 lacked power to play loud.
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It actually has 90 watt @ 8 Ohm and 150 watt @ 4 Ohm in class B.;)

If we assume your listening distance is 3m and the impedance minimum of the speaker is 6 Ohm then you can achieve around 100dB in your living room.
 
elevensheep said:
In my room I rarely had to turn the volume dial past the 1.5 position (ie 15% of maximum volume) before my wife starts complaining. Most of my late night listening is done at the 10% mark.
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Sorry if I sound like a broken record, but the position of an amp's volume control literally has NOTHING to do with its output power capability.

I'm oversimplifying things here for the sake of time/energy, but if an amp is gain-staged incorrectly the following things can happen:
- a 1wpc amp can sound louder than a 100wpc at the same volume knob setting.
- two 50wpc amps can output drastically different power levels at the same volume level setting. e.g. one 50wpc might be gain-staged to output max power with a 150mV input signal and therefore will sound earbleedingly loud with a line-level source when the volume is set to just 9 o'clock, while another 50wpc amp might be gain-staged to output max power with a 2V input signal and therefore will allow you to exercise more of the volume pot before you hit that 'earbleeding' level.

Tony really ought to put this as a 'sticky' at the top of the audio forum section as I've lost count of how many times this needs to be explained to forum members (Jez must be pulling out whatever hair's left on his head by now!)...
 
@ToTo Man : I couldn't agree more and I'm also tiered of explaining it but even people with some knowledge sometimes post stuff like this: "It was at 9:30, there is so much power left".:confused:
 
elevensheep said:
For me the Accuphase sound / presentation is very different to everything else I have owned (which was mainly Naim and Devialet) previously.

The E-800 has a very delicate, nuanced and yet intense sound. And it took me a while to start to appreciate that.

The Accuphase sound doesn’t grab you at the first instance like Naim does, but rather it surround you with the density of the music as you get into it. You don’t immediately appreciate this, especially if you don’t have a quiet listening room. But listening to a well recorded track late at night, even at moderate volumes is a very special experience.

I also found that not every type of music is well suited to the E-800. Whilst Jazz and vocals sound absolutely amazing, I find RB less convincing on the Accuphase vs my Naim amps. My dealer told me that the Accuphase AB amps are more versatile. So if you listen to a lot of hip hop the 480 maybe a better option.

Before taking delivery I was also worried whether the 50w was enough to power my 84db Kudos speakers, especially after watching that YouTube video which said the E-800 lacked power to play loud. Turns out there is plenty of power. In my room I rarely had to turn the volume dial past the 1.5 position (ie 15% of maximum volume) before my wife starts complaining. Most of my late night listening is done at the 10% mark.
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So, overall you're happy with the purchase? or do you think you may be better off with an AB model?
Personally, I'm not really bothered with what the guys have to say about the positioning of volume knobs, with Accuphase I too only have to reach 8 O'Clock before thinking about turning it down.
Mac
 
Old Shatterhand said:
@ToTo Man : I couldn't agree more and I'm also tiered of explaining it but even people with some knowledge sometimes post stuff like this: "It was at 9:30, there is so much power left".:confused:
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Well, I was just saying music is quite loud at the 1.5 setting and things get uncomfortably loud for my wife when I go pass that mark, thus in my view the amp has a lot more power left. This is also evidenced by the led display on the Accuphase which tells me that I’m only using a fraction of the power output.

Am I missing something here?
 
maccar said:
So, overall you're happy with the purchase? or do you think you may be better off with an AB model?
Personally, I'm not really bothered with what the guys have to say about the positioning of volume knobs, with Accuphase I too only have to reach 8 O'Clock before thinking about turning it down.
Mac
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So far I like it. But still early days.

I did demo the e480 against the e800 before deciding on the later, as to me the class A amp does sound rather special with the right music which is unmatched by the e480 or my Naim system. However I don’t think the e800 is as versatile.
 
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