Last of the Mohicans... Luxman D-06U is home
 

Having given this latest addition to my system some serious thought, I decided to pull the trigger on the Luxman D-06U SACD player. Much like the story "The Last of the Mohicans", this SACD purchase was based more on emotional basis rather than the logical one as it really is the Last of the Mohicans for me in terms of physical media players.

Hardly a need for a Redbook/SACD player these days, we all know that. We the age of streaming upon us and the streaming services like Tidal and soon available in the US (2018) Qobuz , the physical media is disappearing fast.

I always felt like I missed out on the whole SACD phase of this hobby and perhaps back in the day SACD did not offer much of a selection for me but today I find plenty of content on SACD that does. :yes:

So partly due to the fact that I have to start my music collection from scratch once again, partly because I felt it was now or never.... Partly because I am not ready to give up the physical media just yet... The Luxman D-06U became the latest addition to my system. :banana: I am very glad I decided to pull the trigger and will look forward to building perhaps a small but meaningful library of SACDs that I will enjoy spinning and listening to.

Unpacking the rather heavy and beautiful beast that was well packed with the typical Luxman triple-boxing, the unit appeared to have arrived fresh from Japan safe and sound. :thumbsup:

The first impression of the weight of the unit, (all of 35lbs of it!) the elegant and rather to the point aesthetic design without unnecessary drama, as well as build quality all seems to be top notch.

Installing the unit in the rack and powering it up, I pushed the drawer button and the tray slid out with a smooth and virtually silent gliding motion. I inserted one of my favorite Ben Webster SACDs and so our long term relationship began. :thumbsup:

I spent almost 4 hours listening to the D-06U this afternoon and with each passing hour, this Luxman SACD player kept opening up and becoming more inviting and musical to listen to.

There is obvious and strong family voicing with Luxman components. Having witnessed the break in and the gradual opening and blossoming of the Luxman L590AX Mark II Class A integrated, the D-06U seems to be closely voiced and of the same design goal of being "vibrant", "inviting", "analog smooth" and "colorful without sounding colored" philosophy and sonic design. This unit is brand new and still needs some hundred or more hours to fully blossom but I am already loving the latest addition or what I have nicknamed "The Last of the Mohicans" D-06U.

I don't know how long the Luxman D-06U is destined to serve my system with the rest of the components but I have purchased it fully hoping it will last a long, long time since I know I will never be buying another CD/SACD player again in this lifetime. The times are changing fast but I am glad I decided to make this detour from rushing ahead with "all streaming and nothing but streaming" approach and simply enjoy pulling some SACD and Redbook CDs off the shelf and giving them a spin.

I will reserve further comments and comparisons for later as the unit breaks in fully. So far I can say I am thoroughly impressed with both the SACD, Redbook and the internal DAC to which I have already streamed Tidal this evening just to see how it goes. Another wonderful unit from Luxman in my collection. :thumbsup:

http://www.luxman-global.com/asset/p.../D-06u/pb1.jpg
http://www.luxman-global.com/asset/p.../D-06u/pb3.jpg
http://www.luxman-global.com/asset/p.../D-06u/pb4.jpg

Congratulations! It’s a beautiful looking cd/sacd player!

Congrats Serge, the D-06 and D-08 are supposed to great units not only as spinners but also as DAC's. Will be interesting to see what you think of it's DAC section compared to the Schitt when you finally get it. Should hold it's own if you have another spinner to test the DAC section with.

Thanks Christian.

Yes, all the reviews point to that fact and I have discussed the Luxman SACD players with those who have experienced them. The D-08u was very much a dream for me but at substantial savings over the flagship D-08u, I felt the D-06u would be a better fit with my integrated. The D-08u is meant to compliment the Luxman fantastic separates more so than an integrated like my L590. I find the D-06u superb in terms of analog like smoothness so far.

It actually reminds me quite a bit of Schiit Gumby in terms of naturalness of sound but I can already hear the D-06u reproduces piano and cymbals with an even greater degree of fidelity and naturalness. It will be interesting to see what a YggY brings to the table and how it compares.

To throw another DAC into the mix, the Chord Qutest FPGA DAC should be arriving soon. I know the D-06u is staying with my Luxman and the Chord will probably be used with my headphone system but perhaps YggY will stir things up and make me reevaluate the system. We shall see.

Last of the Mohicans... Luxman D-06U is home
 

What a great way to play your future collection!

Congratulations , enjoy Serge :D

Serge.......The Luxman D-06U SACD player is a beauty inside and out. I think you made a wise choice for your SACD playback needs. In fact, this player may take the place of the MOON Neo 260D for CD playback once your Yggdrasil DAC arrives. It is interesting to watch you build up your system. So far so good.

Thanks Tom. Looking forward to rebuilding my collection a little at a time.

Thanks Dan, the Moon will certainly find use in another system that I have in mind. Partnering DAC will most likely be YggY. The system will consist of the PrimaLuna HP, Moon, YggY and speakers are yet to be determined. This system will share the same room as my headphone system.

Thanks David. :thumbsup:

Congrats Serge, that's a beautiful piece, both inside and out. Look forward to your impressions as you break it in.

Thank you Paul.

Congratulations Serge, that’s a beautiful player. Luxman components have a style and grace I’ve always thought very attractive, and excellent build quality. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it for years to come.

Wow Serge -- welcome as a Luxman Ultimate CD/SACD player owner.

Cool Beans Sir,

Bob

Congrats Serge!

The D-06u is the sweet spot in the Luxman SACD player line up. If you think you like it now, wait a few hundred hours.:banana:

It is a perfect companion piece to your L-590AX II. I have no doubt you will find the synergy to be sublime.

You are assembling a first class rig. :thumbsup:I'm very happy for you!

Best,

Greg

Thank you Tony. I do find the Luxman stylish and classy in a sort of understated way. What I noticed is that the love for it grows instead of fading once the initial excitement fades. Perhaps it is the sound, perhaps the well thought out features and quality feel or more likely combination of all of them. The more time I spend with the Luxman components, the more I realize the Luxman was exactly what I wanted from this system and I am very happy with the results so far.

Thanks Greg! This system cost me a fraction of the investment I made into other previous systems but the amount of listening joy it brings me is no less. You were right about the D-06U. :thumbsup:

Thanks Bob!

Serge, Luxman makes terrific hifi equipment.
Their SACD players are utterly desirable.
You will like the lush yet detailed sound.

Thanks Bart. Going through the break in phase and the unit has been on for only 28 hrs so far. It is already sounding great! :music:

Congrats Serge, that looks like a very interesting player. I'm looking forward to hearing more about it.

Thanks Rob. I will be sure to do a small write up on it. There are some reviews available out there on the Luxman SACD players and now that I actually own one in my system, I would agree with those reviews. The D-06u has barely 40 hrs on it now but it is already starting to show analog like smoothness from the streaming and redbook playback. SACD sounded a bit more colder and analytical the first day but also getting better with the accumulated hours. I will follow up on it when I stop noticing any significant changes.

Stereophile did a very nice review a few months ago

https://www.stereophile.com/content/...6u-sacd-player

Tonight I decided to explore the high resolution capabilities of the Luxman. 192, 384, 2.8 and 5.6Mhz files. Since I have no way of streaming the DSD files, I brought my MacBook over to the system, plugged in the Wireworld Silver Starlight 7 USB cable and let it rip. Starting with 384Khz files (I already streamed 192 to the Luxman before) and all the way up to 5.6Mhz. I don't have many files but the ones available are very good recordings.

The 5.6Mhz file of Derek Jones Run with me (which can be downloaded for free as a sample from Bluecoast Music) had me floored. This intimate and simple recording of a piano and bass was so vivid and so real that it was virtually holographic. With the lights dimmed, I could almost reach out the touch the instruments as they took on an almost eerie 3D palpability. What can I say, the well recorded material in that kind of resolution is just scary good. The Luxman D-06u passed the test with flying colors and I will be adding some more high resolution music to my collection for sure.

Thinking of joining the BlueCoast Music Prime. :scratch2: https://bluecoastmusic.com/blue-coas...e#.WqIHJExFyUk

I am looking to buy D08u, can anybody confirm the news I heard?
Luxman D-0u series will be the last disc spinner they will make. There will be no replacement models for them. If this is true then I will buy D08u right away.
But I just have the feeling that it is just about time for them to be replaced by newer models until I heard the news.

Toga

What was the source of your news?

First, saw somewhere in some forum.
And today verbally informed by official local dealer.
D0U series were debut in 2014, so I am just waited for the replacement which may come with more modern DAC and
USB capabilities. But if this info. Is correct, I will pull the
Trigger on D08u while I still can. I have lots of discs.
I had Esoteric P03D03 and Accuphase 900/901 before.
Now I want to try Luxman’s best. I hope D08u will at least
Be as musical as my current Ayon CD35 Signature, I am
Just miss the convenience of front load drive.

Toga

Or were they just tried to sell me the last 08u in stock before new model introduced soon ? Of the same period Accuphase evolved from
DP700>720>750 and Esoteric from K01,K01X, K01Xs.. it may be time for 08u replacement soon.

More likely. I recently tried a D-08u and really like it, but decided to wait.

The last time I spoke with Jeff Sigmund of Luxman, he indicated that there were no plans to discontinue this or other models.

That conversation was several months ago so I will check with him again.

Here is the update as of today per Jeff.

Luxman has NO plans to cease production of SACD players. In fact, he expects that the current generation of players will be updated some time in 2020.

Greg, this lines up with what Jeff told me several months ago. CDs and SACDs are still big in Japan, and their product investments in this technology look like they'll continue for quite awhile.

The big question in my mind will be how much better will the next generation be? The D-08u is an amazing unit.

Thanks, this is good to hear.
I hope he was in close coordination with Yokohama office and
know what the Japanese is exactly doing.
I, too, doubt that they will quit this market as all other competitors
are still releasing newer and better SACD/CD players quite often.

Then If I buy D08u today, I can expect new model in 2020, then
If I want to upgrade it to new model I can expect 50% depreciation
Next year. i have to think hard. And I am not sure 08u will compete
With my Ayon CD35 sonically.

Toga

In addition to staying abreast of DAC technology I think they're feeling a need to either support or at least position their designs to support MQA. Jeff felt like MQA requirements might dictate some design compromises, such that if MQA isn't important to you (and it isn't to me, at least for now), you might be better off with their current generation products. (My personal view is that new Luxman will have to better current line non-MQA SQ for competitive reasons, but no doubt at increased price points.)

I will accept 50% loss, I will order 08u to use now. I hope It will be a year before the new one really land on my country. And then I really curious is 08 worth the extra money over 06 ? But I just enjoy watching the tray door closing of 08, similar to Esoteric P03.

It's a really good machine with analog-like sound. The drawer is absolutely silent, makes the Esoteric K-03X's drawer sound clunky. Also, superior full function remote. Esoteric has the advantage of upgradable SQ via the addition of an Esoteric or OEM external clock.