Beauty of luxman & accuphase is that one could attach 2 sets of speakers. Different genre of music sound different on different speakers. It’s very convenient. Plus so handy for A/B comparison which I do all the time

Great review. Please do a review on E-800 as well!

Greetings from UK, keep up the good reviews. I bought an Accuphase E5000 over a year ago following home demo, much better than the class A E650, it replaced a much more expensive Aavik integrated. I chose it for the lovely 'Accuphase' sound and the extraordinary build quality which makes it an end-game product due to my age. I don't find any harshness but did with a dealer system using Accuphase pre/power into B&W 803D4 with Nordost cabling, I put that down to the cables and diamond tweeter, just too sterile. I have Ansuz A2 speaker cables and all-copper interconnects, no problems. The AD50 phono card is very good and equivalent to a £2000 stand-alone stage, however I have also acquired a Trilogy 907 which has incredible musicality. I also have an Accuphase DP570 SACD/CD player which is also top notch, I can thoroughly recommend Accuphase.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

thanks for sharing!

Great product !!! Accuphase is one of a few companies who test theirs products on vibrating table to improve fiablility.

Great review of the E-5000 - so thanx for that. What also would be very interesting, is the review of the E-4000 too and how this amp compares to the E-5000. Not only in case of power, but also regarding details, room, musicality, etc.... That would be really great, because its hard to find this comparison actually in the internet. So thank you and yes - i would really enjoy such an video from you 🙂

I'm an accuphase fan. I have an E 305 integrated amp. It takes a while from cold to find its feet. When it does it really does. You get quality from front to back. Ide happily buy one of the new ones if I had that kind of money sitting around.

The only dealer youtube channel I trust. Thank you for this review!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the kind words!

What a great review, thank you so much. You covered everything that most of us want to know.

Thanks for the video, very interesting and what a coincidence. Last Saturday a friend and I listened to his Accuphase E303 from 1978 on my B&W 803D4's. The amplifier had been to a service center in 2018 and still performed according to specifications. We also hooked up a Technics 1200 GR turntable (with Audio Technica AT33EV and also AT33MONO element) and were amazed how well it sounded. My regular amplification is an M33 and M23 (bi-amping) and I do mostly streaming with some CD-playing. The Accuphase sounded a bit less analytic and it was a real pleasure to listen to this setup and we plan on having a few more sessions like this, also hooking up a turntable to the NAD.

Dear sir! I respect you highly because the great things you do for many people!! And I love your reviews!!! Kind regards, Vincent from the Netherlands

Bravo Adrian for your contribution to The Salvation Army. I am sure it was gracefully received. I am a long time fan of Accuphase, I well remember when the first "Kensonic by Accuphase" products came to America. I saw them in Dallas at one of the hifi stores, don't remember which one. I have noticed over the years that a lot of the guys that run the big Sound Labs electrostatics, at least the solid state guys, run Accuphase amps. I would tend to believe that, as ironmaiden694 indicated, that these need more break-in time. I don't ever recall hearing of any Accuphase amp having problems driving low impedance loads. I would like to hear your impressions of this amp on the Martin-Logan 15's, as they may be my next move away from my CLS's. Thanks.

Great review. Thank you for your efforts. I owned this beautiful integrated amplifier, and it took about 500 hours to fully break in, Yes, the bass didn't get the full potential at first. The other thing that you should pay attention to is the phase matching at the XLR (balance configuration) as the Accuaphase is inverting "Pin 2 cold" by default, and MSB DAC is non-inverting Pin 2 hot. You should push the phase button on the front panel of Accuaphase. It will reverse the phase to match MSB DAC. (The switch on the back panel is to adjust the balance configuration to MAIN IN input ONLY.) This could seriously affect the sound quality, especially the bass.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the note re XLR connection. I did try reversing the phase, but did not find it to substantially change the bass

@Mirogram

6 ай бұрын

That's exactly my experience with all the Accuphase amps I tried, including the E-480 I now own. Took about 3 months of daily listening for the sub-bass to begin to properly come out. Now after a year, the top to bottom balance is just right. My speakers are B&W 804d3. I'm using the e-480 as power amp only with Chord TT2 in high gain mode acting as pre-amp (to me the pre amp section in E-480, and E-380 that I also tried, do not quite match the quality of the power amp - it's very good, but mellowing the sound too much for my liking, suspect a bit of a compromise compared to a stand-alone pre amp).

@Guido-vv1hb

6 ай бұрын

An amplifier to break in? It’s just your imagination. Nothing breaks in.

@IRONMAIDEN694

6 ай бұрын

@@Guido-vv1hb OK I'm sorry, I mean I break in my imagination 🙂

@Guido-vv1hb

6 ай бұрын

Do you know what really happens? You get used to your new amp after x hours, that's all. Your amp is functioning exactly the same as the first hour, as it is after 500 hours. Transistors don't work better or different in time. Multiple tests have been done on that, no measurable output was detected with the most sophisticated gear. And you should hear a difference? How could it? A transisistor and other electronic components do their job, or they don't. In the latter case the amp won't work anymore. Bulb amps are a different story, for obvious reasons.@@IRONMAIDEN694

I'd like to see a comparison between a McIntosh MA 5300 and an Accuphase E 280 since they're both the entry level integrateds of those 2 fine companies.

@willbalkovec2631

7 ай бұрын

Great suggestion - would be very interested to learn more about these two as well.

That is certainly a very classy elegant looking amplifier!

Wishing you a most Happy New Year! This was a superbly good Accuphase amp review. I have always had a liking for what I've seen of the Accuphase equipment. But then, undeniably, as you noted, the competition is very steep. I see the McIntosh units as certainly so. Again, have a great new year!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks, same to you

It's such a beautiful product, I see it as sort of the modern day edition of the great stereos of the late 70s/early 80s Stereo Wars. I could absolutely see them making a full fledged receiver with this amp as the basis for it.

Great video, Adrian. I really look forward to the big comparison video!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks Paul

Great and honest video! Could you do a review of the DAC-60 and AD-60 in the near future? I own an Accuphase preamp and I am interested in those two in order to get rid of a couple of units. However, I have not been able to find a single review of any of those two. I think there are quite a few who would appreciate a review and perhaps a comparison since there is nothing out there on them except for Accuphase's own brochure.

Bonus points because this amp looks great.

Very to the point and honest review 👍

Thanks for your team effort to make the world a better place ✌️ ❤️ 🤙

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Great review Adrian much appreciated. I suspect you are right that this speaker load is too taxing for this amp. The comparisons you mentioned are useful, and the further comparisons you will do even more so. I predict this level of review is going to net you a LOT more subs!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thank you

My E280 with Klipsch Chorus II speakers has amazing bass, and plays classic rock like a champ!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

👌

Loving this channel!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thank you

I have a poor-man’s MAC tube amp. I bought a McIntosh MC152 Power Amp and use a Schiit Frey + (replaced all the caps & resistors in the tube circuit with audiophile-grade replacements), as my preamp using NOS tubes. To concur with your findings: my soundstage is AMAZINGLY WIDE. Yes…I turn my head! 😀👍🏼 I just LOVE the full-bodied sound as well, and it has plenty of dynamic punch 🥊 for me.

Please part 2!!! Thanks 🥳

Great video as always, and thanks for the honesty. Some dealers would probably spin wrak points into something like 'musicallity'. I'm looking forward to the integrated amp shootout.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks

Concerning the competition: Let‘s hope the others will maintain their quality during decades of heavy use. I still engage an old C222 for the phono application and it is imho hard to find a match for it, even today, and it never had any issues. So it was one of the most rational acquisitions ever in this field 😊

I greatly appreciate your honesty...Which makes it tough to accept your criticism of some of the products I own or love 😞

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Nothing is perfect. Ultimately the Accuphase is very good indeed

Hope you review the E280, 380 and 4000 ..more in the $$ range of most of us. 😊

It is almost 40 years ago that I heard an Accuphase amplifier for the first time. It was amazing. At that time (about 1985), I switched from a low-fi Akai amplfier to a Luxman L-430 amplifier. A big step forward, but the dealer had me also listen to an Accuphase E-205. I loved it but it was too much for my budget. About 10 years later, I decided to go for the Accuphase E305. What a step forward. Again about 10 years later I went for the class-A E530 amplfiier, again amazing. I am now considering the new A-80 power amplifier with a nice pre-amp. It is still not available in Europe but as soon as it is I will go to my dealer. Accuphase disappointed me once. About 2 years ago, I replaced my Accuphase CD-player (DP75, I think it was) for the DP-560 CD/SACD player. Only at home did I notice that you couldn't program it. You couldn't select say tracks 3 to 11. Something that was available in the very first CD players of the early 1980's was not there in an expensive gorgeous sounding Accuphase. Unbelievable.

Un amplificateur de haut niveau ❤

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

oui!

Happy New Year!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Same to you!

This is the first time you have actually said something “bad” in your reviews. Previously they were really trivial issues that had very little to do with performance (more about features and cosmetics). I understand you have to be careful with items you carry but a review must be informative and totally honest.

I tested this unit with my b&w 802’s and i was one the one hand pleased with the musicality and build quality, but had the same experience that they sounded harsh ( imagine on these ‘old’ b&w s known to be smooth) and not in balance. Treble was not well integrated in the total image… tried also the e800 class A but was very slow in the low end… so although i really thought this could be what i wanted … i ended up selling the unit , go for the gryphon diablo 300 instead… liked it but still wanted a little more of that fantastic class A sound and went for a Gryphon essence in the end because i like class A … i wanted to listen to luxman m 900, at that time, but wasn’t t available in Belgium…. The Moon 860 was also on my list, listened to it with wilson DAW s … also very good match.. but now into Gryphon.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Congrats re Gryphon! A fine company!

Primera critica fuerte que veo del E-5000, dureza, falta de medios y de control de los bajos, además de elevado precio y desventaja frente a la competencia por lo que ofrece. En teoría debería de poder controlar a los Sasha de Wilson, puesto que tiene un factor de amortiguación alto. Muy bien. Felicidades!!!!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

La aspereza desaparece una vez que el E5000 se calentó durante 1 hora. Veré si el E5000 necesita calentarse constantemente durante tanto tiempo, o si fue solo una función del rodaje. En general, el E5000 es muy bueno, pero hasta ahora los graves profundos no son tan buenos como los del resto de la gama. No es perfecto, pero nada lo es. Sospecho que si se combina con un altavoz menos exigente, los graves no serán un problema ¡Feliz año nuevo!

I have a e-370. It is the oposite of harsh sounding. I usually dont turn it off.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Agreed, once it warmed up sufficiently, it was not harsh

A great and honest review! Thank you! I own E-480, playing with Focal Sopra No. 2s. The disadvantage you mentioned about low bass can be an advantage for some users. I really do not like boomy bass, which is kind of you get from subwoofers. At the same time, i want fast, controlled, punchy bass (but not wall-shaking). As far as i understand your review, this is exactly what E-5000 is doing, right?

@kindface

2 ай бұрын

I'm with you on that boomy bass ugliness. I like them delivered in sheets of under-breath, forgive my un-hifi parlance, but I think you know what I mean. Whilst I have an Accuphase in my crosshairs (for the first time), it was suggested - not recommended, merely suggested - to me and for me the defining quality of any amp is it's low mids to deep bass delivery. Hence, I'm here in this video trying to pick up some tips. If you happen to have any experience with Canton speakers (German), maybe I could learn a thing or two from you experience as well.

Looking forward to your comparisons. You made me laugh regarding the remote (I guess you missed reading the manual).

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Manual? I don't need no stinkin' manual! ... or perhaps I do

Sorry to bring up the Luxman again ;)) but would be great to know the comparison in terms of sound quality… with your experience and knowledge. Also great work with the recent Videos 💪💪

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Thanks

@1999zrx1100

7 ай бұрын

I recently picked up a Luxman 590axII, been a McIntosh fan for years but wanted a change, I use to get listening fatigue but not with the Luxman. I was torn between the Accuphase and Luxman, once I realized you had to buy the Phono Stage separately on the Accuphase I went to Luxman. Both brands are right up there. Look forward to touching that power button every day. 🤓

@FJBx100

3 ай бұрын

@@1999zrx1100Can you tell us what speakers you are using with the 590axII? Thanks.

Thank you for your honest part 1 review. Are you saying that it needs 1+ hours warmup every time to sound good?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Don't know yet. Will soon find out when I have a chance

Accuphase strongly recommends leaving all their amps on for at least 2-3 days before critical listening. Crazy but I hear it does improve things. Thank you for this one. I'd love to see you do more Accuphase reviews, especially class A gear.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

my pleasure

Thanks for the review, Adrian. I can't afford to buy a new one, or even the lesser E-4000 model. But maybe someday, I can pick up a used one. Sonically, the thing that's concerning to me is what you described as harshness during your initial listening sessions. Given that the E-5000 is a solid state device, I would think the warm-up/break-in time would be very minimal - and ideally, none at all. A solid state device's operating characteristics are not supposed to vary over time - and being new, I would think the designers would want it to turn on - and have it work properly, and sound good - from the get-go. I have to wonder if the unit you're reviewing has a defect, or if that harshness at the beginning would be considered normal by the Accuphase designers? It would be good to hear from the Accuphase company about this issue. I appreciate your honesty in this review - and noting what you liked and disliked. Some dealers, selling an expensive unit like this, would not address the negatives. Thank you for that.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

The sibilance has disappeared, thankfully. When I have time I'll check and see if the warmup time is related to the break in. Don't know why electronics have a break in time. Lots of theories about that...

@mxbishop

7 ай бұрын

@@adrianlow2114 Lot of theories for sure. Thanks.

Beautiful looking piece. Lukewarm review at best. Always concerned when an class A/B amp won’t double its power when halving the Ohm of the speaker. May be why the Accuphase can’t handle the dynamics like McIntosh.

i have 5 integrated amps on my list, yamaha as-3200, hegel 390 and a technics su-r1000, accuphase e-480, mcintosh ma5300 price between 5000€ - 8500€ , best , and i love the way they look and still i think , buy the sound YOU love, not what your neighbourg wants to hear ,never do competition who can affort the "more expensive" stuff ,its al about taste ,to look at it, to listen .... and most important ,to enjoy ... its a "home thing" ,its not to make sound on tomorrowland 😁

What would be a perfect speaker for this? Serafino, 803 d4???

I am very curious about the upcoming comparison. I have the D'Agostino and when I compared it against the MA12000 I immediately felt if was the one for me. More expensive, yes, I understand that but it was still the one I wanted. I want to see how it compares to the others I have heard in the store.

@InPursuitOfLiberty

6 ай бұрын

I have the McIntosh MA12000 and before settling on it, I demo'd both this McIntosh and this Accuphase. Both units are beautiful in their own way - McIntosh is bold and unmistakenly McIntosh, while the Accuphase is elegant, and the gold colour of the Accuphase is a nice change from everything else on the market. But for me the MA12000 sounded better, actually a lot better - bigger sound stage, very musical and engaging. Don't let that intimidating brute shell fool you because the McIntosh delivers and hits that sweet spot like a good glass of cognac.

I would guess the harshness might have derived from cap warmup, those large caps probably take a good hour or more to settle in thermally.

@aussie8114

7 ай бұрын

Good point, when you have fewer yet very large caps that could be a downside.

I’m waiting for part 2 Adrian . McIntosh vs Accuphase .

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

coming ...

I think the bass issue would not bother me because I don’t listen to that type of music nor any music at very loud volume. I’m inclined to think your speaker matching observation may prove to be correct, the amp may prefer an easier load at low impedance. Burning in an amp for a couple of hundred hours is annoying but it’s a first world problem. My concern would be if it needs a long warm up time, by the time it’s warmed up I’m likely to have changed my mind and watching a movie instead. I will be interested to know in a future video if the long warm up time is still needed or whether it just needed more burn in. Would also be good to know your observation of the tone controls and how they benefit the audio. Noting that the treble is more like a upper mid control not a treble. Personally I would sacrifice certain things for reliability so it gets a 10/10 in that respect, however in the event it is needed, where to get it serviced is another question. I’ve heard that it needs to go back to Japan for anything other than a simple repair.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Will be checking to see if the warm up time is an issue, or just a function of the break in. Yes I forgot to check the tone controls; should be fun to see what they do! Same with the Loudness button. Properly implemented, this can be a great benefit especially at low level listening at night

The problem with Accuphase is that their prices in the US are double that in Japan.

Did you make the same with Hegel H600. That one need almost 30 to 60 minutes of warm up time and also 200-300 hours of break-in. Mids on my H590 are very good.!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

yes

Good detailed review. Try some other speakers (Sonus Faber) and sources (like an Accuphase or Hegel cd-player or an Innuos streamer). Lumin or B&W are not the best match imo with Accuphase (but everyone should trust their own ears). Accuphase e800 seems to be better overall.

Hello, wondering why at the end you did not make comparison with Hegel H600 that is almost half price and includes DAC and streamer

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Coming. And the H600 in Canada is $15,000, so about $5,000 less than the Accuphase, not half

Your reviews are outstanding ! It's all about the music and not the high end hyped by so many ........ At the same time I think that building speakers ( Sasha ) with these kind of insane impedance loads is indeed insane ........ Just one question ....how is the timing and flow of the music ?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Very good. The upper bass on up is very propulsive.

Very nice. Have you ever reviewed the Audio Research Foundation Series?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

no we don't carry Audio Research

With what other amplifiers are you comparing it (beside the H600) for the bass performance?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

You'll have to stay tuned!

Unfortunately I live in the US where it’s way too expensive. But it looks so sexy

So… it must be « on » almost all the time? As for many amps? Just really good for amps or for the preamp also? In the time where want talk about energy « eco »… I have some concerns about leaving my expensive amps on all the time … and what about long time impact on the electronics? Thanks!

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

I don't think so, but will be checking into the warmup question

Any chance of you reviewing the Hegel P30A and H30A?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

perhaps in future

Is break-in and warm-up more of an imperative for class A amps?

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Hard to say universally. Class A amps bias very high so in theory, it might take some time for the amp to reach proper bias levels/temperature

I've always wondered how Accuphase stacks up against Luxman... My uneducated guess is Luxman is positioned a little above... ?

If I buy it from you will you throw in that stand? Thanks.

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Sure! If you're serious contact me

Could you or someone explain to me what exactly happens to a piece of electronic equipment during this “break-in” period. I’ve never heard anything change.

Anyone else hear a "boomy" base in the Mc MA12000? I was listening through Sopra 3s and everything low sounded sloppy. Is that a characteristic sound for Mc's?

If you look at Accuphase digital sources they all have 2.5V outputs for BOTH RCA and XLR (50 ohm output impedance). I suspect you used the balanced outputs on you MSB DAC which is likely 3.5 V outputs 300ohm and this may be overloading the Accuphase input during dynamic peaks as the XLR input is not optimized for that voltage and impedance. If you can, try an Accuphase source and you will see what this integrated is all about. They work much better with their own sources.

The issue is finding a component rack that can match the elegance of Accuphase products.

I heard them in the Toronto audio fest paired with ps audio fr speakers, wasnt really impress by the sound. They sounded clear but the soundstage and imaging is not there

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Could be any number of factors, including the music that was played. Certainly not an issue with the Wilson Sasha V

@MasterofPlay7

7 ай бұрын

@@adrianlow2114 yea could be, I mean given that the Sasha has pretty high impedance so I guess shouldn't be a problem for most speakers

When I first get up in the morning, my ears are relatively sensitive. Sounds seem loud and harsh. You may experience this too. At 3am!

Happy New Year.. The song Blackbird is just McCartney performing on it. There is no Lennon

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Yes, I didn't know til later, as indicated by the text overlay.

For me I prefer Gryphon and the best integrated Dartzeel for unlimited bank accounts!

Where are these Accuphase amps made?

@klaverro

7 ай бұрын

Japan

Which charity do u donate to? 👏

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

Salvation Army and Daily Bread Food Bank are the 2 main ones

…would the Luxman equivalent/top of range compare…

@adrianlow2114

7 ай бұрын

no idea

My experience is in warming up all types of conductors and this applies to a previously unused amplifier input or output; a new power cable requires at least 500-700 hours! The sharpness will become airy and voluminous, the scene will lower to a natural position. The bass, which was temporarily absent, will become deep and un-humming. Psychologically this is difficult, but necessary for a reliable test.

@MasterofPlay7

7 ай бұрын

Who knows, maybe you just used to the sound or something

@dmitriy2853

7 ай бұрын

If the acoustics allow, then the difference is like “day and night”!

The side panels (visible screws) and the loudspeaker terminal (no WBT’s) ill-match - for my personal taste- the luxurious impression the front panel conveys 🤔

A $20,000 amp! 😳

Amplifiers and other components’ price depends on 3 major factors. Where it is made( how expensive economy is), quality of parts used and business model. Some Chinese amps are expensive as they use Swiss or other Scandinavian components. I personally believe that few American brands are simply over priced ( business model) and few are as cheap as shiit😊

Where are the other guys at? Don't they want to be on camera any longer?

@JJ-no2ob

7 ай бұрын

The guys are busy doing what they were hired to do … selling and installing excellent high end audio gear ( not sitting in front of a camera). 😂

@AudioExcellenceCanada

7 ай бұрын

This is very true. 100%!

@klaverro

7 ай бұрын

Missing them also. That’s what I liked, one product with different opinions.

I like how we goto familiar poorly recorded but very popular recordings. How can they sell a Japaneses integrated for $20k. No DAC. Looks like a Pioneer or Kenwood from the 70s. This is not priced to sell. Please add the DAC card and see if the bass sounds better.

Don’t give to charity. You just make the CEO even richer.

The display is not very clear compared to the E-280.

$20,000 and a phono stage is optional on an integrated amp? LMAO

@1999zrx1100

7 ай бұрын

Ridiculous I’d say as well. 🤨