Your Favorite Japanese Audio Equipment?

[LL21]

I d think the Lyra would be a step up from a second hand arrakis , probably not scale wise but a bit more refinement/ definition nontheless
I dont see the arrakis mentioned on the site anymore anyway

Yes, they have taken it off, but rumor has it still can make one to order. I do not know that for a fact at all...just whispers.

Meanwhile, I have heard from people who know both speakers that the Lyra's pure alacrity, purity, speed is superior to the Arrakis (including from an owner of the Arrakis now)...but the scale of the Arrakis is off-the-charts. As a result, the consensus from the people who are far more knowledgeable than I is that Lyra + dual subs (designed by Rockport) "should" surpass the performance of the Arrakis on all counts.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Yes, they have taken it off, but rumor has it still can make one to order. I do not know that for a fact at all...just whispers.

Meanwhile, I have heard from people who know both speakers that the Lyra's pure alacrity, purity, speed is superior to the Arrakis (including from an owner of the Arrakis now)...but the scale of the Arrakis is off-the-charts. As a result, the consensus from the people who are far more knowledgeable than I is that Lyra + dual subs (designed by Rockport) "should" surpass the performance of the Arrakis on all counts.

Yes sounds logical to me that rockport could still make an up to date version of the arrakis using the things they learned from making the Lyra .

You d probably the get the best of both worlds , i assume the Lyra is a more easy to sell / better product commercial wise then the arrakis which you sell only to connaiseurs .

 

[andromedaaudio]

Just for the records :
I d have to make an honourable mention of the Apogee grands from henk vd hoeven , these sounded much better integrated then i thought .

 

[AMR / iFi audio]

Accuphase, I really like their products. Completely overengineered, but so cool! I like that they are going discrete, pushing the performance to the limit.

 

[Eldar]

Techdas Air Force turntables. If I win the lottery, I´l get the Air Force I.

 

[rooze]

Audio Tekne cartridge/SUT. Wish I could afford their electronics.

 

[morricab]

Direct drive TTs from the late 70s-80s. The first to master speed issues with DD. Still some of the best out there…

 

[jamesdowningelliott]

Zanden is amazing, so is Hana (at least the umami), and i particularly like the Luxman 509x and the tube gear. The thing with Japanese designs is that the quality of the construction is second to none - you look inside and see everything in exactly it’s place - it is just beautifully made.

 

[Jim Smith]

Zanden is amazing, so is Hana (at least the umami), and i particularly like the Luxman 509x and the tube gear. The thing with Japanese designs is that the quality of the construction is second to none - you look inside and see everything in exactly it’s place - it is just beautifully made.

 

[Jim Smith]

Zanden, Accuphase, & Luxman

 

[kimurastanley]

TADL

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...I love my Luxman gear, but it's almost invisible in the marketplace.

 

[PeterA]

The original American Sound AS 1000 turntable from the 1970s. A legend. Then the Micro Seiki SX8000II. Here they are being compared:

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...ha! Compared to what? The Colossus of Rhodes?

 

[andromedaaudio]

American sound " best japanese brand" .
I know the TT has japanese engravings but whats the japanese connection ?

 

[PeterA]

American sound " best japanese brand" .
I know the TT has japanese engravings but whats the japanese connection ?

The title of the thread is “your favorite Japanese audio equipment.” These are mine. It’s a purely subjective exercise, not at all controversial. I lived with both of these turntables in my own system and got to know them very well, assembling and disassembling them and understanding how they work. The execution of the design and beauty of the finished work is at a very rare level, as is the sound quality.

The Japanese connection is that both of these turntables were designed and made in Japan, the former in a Japanese shipbuilding factory in the 1970s, the latter in a Japanese machine shop in the 1980s. These are not to be confused with my turntable which is the American Sound AS 2000, designed by David Karmeli in Utah and manufactured in an American factory.

That scraped finish on the AS1000 base is a metal working technique used for flattening steel, a very old and I think unique Japanese method. Is there any doubt that Micro Seiki is a Japanese brand?

What do you mean by Japanese engraving? Could you be specific?

 

[andromedaaudio]

For micro seiki it was clear off course.
I thought i saw japanese engravings in one of davids TT designs

 

[PeterA]

For micro seiki it was clear off course.
I thought i saw japanese engravings in one of davids TT designs

These Japanese turntables in my post are not David’s designs.

 

[DasguteOhr]

Denon DP100M i think best direct drive ever
Denon DP S1 cd transport
FR64s/66s really good today 40 years old respect
Stax x1t dac/Stax DA 80 mono amps
Old luxman tube gear
Goto horn drivers

 

[antigrunge]

Anything Wavac, to this day the best SET circuit. Zyx cartridges. Acoustic Revive for its whole range but particularly for its power treatment. And Shindo field coil speakers