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A further Luxman refinement is the absence of a green PC mask which usually indicates placement of the copper traces and various parts. Instead the engineers printed on a plastic peel coat which is removed once traces and mounting holes are in place. The copper traces then are gold-plated to reduce overall circuit resistance. across the circuit. Extremism or perfectionism? It’s impossible to say for someone who has not directly experienced the difference but considering the effort involved, it’s fair to assume it wasn’t done for show. Mechanical grounding and resonance control too were rigorously investigated to create an optimum environment for the electrical circuits to operate at their best. The cast iron feet connect directly to the heavily damped base to drain vibration from the chassis and reduce noise levels.

The specs are continuous power of 30W + 30W/8Ω and 60W + 60W/4Ω in class A; THD of 0.005% or less at 8Ω and 1KHz and 0.03% or less at 8Ω and 20~20kHz; input sensitivity/impedance of 2.5mV/47KΩ and 0.3mV/100Ω for phono MM/MC respectively, 180mV/42KΩ for the standard line inputs,180mV/79KΩ for the XLR input and 550mV/51KΩ for the main-in socket. Output voltage on the record-out is 180mV and 1V on the pre-out. S/N ratio for MM and MC phono is better than 91/85dB respectively, above 107dB for the line inputs. Frequency response is 20Hz ~ 20,000Hz (±0.5dB) for phono and 20Hz ~ 100,000Hz (within 3dB) for all other inputs.

Controls and features include a volume and input selector, power switch, monitor switch, phono MC switch, balanced input switch, REC out selector and speaker selector, stereo/mono selector, bass & treble controls and balance control, direct line switch, headphone jack, power-on indicator and protection indicator. Electric power consumption is 280 watts at idle, 1.3 watts in stand-by. Dimensions are 18.4 x7 x 17.1” WxHxD, weight is a very considerable 66.25 lbs.

Sound: This Luxman integrated portrays amazing vividness into even difficult loads. The amp fulfils the Japanese tradition of high neutrality yet always preserves the musical energy. Its power limitations naturally won’t serve all speakers and ultra-challenging loads are probably best avoided. Yet the L-590 A II was far from reluctant to drive my McIntosh LS360 where it demonstrated ease in controlling their low frequencies. This suggested that the L-590 A II is able to power a wide range of loudspeakers as long as its modest while potent 30 watts are sufficient.


The Luxman seems Japanese in that it won’t offer the indulgent opulence of an American or British class A device. It is not systematically sweet or dependably comfortable. Thinking for an analogy with luxury cars, I would compare the Luxman to a Lotus while a Sugden Masterclass would be closer to a Jaguar. Obviously the Lotus offers greater driving pleasure but also requires greater driving skills from its owner. And the Luxman too is very demanding. Its exceptional transparency highlights every subtle change in a system. If something is wrong or just slightly sub par, the Luxman will let you know. That’s the basic entrance fee for excellence and how one should approach Luxman’s top integrated amplifier.


When all is copasetic, the L-590 A II delivers all we expect from an amplifier in this class - transparency, tonal beauty, flexibility thanks to the various settings and liveliness. At this point, the Sugden rival remains far behind. To sound its best, the L-590 A II does want a bit more than a half-hour warm up. One other important feature is universality. It happens occasionally that a device performs better with a specific musical genre. This is definitely not the case here. The L-590 A II offered the same stable results on heavy rock, light pop, hot jazz, classical or contemporary music. This makes sense when considering the amp's ambition to provide long-term satisfaction rather than become a flashy but short-lived fashion accessory. It’s what strong solid value is built upon.
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