Luxman E-250 Phono Amplifier Owner’s Manual
- June 17, 2024
- LUXMAN
Table of Contents
Luxman E-250 Phono Amplifier
Precautions
Installation place
Install this unit in a location where good ventilation and heat radiation are
assured. Especially, the installation of this unit where the direct sunlight
is present, where the temperature rises excessively high such as close to a
heater, or where it is humid or dusty may cause a malfunction even if heat is
efficiently released. Therefore, do not install this unit in such places.
Note: For heat dispersal, do not install this equipment in a confined
space such as a book case or similar unit.
Cautions in connecting cartridges
Connect an analog player or a tone arm with the ground ter-minal of this unit.
If the grounding terminal is inadequately connected, noises including hum may
be generated, resulting in an adverse effect on the S/N ratio.
The pin plugs to be inserted in the input terminals of this unit shall be
pushed in firmly. If the grounding of the terminal is inadequately connected,
noises including hum may be gener-ated, resulting in an adverse effect on the
S/N ratio.
Precautions in connecting with other components
When connecting this unit to output device, be sure to turn off the power
switch of this unit and all other connected units. Failure to observe this may
generate a strong noise resulting in speaker damage or cause a malfunction.
The pin-plugs to be inserted in the input and output terminals of this unit
shall be pushed in firmly. If the grounding termi-nal is inadequately
connected, noises including hum may be generated, resulting in an adverse
effect on the S/N ratio.
The sound is not generated shortly after the power supply is turned on.
This amplifier is equipped with a time muting circuit in order to separate the
output circuit. Therefore, no sound is generated shortly after the power
supply is turned on. If the volume control is set to a high sound level before
the time muting circuit is canceled, a large sound will suddenly be generated.
Please be advised that the volume control shall be set to a low level at first
and adjusted after the sound comes out of the speakers.
Repair and adjustment
When repairs and adjustments are needed, please consult with the dealer you
bought the unit from.
Cleaning
For cleaning, use a piece of soft cloth to wipe the unit such as cleaning
cloth. When the dirt is hard to remove, use a small amount of neutral
detergent to wipe, and then wipe the unit with dry cloth. Do not use a solvent
like benzine or thinner because such substances can often damage the exterior.
Features of This Unit
Outline
This unit is an NF type phono equalizer amplifier supporting MM/MC cartridges.
Specially selected MC transformer
Two pieces of step-up transformers in which a super permal-loy core is
independently used are mounted. Independence between left and right channels
has achieved richly expres-sive sound that can be produced only by boosting
with a transformer.
Setting of cartridge load impedance
The load resistance setting function with 4 positions supports a wide variety
of cartridges.
Setting of cartridge load capacity
The load capacity setting function with 4 positions supports a wide variety of
cartridges. Change in high-frequency char-acteristics allows sound to be
adjusted to your favorite tone quality.
Improvement in S/N ratio
Noise reduction has been achieved by the 2-parallized first stage of FET, and
improvement in the S/N ratio has been achieved by optimization of ground
pattern and ground point.
Selector relays
The selector relays of the high sound quality which are mounted in the
important points of LUXMAN amplifiers also are mounted.
High-inertia power supply
The high-inertia power supply circuit on which a large-capacity capacitor
blocks were combined.
Schottky barrier diode
Schottky barrier diodes that have less switching noises and higher conversion
efficiency to the DC voltage is applied for the power supply rectifier
circuit.
Articulation function
Magnetization of the cartridge or MC transformer that may cause the
deterioration of sound quality can be eliminated with the use of reproduced
sound signals. This function can exploit the full potential of cartridges and
achieve the sound quality with a sense of openness.
Low cut switch
A low-cut filter is provided to restrain woofer fluctuation gen-erated due to
warped analog records.
Stereo/Monaural
The monaural switch which is useful for playing monaural re-cords.
Input/output terminals
18 mm pitch RCA input/output terminals allow even high-per-formance line
cables with large plugs to be connected.
Compact chassis design
Compact body design (W 364 mm x D 274 mm)
LUXMAN’s original OFC wires
Original OFC wires are used in the internal shielded wires to achieve smooth
and natural signal transmissions thanks to the spiral wrap shielding on each
core and the non-plating process on the core wire.
AC inlet
This inlet enables the connection with an external power ca-ble.
Names and Functions
Front panel
Front panel
This switch turns on and off the power. When connecting the input/output
terminals, be sure to turn off this switch.
- : OFF
- : ON
Operation indicator (OPERATION)
Blinks during warm-up when the operation switch is turned on and lights up
when the operation state is activated afterward. When the indicator is
blinking, the output muting circuit is activated to mute sound. Please be
advised that the volume control of the input device such as a control
amplifier shall be set to a low level at first and adjusted according to your
taste after sound comes out of the speakers.
Mode switch (MODE)
-
STEREO
Is used for stereo playback. Select this position under normal conditions. -
MONO
Is used for monaural playback.
Low cut switch (LOW CUT)
Toggles the low-frequency cutoff function on and off. The speaker (woofer)
fluctuation is restrained when a warped record is played.
-
OFF
Provides the normal state. -
ON
Cuts low frequencies of 30Hz or less. (–6 dB/oct)
Articulator switch (ARTICULATOR)
This function performs demagnetization by using sound signals. When a record
is played with the articulator switch set to ON, the cartridge and step-up
transformer are demagne-tized, and thus the expression of fresh sound is
brought back. When the articulator switch is set to ON, no sound is gen-erated
or the sound becomes remarkably small during playback. This is the sign that
the cartridge is being de-magnetized. If the articulator is set to OFF at this
point, the sound suddenly becomes loud. Therefore, do not turn up the sound
volume of the control amplifier or the like. It is recommended to activate the
articulator for approximately 30 seconds before the end of a track of the
record.
-
OFF
Deactivates the articulator. Select this position under normal conditions. -
ON
Activates the articulator.
Articulator indicator
Blinks when the articulator is activated.
Input selector (INPUT)
Selects an input terminal on the rear panel.
- 1: Input terminal 1 (INPUT-1) is selected.
- 2: Input terminal 2 (INPUT-2) is selected.
Cartridge selection switch (CARTRIDGE)
Selects between MM and MC according to your cartridge. When MC is selected,
the MC cartridge selector (9) can switch between HIGH and LOW and the MC input
imped-ance.
MC cartridge selector
When the cartridge selector (8) is set to MC, the MC car-tridge selector can
select an input impedance. This selector switches between HIGH and LOW
according to your MC cartridge. The input impedance at the MC HIGH position is
40 Ω, and the input impedance at the MC LOW position is 2.5 Ω.
Rear panel
Input impedance selector/ input capacitor selector
The input impedance and input capacitor can be selected according to your
cartridge. The switches in the upper row are used for the L channel, and the
switches in the lower row are used for the R channel. The switches 1 and 2 are
used for the input impedance, and the switches 3 and 4 are used for the input
capacitor. Combination of the switches shown in the figure allows the setting
at the L and R channels to be performed at the same time according to your
cartridge specifications or your favorite pattern. For the input impedance, 34
kΩ, 47 kΩ, 56 kΩ and 100 kΩ are selectable, and for the input capacitor, 0 pF,
100 pF, 220 pF, and 320 pF are selectable. The input impedance is 47 kΩ and
the input capacitor is 0 pF as factory default settings.
- Switch positions are marked with ■ in the detailed drawing above.
Before changing switch positions, set the sound volume of connected devices to a low level.
Signal ground terminal (SIGNAL GROUND)
Is a ground terminal for devices to be connected to this unit. These terminals
are used to reduce noises when other de-vices are connected, and are connected
to an analog player or a tone arm. This terminal is not designed for safety.
Input terminals (INPUTS)
Are input terminals to connect pin-plug cables from an ana-log player or a
tone arm. There are 2 lines of input terminals to connecte 2 pieces of analog
players or tone arms. The input selector can select between 1 and 2.
Output terminals (OUTPUT)
Use pin-plug cables to connect the output terminals of this product with the
line input terminals of a control amplifier and an integrated amplifier. If
this terminal is connected to the phono (PHONO) input terminals of those
amplifiers, they may be damaged. Be sure to connect the terminal to the line
input terminal.
AC inlet (AC IN)
Connects the accessory power cable. The power shall be supplied from a
household wall socket.
Connections
Before Connecting
Before connecting other devices, connect the jack side of the accessory power
cable to the AC inlet of this unit. Before connection, turn off the main power
switch of this unit and the power of all other connected devices to pre-vent
unexpected accidents that may be caused by noise.
How to connect power supply
Use the accessory power cable to insert the AC plug in an outlet on the wall
in the listening room.
How to connect output devices
-
Surely connect the output terminals of this unit to the line input terminals of a control amplifier or an integrated amplifier using RCA pin-plug cables between the L-channel and R-channel. If the grounding side of the pin-plug cables is inadequately connected, noises including hum may be generated, resulting in an adverse effect on the S/N ratio. Therefore, insert the cables all the way.
-
Do not connect the output terminals of this unit to the phono (PHONO) input terminal of a control amplifier or integrated amplifier. Failure to observe this may not only distort the phono amplifier signals of the integrated
amplifier or a control amplifier but also damage the amplifiers. Be sure to connect the terminal to the line input terminal. Do not insert the supplied short pins into the output terminals. If the pins are inserted into the output terminal, no sound will be generated. -
Sound volume adjustment shall be performed by the connected control amplifier or integrated amplifier be-cause this unit has no sound volume adjustment function. Sound volume shall be set to the minimum when this unit is being connected. If sound volume is set to a high level at power-on, sudden loud sound may be generated, which may cause hearing loss or damage to the speakers.
Please be advised that the sound volume shall be set to a low level at first and adjusted according to your taste after the sound comes out of the speakers.
How to connect analog player
-
Mount a cartridge on the tone arm in an appropriate way by referring to the operating instructions of the analog player and cartridge to be used.
-
Insert the pin-plugs of RCA pin-plug cables from the tone arm with a cartridge mounted into the input terminals of this unit. At this moment, be sure to make a connection without a mistake between the R-channel and
L-channel. If the grounding side of the pin-plug cables is inade-quately connected, noises including hum may be generated, resulting in an adverse effect on the S/N ratio. -
Grounding between analog players to be connected and this unit is needed. Be sure to connect the ground wires that come from tone arms in parallel with pin-plug cables to the ground terminals of this unit. If the ground wires are inadequately connected, noises including hum may be generated, resulting in an adverse effect on the S/N ratio.
Do not connect the output of an analog player with pho-no equalizer embedded to this unit. Failure to observe this may not only distort the amplifier signals but also cause a malfunction. Connect the output of an analog player with phono equalizer embedded to the line input of an integrated amplifier or a control amplifier.
Block Diagram
Specifications
Input sensitivity| MM : 3.2 mV/250 mV, 1 kHz, load 50 kΩ MC-HIGH : 0.37
mV/250 mV, 1 kHz, load 50 kΩ
MC-LOW : 0.12 mV/250 mV, 1 kHz, load 50 kΩ
---|---
Input impedance| MM : 34 kΩ/47 kΩ/56 kΩ/100 kΩ (switch selection) MC-HIGH
: 40 Ω
MC-LOW : 2.5 Ω
Gain| MM : 38 dB
MC-HIGH : 57 dB
MC-LOW : 66 dB
RIAA deviation| MM : 20 – 20 kHz±0.3 dB MC-HIGH : 20 – 20 kHz±0.5 dB MC-LOW
: 20 – 20 kHz±0.5 dB
Maximum allowable input voltage| MM : 120 mV
MC-HIGH : 15 mV
MC-LOW : 5 mV
Output impedance| 300Ω
S/N ratio (at 250 mV output)| MM : 90 dB (IHF-A) MC-HIGH : 83
dB (IHF-A) MC-LOW : 80 dB (IHF-A)
Total harmonic distortion (at MM 1 V output)| 0.003%
Channel separation (10kHz)| 91dB or more
Accessories|
- Power cable
- Owner’s Manual (This document)
- Safety cautions
Circuiting system| NF type equalizer amplifier equipped with MC step-up
transformer
Power consumption| 7 W
Power supply| 230 V 〜 (50 Hz)
Max. external dimensions| 364 (W) x 81 (H) x 274 (D) mm (front side knob of
6mm and rear side terminal of 11 mm included in depth)
Weight| 4.3 kg (main unit only)
- Specifications and the appearance are subject to change without notice.
Before Asking for Repair Services
While the unit is used, an unusual phenomenon may be confused as a malfunction for a certain reason. Prior to asking our official sole distributor of your country for repair services, please check the table below and read the operating instructions for the subsidiary devices. If the cause of the malfunction cannot be identified, please contact your dealer. When we have once accepted your request for repair services, inspection fees and traveling expenses may be claimed even though the unit is found to be normal.
Problem | Cause | Solution |
---|---|---|
No power is supplied even though the operation switch is pressed. |
- The power plug is disconnected from the wall outlet, or it is not completely inserted.
|
-
Insert the power plug in the wall outlet completely.
-
The power plug is disconnected from the AC inlet, or it is not inserted completely.
|
- Securely insert the power plug in the AC in- let.
No sound is generated. (small sound)|
- Connection is not securely performed.
|
-
Make cable connections securely.
-
The connected input terminal does not match the setting of the input selector switch.
|
-
Match the input terminal with the setting of the input selector switch.
-
The selector of the input device such as a control amplifier is not correctly set.
|
-
Set the selector of the input device such as a control amplifier correctly.
-
The volume control of the input device such as a control amplifier is not set to a lower level.
|
-
Adjust the volume control of the input de- vice such as a control amplifier.
-
The used cartridge type does not match the selected item of the MM/MC selector switch.
|
-
Select the correct item of the cartridge se- lector switch according to the cartridge to be used.
-
The articulator position is selected.
|
- Turn down the sound volume and adjust the sound volume according to the appropriate input impedance after sound comes out.
Humming sound (boon or zzz noise) is generated.|
- The grounding side of the connection cable has no contact with the terminal.
|
-
Make cable connections securely.
-
The grounding of the shell or tone arm is inadequately connected.
|
-
Be sure to connect the ground wire of the shell or tone arm to the ground terminal.
-
Induction noise is picked up from a power transformer of another device.
|
-
Install it distant from other devices.
-
The connecting cables are too close to the power cable.
|
- Keep the connecting cables away from the power cable.
Inappropriate localization of sound No bass is generated.|
- The L channel and R channel are connected reversely.
|
-
Connect the L channel and R channel appropriately.
-
The setting of the input impedance control does not match the cartridge in use.
|
- Adjust the input impedance according to the cartridge in use.
LUXMAN CORPORATION, JAPAN
1-3-1 Shinyokohama, kouhoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 222-0033, Japan