Luxman R-115 & ADS

[Sam08861]

I have both 115 and 117. Both recapped with Elena silmic iis. Both sound amazing, but there’s a difference in the sheer ease with which the 117 powers speakers. Even at quiet listening levels with efficient speakers, the 117s have a visceral ‘presence’ of power that the 115s just don’t. Kind of like the rumbling you hear and feel shaking the house when lightning is real close vs far away. The mids on the 115 might be just a teensy bit sweeter, though and I’ve read somewhere the 113 with toroidal transformer might be very slightly better still. I see 113s (and occasionally 114s) go for well under 100 bucks on CL now and again, and I think they’re real sleepers.

I’ll second the fact that they both suffer from the speaker relay issues, having replaced the relays on both out of necessity.

 

[Blue Shadow]

Do it! It’s good to keep them exercised!

His wife got him some Mac gear so he needs to be politically correct. Don't know how long he's had it, though.

 

[Sam08861]

I think the Magic with the R series is in the preamp. Using a R-113 as a preamp with excellent results. Incredible sound. I think it tames very accurate speaker's with just the right amount of warmth.

Interesting, in that I and others felt the pre section was holding back the amp section. Using a Technics su-9070 as a pre yielded a dramatic improvement for me. That’s not to say the pre section isn’t good, but there is definitely room for improvement.

There is however a lushness in the pre section that is very satisfying, so do get what you’re saying. The loudness function really accentuates this.

Currently using the technics pre into an active crossover/room eq with the 115 amp section (accomplished by unplugging the pre section wires on the board with pre outs and using them as the amp in) driving the horns (highs 1.5khz+) and the 117 Amp section driving the woofers (mids 55hz to 1.5khz) of an Altec 14 and supplemented by a powered velodyne sub. (Lows <55hz).

 

[LHorn]

That's what I have heard about the pre-amp section as well. I dont understand it though...seems to me the pre-amp would be the main factor of the signature sound of the system. I figure its a combination of everything but still.

@Sam08861 Mind if I ask where/who did your 115/117 recap?

 

[Sam08861]

I think you are right in that the pre has a heavy influence on the sound signature. The luxman sound being rich and lush. If fact, I did miss that bit, with the replacement pre not having tone controls. The crossover has parametric eq for each driver, so dialed that back in.

One was recapped by the previous owner (restorer / flipper) and the 117 I did myself. Have a thread with pics somewhere here on ak.

 

[LHorn]

I think you are right in that the pre has a heavy influence on the sound signature. The luxman sound being rich and lush. If fact, I did miss that bit, with the replacement pre not having tone controls. The crossover has parametric eq for each driver, so dialed that back in.

One was recapped by the previous owner (restorer / flipper) and the 117 I did myself. Have a thread with pics somewhere here on ak.

I wonder if the "flaws" in these pre-amps could be improved by better caps and other critical components...like what exactly makes a great pre-amp great. That would probably be a subject for its own discussion..and probably has been already.

I see...man I envy you guys that can do this stuff. If I could go back in time I would have learned electronics...but the old grey matter just wont absorb anymore.

 

[David_NC]

Interesting, in that I and others felt the pre section was holding back the amp section. Using a Technics su-9070 as a pre yielded a dramatic improvement for me. That’s not to say the pre section isn’t good, but there is definitely room for improvement.

There is however a lushness in the pre section that is very satisfying, so do get what you’re saying. The loudness function really accentuates this.

Currently using the technics pre into an active crossover/room eq with the 115 amp section (accomplished by unplugging the pre section wires on the board with pre outs and using them as the amp in) driving the horns (highs 1.5khz+) and the 117 Amp section driving the woofers (mids 55hz to 1.5khz) of an Altec 14 and supplemented by a powered velodyne sub. (Lows <55hz).

I'm curious about the part in bold. I know the 115 has dual pre-outs, and the 117 has those plus main-ins. The jack board inside the receiver appears to be where the preamp and power amp join. Did you just unplug each and connect the main amp connection to that board in place of the preamp? I'm considering mounting two RCA's on the back where they'd be if this were an 117 and wiring them to the main-in line. This would allow me to access the power amp separately so I can use a crossover there when using a subwoofer.

 

[Dmac43]

I bought a R-115 and a pair of ADS L780/2's about a year and a half ago. Both are in mint condition and perfectly operational, except for lots of noise in the R-115's volume control. I eventually upgraded my system, and the receiver and speakers sat unused for several months.
Fairly recently, I decided to tackle that noisy VC with some FaderLube. As it turns out, the volume control on this receiver is completely removable (shaft nut and a couple screws) and is one of the easiest to clean as I've seen. It now works perfectly with zero noise. I set up the R-115 and the 780's in the garage and streamed some Amazon Unlimited. There it was; this combo has a wonderful synergy - clean, articulate but not harsh, revealing in a good way, amazing imaging, and a nice big soundstage. This is what got me back into audio / systems after a hiatus of a few years.
Over the weekend, I brought this receiver and speakers to a friend's house for some listening. It was set up in a much better space than my garage, where I typically use them, and we added an SVS SB12-NSD subwoofer. I've got to say that I was even more impressed - the better listening space and added deep bass made the combo even better. Next, we used a pair of ADS L1590's in place of the 780's. Needless to say, they sounded pretty amazing. This 70 watt receiver powered them to high levels while maintaining the same clarity I noticed at lower levels.
Last night, I connected an original Marantz 2035B to the 780's. It was decent, but I think the 2-way L520's sound better on the Marantz. I then went back to the R-115, and it wasn't even close; the magic was back! All this makes me wonder if the big brother R-117 would be a huge improvement. I'm curious how many use or have tried comparable Luxman power with similar ADS speakers. They almost seem made for each other! I'd def like to find a nice R-117 at some point. I'm mostly over receivers now, other than ones that have sentimental value to me, but I could def find a place for the big Luxman.

If the 115 is anything like the 117, it’s power is vastly underestimated....

 

[Sam08861]

I'm curious about the part in bold. I know the 115 has dual pre-outs, and the 117 has those plus main-ins. The jack board inside the receiver appears to be where the preamp and power amp join. Did you just unplug each and connect the main amp connection to that board in place of the preamp? I'm considering mounting two RCA's on the back where they'd be if this were an 117 and wiring them to the main-in line. This would allow me to access the power amp separately so I can use a crossover there when using a subwoofer.

I simply unplugged the left/right audio of the pre section from the mini circuit board having the pre out jacks. With these disconnected, the pre-out jacks are still connected to the wires that go to the amp boards. You can see this on the schematic in the service manual

I tried unplugging the connections on top of the amp boards, thinking I could add some jacks and route directly, but the unit would not fully turn on. (I’d get a display, but it wouldn’t click/light up the volume LED). Assuming that click is the speaker relays.

I think the processor is doing some sort of a ‘health check’ of a signal from something in the pre section.

Hooked up this way, all the pre section, tuner, volume knob and tone controls are bypassed.

Just a heads up, the CDdirect function of the unit still goes through the the pre, tone control and volume. You can easily see this on the schematic.

 

[David_NC]

I simply unplugged the left/right audio of the pre section from the mini circuit board having the pre out jacks. With these disconnected, the pre-out jacks are still connected to the wires that go to the amp boards. You can see this on the schematic in the service manual

I tried unplugging the connections on top of the amp boards, thinking I could add some jacks and route directly, but the unit would not fully turn on. (I’d get a display, but it wouldn’t click/light up the volume LED). Assuming that click is the speaker relays.

I think the processor is doing some sort of a ‘health check’ of a signal from something in the pre section.

Hooked up this way, all the pre section, tuner, volume knob and tone controls are bypassed.

Just a heads up, the CDdirect function of the unit still goes through the the pre, tone control and volume. You can easily see this on the schematic.

I hope the above shows enough detail. The circled area is the top portion of the pre-out jacks. I'll have to compare schematics for the R-115 and R-117 of this area to see what's involved with the main in portion. From what you're saying, if you unplug the wires leading to the power amps, the unit wouldn't power on fully. If this is the case with mine, I should be able to leave the power amps connected and disconnect the preamp side of it and connect them to a pair of RCA's.

Looking at this:

Perhaps the ground for the power amp are required for it to function properly. If so, that'll be easy to accommodate, since the main-in RCA jacks will ground to the chassis, just like the current setup. Unfortunately, the R-117 manuals I've found have the section with the main-in jacks cut off.

 

[Sam08861]

Everything you describe is accurate for the 115 and your input would go into pre out, with the pre section disconnected.

Hadn’t thought about ground being the pre req. Hope that works and let me what know you find out.

I’ll see if I have a complete schematic for the 117 after work, but can tell you that it has jumpers between the pre-out and main jacks in required for the pre to work, so main in comes direct to the amp boards.

Signal processor in was another I looked at but recall that went through the pre, or at least volume and tone controls.

 

[LHorn]

I have searched for a complete SM too...they all seem to be the same one with the missing page or section 16 missing..however that reads.

 

[Sam08861]

Looks like mine's the same for the 117..



Best I could find is...

 

[Sam08861]

ps.. looking at the 115 service manual, I must have unplugged mp405 (same label in 117)

 

[David_NC]

ps.. looking at the 115 service manual, I must have unplugged mp405 (same label in 117)

Cool, sounds like my plan might just work. Thanks for the scans. I'll give it a shot this weekend or at least investigate wha'll be needed. Hopefully, unplugging the wires to the amps and attaching them to RCA jacks will do it. If not, there shouldn't be too much risk... I hope!

 

[7whales7]

I bought a R-115 and a pair of ADS L780/2's about a year and a half ago. Both are in mint condition and perfectly operational, except for lots of noise in the R-115's volume control. I eventually upgraded my system, and the receiver and speakers sat unused for several months.
Fairly recently, I decided to tackle that noisy VC with some FaderLube. As it turns out, the volume control on this receiver is completely removable (shaft nut and a couple screws) and is one of the easiest to clean as I've seen. It now works perfectly with zero noise. I set up the R-115 and the 780's in the garage and streamed some Amazon Unlimited. There it was; this combo has a wonderful synergy - clean, articulate but not harsh, revealing in a good way, amazing imaging, and a nice big soundstage. This is what got me back into audio / systems after a hiatus of a few years.
Over the weekend, I brought this receiver and speakers to a friend's house for some listening. It was set up in a much better space than my garage, where I typically use them, and we added an SVS SB12-NSD subwoofer. I've got to say that I was even more impressed - the better listening space and added deep bass made the combo even better. Next, we used a pair of ADS L1590's in place of the 780's. Needless to say, they sounded pretty amazing. This 70 watt receiver powered them to high levels while maintaining the same clarity I noticed at lower levels.
Last night, I connected an original Marantz 2035B to the 780's. It was decent, but I think the 2-way L520's sound better on the Marantz. I then went back to the R-115, and it wasn't even close; the magic was back! All this makes me wonder if the big brother R-117 would be a huge improvement. I'm curious how many use or have tried comparable Luxman power with similar ADS speakers. They almost seem made for each other! I'd def like to find a nice R-117 at some point. I'm mostly over receivers now, other than ones that have sentimental value to me, but I could def find a place for the big Luxman.

I bought a R-115 and a pair of ADS L780/2's about a year and a half ago. Both are in mint condition and perfectly operational, except for lots of noise in the R-115's volume control. I eventually upgraded my system, and the receiver and speakers sat unused for several months.
Fairly recently, I decided to tackle that noisy VC with some FaderLube. As it turns out, the volume control on this receiver is completely removable (shaft nut and a couple screws) and is one of the easiest to clean as I've seen. It now works perfectly with zero noise. I set up the R-115 and the 780's in the garage and streamed some Amazon Unlimited. There it was; this combo has a wonderful synergy - clean, articulate but not harsh, revealing in a good way, amazing imaging, and a nice big soundstage. This is what got me back into audio / systems after a hiatus of a few years.
Over the weekend, I brought this receiver and speakers to a friend's house for some listening. It was set up in a much better space than my garage, where I typically use them, and we added an SVS SB12-NSD subwoofer. I've got to say that I was even more impressed - the better listening space and added deep bass made the combo even better. Next, we used a pair of ADS L1590's in place of the 780's. Needless to say, they sounded pretty amazing. This 70 watt receiver powered them to high levels while maintaining the same clarity I noticed at lower levels.
Last night, I connected an original Marantz 2035B to the 780's. It was decent, but I think the 2-way L520's sound better on the Marantz. I then went back to the R-115, and it wasn't even close; the magic was back! All this makes me wonder if the big brother R-117 would be a huge improvement. I'm curious how many use or have tried comparable Luxman power with similar ADS speakers. They almost seem made for each other! I'd def like to find a nice R-117 at some point. I'm mostly over receivers now, other than ones that have sentimental value to me, but I could def find a place for the big Luxman.

Luxman and A/D/S are a great pair of friends to have over! I enjoy my friends.

 

[Sam08861]

Cool, sounds like my plan might just work. Thanks for the scans. I'll give it a shot this weekend or at least investigate wha'll be needed. Hopefully, unplugging the wires to the amps and attaching them to RCA jacks will do it. If not, there shouldn't be too much risk... I hope!

only risk is to remember the input is ‘full power’ so your source will need a volume control or other attenuation.

 

[Eli47]

I can certainly appreciate the comments on the Luxman R-115, as I recently upgraded from it to an HDMI capable unit. I had a tough time replacing it mainly because of it's sound qualities.
I decided that in order to appreciate an upgrade I needed an additional 3dB from the 75W/Ch of the R115, in to my Celestion Ditton 44's.
I ended up with a Marantz SR8012 with 150W/ch. It comes close to the Luxman's sound qualities, but gives me the needed HDMI connections I needed for all my equipment.
I still have the Luxman R115 and plan to use it as a Zone 2 system.

 

[David_NC]

only risk is to remember the input is ‘full power’ so your source will need a volume control or other attenuation.

Yep, I'll test it with the pre out from a Marantz 1060 and then from the R115's pre out, through my sub, and back into the amp input.