Luxman R-114 Stereo Receiver Review

The Luxman R-114, a compact, 50-watt stereo receiver, offers most of the features of larger and more expensive units. Its digital-synthesis am/fm tuner has twenty preset channels selected by ten buttons that store and recall two different frequencies, either am or fm. Manual (single-step) and auto-scan tuning modes are provided as well as switchable mono/stereo fm operation. A preset-scan feature samples each stored channel for 5 seconds before proceeding to the next one.

The amplifier section is rated at 50 watts output per channel into 8-ohm loads, from 20 to 20,000 Hz, with no more than 0.05 percent total harmonic distortion. Dynamic power ratings are 70 watts into 8 ohms, 100 watts into 4 ohms, and 130 watts into 2 ohms.

The R-114 has inputs for two high-level sources (a/v and CD) and a combined phono/auxiliary input that can be assigned to either of those sources with a rear-apron slide switch. There are also recording and playback connections for two tape decks. The input source is selected by pressing one of seven buttons on the panel, lighting a red led above it. A knob switch selects the source to be sent to the tape-recording outputs, independently of the listening selection. In addition to its source settings, this switch has an off position and two dubbing positions.

The front panel also includes de-featable bass and treble tone controls, a balance control, and a large volume knob. Small pushbuttons activate an infrasonic filter and a loudness-compensation circuit. The two sets of speaker outputs can be connected by separate front-panel buttons.

The display window shows the station frequency, band, and preset channel number. Red LED’s show the status of the tuner control buttons, and relative signal strength is shown by a five-segment sloping indicator. There is also a sensor window for the supplied infrared remote control, which operates the input selector and the motorized volume control and switches the receiver on and off. The compact remote control has a “mute” button (not present on the receiver’s panel) that reduces the volume by 20 dB, causing the red led in the volume knob to blink, as well as several buttons dedicated to operating a compatible Luxman CD player, record changer, or tape deck through Luxman’s multiroom remote system or a cable connection to the receiver.

The rear apron of the receiver contains the various signal input and output jacks plus several connectors for use with other Luxman components in a multiroom installation. There are binding posts for the supplied am wire-loop antenna and an F-type coaxial jack for a 75-ohm fm antenna feeder. The two pairs of speaker outputs are insulated binding posts, which also accept dual banana-plug connectors. There are three AC outlets, two of them switched. The Luxman R-114 measures 17-1/4 inches wide, 14-3/4 inches deep, and 4-3/4 inches high and weighs just over 17 pounds. Price: $550.

Lab Tests

The R-114’s stereo channel separation was exceptional, better than 50 dB from 50 to 5,000 Hz and exceeding 40 dB over the full 30- to 15,000-hz range. The maximum separation was an impressive 55 to 56 dB from 400 to 1,500 Hz. The fm frequency response varied less than 0.6 dB between 30 and 15,000 Hz. Although the receiver itself accepts only a 75-ohm input, it is provided with a separate 300- to 75-ohm transformer to match the majority of fm antennas in the United States, so we chose to express its voltage sensitivity referred to a 300-ohm impedance level. The mono usable sensitivity was 13.5 dBf (2.6 microvolts, or μv). The more important 50-dB quieting sensitivity was 14 dBf (2.8 μv) in mono and 36 dBf (34.7 μv) in stereo. The stereo and muting thresholds were both 33 dBf (24.6 μv).

The fm tuner’s distortion measured about 0.35 percent in mono at signal levels greater than 35 dBf (30 μv). In stereo, as sometimes happens, it was lower, reading about 0.2 percent at input levels of 65 dBf (1,000 μV) or higher. The tuner noise level was quite low, however, measuring —83 dB in mono and — 76 dB in stereo at 65 dBf. Since the noise at all levels was substantially lower than the total harmonic distortion (THD) plus noise, the result was very clean and quiet fm reception (the distortion being inaudible under actual listening conditions).

Most other tuner measurements were equally gratifying. The capture ratio of 1.4 dB was very good, as was the 66-dB AM rejection, and alternate-channel selectivity, at 60 dB, was good. Only the 47-dB image-rejection measurement was not up to the receiver’s otherwise high standards, although it surpassed its 45-dB rating. The am tuner section’s frequency response was down 5 dB at 20 Hz and 6 dB at 2,700 Hz.

The R-114’s audio section was very good, especially for a basic 50-watt receiver. A 1,000-Hz output waveform (both channels driven) clipped at 67 watts into 8 ohms and at 135 watts into 4 ohms. We could not make a 2-ohm measurement, since the amplifier oscillated at about 200 kHz when we reduced the load resistance below about 2.5 ohms. This should present no problems in use with actual speaker loads, however (we used the R-114 with a pair of speakers whose impedance falls below 3 ohms at one point and heard no signs of distortion at any listenable level). In dynamic power tests, the power output at clipping was 83 watts into 8 ohms, 170 watts into 4 ohms, and 170 watts into 2 ohms (the 20-milli-second bursts of this test apparently did not trigger the instability we had noted with continuous input signals). The slew factor exceeded our measurement limit of 25.

The 1,000-Hz audio distortion with 8-ohm loads was typically about 0.005 percent from 20 watts to beyond the rated 50-watt output. With 4-ohm loads, the readings were about the same up to more than 100 watts per channel. Distortion measurements at rated power and half power into 8 ohms showed a maximum reading of 0.025 percent at 20,000 Hz and 50 watts output, but typical readings were 0.006 to 0.008 percent from 20 to 5,000 Hz at full power and slightly less at half power. We also made power-band-width measurements with our Audio Precision test system, which plotted the maximum power output versus frequency for a distortion level of 0.1 percent. Into 8 ohms, the output was between 65 and 67 watts from 40 to 30,000 Hz. Into 4 ohms, it was between 85 and 90 watts from 40 to 40,000 Hz.

The input sensitivity for a 1-watt reference output was 21 millivolts (mv) through a high-level input and 0.37 mv through the phono input. The respective A-weighted noise levels were —80.5 and —76 dB. The phono input’s termination was 47.000 ohms in parallel with 230 picofarads, and the input overloaded at levels from 130 to 160 mv over the 20- to 20,000-hz range. The RIAA phono-equalization error was + 0.25, -0 dB from 20 to 20,000 Hz.

The tone controls had a maximum range of approximately ±12 dB. The bass control shifted the turnover frequency between 100 and 400 Hz, and the treble curves were hinged at about 1,500 Hz. The infrasonic filter began to roll off the response at about 60 Hz, to — 3 dB at 20 Hz and —7 dB at 10 Hz. The loudness compensation boosted both low and high frequencies; below a — 20-dB setting of the volume control the maximum bass boost was 10 dB (beginning at about 300 Hz), and beginning at 5,000 Hz the highs were boosted to +4 dB at 20.000 Hz.

Comments

Most competitive receivers resemble each other to a considerable degree, making it difficult to establish a preference on the basis of performance qualities alone. I have felt for some time that receiver designers were trying to make their products meet the needs of almost every potential customer, and one result has been large, clumsy units whose panels were studded with buttons and lights, most of which would probably never be used by the average buyer.

Every once in a while, a receiver comes along that simply tries to be as good as possible within its price constraints and not necessarily all things to everybody. The Luxman R-114 is a good example of this approach. Its panel is about as simple as they come in this high-tech age, yet it does just about everything one could ask of a stereo receiver. The fm tuner is good where it has to be good (capture ratio, noise, channel separation), and the amplifier power is more than adequate for most people. The preamplifier has all the input/output flexibility that most users will ever need, yet all of these functions are controlled by a few plainly marked buttons. The display tells you what you need to know, omitting the more trivial (and possibly confusing) information. Even the remote control is as simple as it can possibly be, yet for those who have a Luxman multiroom system it can be more versatile than some other, more complex remote units.

In fact, I have only one operational criticism of this fine receiver, which could be easily remedied. Although the exceptionally legible white-on-black panel markings are excellent, most of the knobs lack visible index marks. There is a minute dimple on the front of each of the small black knobs, but it cannot be seen (or felt) under normal operating conditions. The tone and balance controls have light center detents, but there is no reasonable way to determine which source has been selected for taping without using cross-lighting to see the dimple on the rec OUT selector knob. White dots in place of the dimples would solve this problem, and I hope Luxman will add them to future units.

In every other respect, our tests and use of the Luxman R-114 left me with a thoroughly positive reaction. It would be hard to find another receiver at its price with the same combination of virtues and freedom from significant faults.

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