Luxman PD-151
Preserving the fragile beauty of analogue music reproduction.
Audiophiles love the warmth, organic texture and uncanny beauty of analogue music reproduction.
But that beauty is notoriously fragile.
Even slight variations in platter speed can blur the musical pitch, placing the sound behind an unnatural veil.
And when music lovers turn up the volume, the phono cartridge can pick up even subtle chassis vibration and resonance – distortions the cartridge cannot distinguish from the desired tracking of the record groove.
At LUXMAN, they understand.
And they built that understanding into the PD-151 analogue player, a more accessible alternative to our highly regarded PD-171A / AL.
From the 10 mm thick aluminum top plate to the high-torque motor, the ultra-wide drive belt and the 4.0 kg platter, every aspect of the Luxman PD-151 pursues just one purpose.
To do full justice to the ineffable beauty of analogue sound.
Proprietary high-torque brushless DC motor
The purity of musical pitch depends entirely on the stability of platter rotation.
That’s why LUXMAN engineers went to extraordinary lengths.
They start with their unique sine wave/Pulse Width Modulation power supply, which provides ultra-stable direct current to our proprietary DC brushless motor.
The result of years of development, this high-torque motor incorporates low-noise acoustic bearings and an optimised number of coil turns.
The drive system monitors and maintains speed with our Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) feedback control loop.
Proportional means quick achievement of target speed.
Integral means fast correction of minor errors.
And differential means control over rapid fluctuations.
For added precision, the motor drives the outside flange of the platter through an uncommonly wide belt
Single point cross tonearm
The tonearm incorporates the classic single point cross suspension bearing for ultra-smooth motion.
Static balance accommodates different cartridge-headshell combinations.
Underslung chassis fights vibration
LUXMAN engineered an underslung, suspended structure with components mounted under the 10 mm thick aluminum upper chassis.
This achieves high rigidity while suppressing vibration.
Transformer and motorisolation damping
LUXMAN understands that even the player’s internal components can cause distortion-inducing vibration.
That’s why the Luxman PD-151 isolates the chassis from the motor and power transformer with advanced rubber damping mounts.
Sight unseen, these mounts help enable music reproduction of the highest order.
Separate 33-1/3, 45 and 78 rpm pitch adjustments
You can fine-tune the musical pitch of play-back with separate front panel adjustments for 33-1/3, 45 and 78 rpm.
An LED indicator flashes green when the pitch is flat, flashes blue when it’s sharp, and lights solid green when the PD-151 is precisely on-pitch.
Luxman PD-151 4.0 kg machined aluminum platter and stainless steel spindle
After going to extremes on the power supply, drive motor and belt, LUXMAN engineers were determined to optimise the last guarantor of stable speed: the platter itself.
The 4.0 kg platter acts as a flywheel with extremely high moment of inertia, 21.9N-cm2, to suppress even minuscule speed variations.
A platter this heavy requires bearings capable of sustaining extremely high pressure. LUXMAN engineers specified polyether ether ketone (PEEK) thrust bearings and a brass radial bearing filled with organic molybdenum oil for effortlessly smooth rotation and long life.
These exhaustive measures require time, attention and cost.
But they pay off in exceptionally stable platter rotation. Conservatively rated, wow & flutter is less than 0.04%, weighted RMS. In this way, the PD-151 delivers music with uncommon clarity, faithfully reproducing the original.
10mm thick aluminum top plate
Their latest design, mounting the three major elements of a turntable – tone arm, motor and platter, onto a hair-line finished 10mm thick top panel, aims to achieve beauty, simplicity and functionality.
The matt black lower chassis creates a bold, yet sensitive contrast.
Heavy-duty insulator feet
A player this massive requires specially engineered feet.
They created large insulators from rubber carefully selected for superb damping across all operating temperatures.
Each insulator offers 8 mm of independent height adjustment
Headshell
They make the supplied headshell from magnesium alloy for reduced weight and high strength.
Phono cable
As you would expect, the supplied DIN-RCA output cable uses audiophile grade Oxygen Free Copper.
Specifications Luxman PD-151
Phono motor section
| Drive system | Belt drive system |
| Motor | Brushless DC motor with PID control |
| Platter | 30cm machined alminum plate |
| Revolution | 33 1/3rpm, 45rpm, 78rpm(3 speeds selectable) |
| Revolution adjustment range | ±6%(each rotation speed adjustable independently) |
| Wow and flutter | 0.04% or less(W.R.M.S.) |
| Weight(Platter) | 4.0kg |
Tone arm section
| Type | Static balanced, S shaped, universal type |
| Bearing | Single point cross suspension |
| Effective length | 229mm |
| Overhang | 15mm |
| Tracking error angle | +1.9° to -1.1° |
| Applicable cartridge weight | 4 to 12g (including headshell 17 to 25g) |
| Adjustable height range | 38 to 60mm |
| Anti-skating | 0 to 3g |
| Power source | 230V~ 50Hz |
| Power consumption | 6W |
| Dimensions | 465 (W) × 133(up to top face of platter)(H)× 393(D) mm |
| Net weight | 15.7kg (main unit) |
| Accessories | Platter, Headshell, Rubber mat Rubber belt,Platter mount handle (2pieces) EP adaptor, Counterweight Arm adjustment hex wrench set (3types) Flathead screwdriver for rotation speed adjustment phono cable (DIN→RCA : already installed on the unit), Power cable |
