Luxman A-311 (1992–1993)

A 21-kilogram bookshelf integrated that Luxman built in Korea and sold in champagne gold. Three decades on, it still trades for less than the price of a decent cartridge.

Overview

The A-311 gets overlooked. It doesn't have the cachet of Luxman's tube-era gear or the exotic separates that made the brand's name. It's a solid-state stereo integrated amplifier, built in 1992 and 1993 according to hifi-wiki.com, and manufactured in Korea. Collectors care about that, because Luxman's production had moved well away from its Japanese origins by this point. It was sold in two finishes, black and champagne gold, and the champagne version turns up repeatedly in European listings. Per radiomuseum.org, it's a smaller version of the A-321. The two share a service manual, and the manual tells owners to "insert the AC plug of the A-321/A-311 into a suitable wall outlet," which is about as explicit a statement of family relation as factory documentation gets.

The spec sheet isn't the interesting part here. The ratio of mass to power is. The amplifier weighs approximately 21 kg according to Catawiki's listing data, which is a lot of iron and heatsink for an amplifier rated at 40 watts per channel into 8 ohms. That figure comes from hifiengine.com, and it's the more conservative of the two numbers floating around: springair.de lists the same amplifier as "2 x 70 Watt output." The conflict is unresolved in the available documentation, so treat real-world output as somewhere in that range, depending on load and measurement conditions. The frequency response isn't in dispute. It's quoted at 20Hz to 20kHz, which is nothing dramatic but confirms the amplifier was designed to pass the audible band cleanly rather than chase ultrasonic specs.

The dimensions are 438 x 125 x 363 mm, or 17.2 x 4.9 x 14.3 inches. That's a standard full-width footprint, but only 125 mm tall. This is the "bookshelf" shape radiomuseum.org describes, and it stacks neatly under a turntable or CD player without dominating a rack. In champagne gold it has a very specific early-90s look. It's closer to the European hi-fi of the period than to the brushed-aluminum seriousness of the Japanese high-end, which is presumably why so many surviving examples turn up in German, Polish, and Ukrainian listings.

Key Features

40 Watts Per Channel Into 8Ω — Or 70, Depending Who You Ask

The power rating is the A-311's most contested number. Hifiengine.com lists 40 watts per channel into 8 ohms. Springair.de claims 2 x 70 watts. Without a factory spec sheet in hand, both figures circulate and neither can be fully verified. In practice, 40 watts of solid-state power into a reasonably efficient speaker is plenty for a small room, and the 21 kg chassis suggests a substantial power supply and heatsinking, the kind of build that tends to deliver its rated power without drama. Modern class-D integrateds quoting 50 watts from a 2 kg box are a different philosophy entirely.

Book-Shelf Chassis in Black or Champagne Gold

At 125 mm tall, the A-311 is a low-profile integrated, what radiomuseum.org calls a "book-shelf unit." Two colors were offered, black and champagne gold, and the champagne version is the one that shows up most often in European classifieds. The finish is period-correct for 1992: warm, slightly matte, and prone to showing fingerprints in a way black anodizing isn't.

CD IN Jacks and a Source Set Built for the Digital Era

The service manual excerpt confirms a dedicated pair of "CD IN" jacks, described as "for connection of a CD (compact disc) player." That dates the amplifier. By 1992, CD had moved from novelty to primary source, and Luxman gave it its own labeled input rather than burying it in an aux. The full input complement isn't captured in the available documentation.

Historical Context

The A-311 was manufactured in 1992 and 1993, according to hifi-wiki.com, and built in Korea. Luxman at this point was Lux Corp., and the company's production had shifted substantially away from Japan. Collectors draw sharp lines between the Japanese-built Luxman of the 1970s and the later international-production models. The A-311 G variant sold for 650 DM in Germany, which places it in the mid-fi bracket rather than the high-end. That was serious money in 1992, but not aspirational money.

radiomuseum.org documents the relationship to the A-321 and describes the A-311 as a smaller version of that model. The two share a service manual, and the manual's text refers to them jointly throughout. "The A-321/A-311" appears repeatedly in the connection instructions. That helps owners, since the service documentation covers both. The 34-page English manual includes block diagrams, schematics, PCBs, and a parts list, which is unusually complete for a mid-market integrated of this era.

Collectibility & Value

The A-311 is not a collector's amplifier in the usual sense. It doesn't have the tube glow, the exotic circuitry, or the Japanese-built provenance that drives prices on Luxman's earlier integrateds. It has competence and a low entry price. An auction bid of €27 is listed for Poland's OLX platform dated Sep 4, 2026, and a Ukrainian OLX listing asks 6,999 грн. Both figures put the A-311 in the "affordable way into Luxman ownership" category rather than the investment category.

Condition varies widely. Catawiki listings describe examples as "in good physical condition and with a tested working condition" and "very good / Tested, working," which suggests that surviving units are generally functional rather than parts donors. A German eBay listing advertised a serviced example with a one-year warranty. That's the exception, since most A-311s trade as-is. Springair.de lists the model as "no longer available," which is unsurprising for a 1992 amplifier, but means no new-old-stock to hope for.

Documentation is good. The service manual runs 34 pages in English with block diagrams, schematics, PCBs, and parts lists. The owner's manual is 14 pages, available in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Swedish. That's better support than many higher-profile models get.

The 21 kg weight matters for shipping. This is not a light amplifier, and international shipping costs will often exceed the purchase price. Domestic or regional purchases make far more sense, which is presumably why so many of the listings found are within continental Europe.