Luxman K-05 (production years vary by source: 1983–1985; September 1983–1986; 1983–1987)
The Luxman K-05 is listed here under its catalog designation K-005, though the deck itself wears "K-05". As The Vintage Knob put it, it is an Alpine AL-90 in disguise. The first hundred units shipped with an unmodified Alpine mechanism. Later examples got some mods, but the bones stayed Alpine. Even the CTS auto-calibration system (which sets bias, level, and EQ) came from the AL-90, where Alpine called it BLES. The display and control layout are identical too. Luxman's own planned flagship, the X-3K, never made it into production. That is how the K-05, originally intended as the smaller model, ended up carrying the flag.
Luxman brought its own electronics and a seriously built transport. The GT drive is a zinc-alloy diecast assembly with two pairs of capstan bearings supporting a closed-loop dual-capstan, three-motor configuration. The capstan motor is a direct-drive, FG-servo, coreless/brushless/slotless DC type. The record head is a three-layer laminated sendust. Playback uses a HIP (Hot Isostatic Press) ferrite head, and erase uses a dual-gap sendust/ferrite junction. The audio circuits use Duo-β and DC configuration, OFC wiring runs between heads and amps, and the chassis is copper-plated. A supplementary manual bias pot lets you fine-tune beyond the automatic CTS calibration. Dolby B and C are both on board, with the ICs sourced from Hitachi.
Known Specifications
- Type: 3-head stereo cassette deck, single transport
- Tape speed: 4.75 cm/s
- Heads: 3-layer laminated sendust (rec); HIP ferrite (play); dual-gap sendust/ferrite (erase)
- Motors: 1× DD FG servo coreless/brushless/slotless DC (capstan); 1× DC (reel); 1× DC (head housing)
- Wow & flutter: < 0.022% (JIS/WRMS)
- Frequency response (Type IV): 15 Hz–27 kHz; 20 Hz–22 kHz (±1.5 dB)
- S/N ratio: 73 dB (Dolby C, Type IV); 67 dB (Dolby B, Type IV); 60 dB (Dolby off, Type IV)
- Inputs: 100 mV / 50 kΩ; Outputs: 550 mV / 47 kΩ; headphones 50 mW / 8 Ω
- FF/REW: < 80 s (C-60)
- Dimensions: 46 × 36.1 × 15.8 cm; 11.5 kg
- Features: CTS auto-calibration, Data Memory, Rec-Mute, Auto-Space, Auto-Rewind, Auto-Play, Peak/VU meters, timer rec/play, Dolby B/C, pitch control, optional AK-10/AK-20 wired remote
Documentation on the K-05 is thin. There is no original price, no production numbers, and no period press reviews have surfaced in the archive's research. What's certain is the Alpine connection, the GT transport, and that this was a heavyweight contender in high-end analog tape of the mid-1980s.
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