Luxman T-45A (1980)
A Japanese-market FM/AM tuner with a five-LED flash tuning indicator and good reception.
Overview
The Luxman T-45A came out in December 1980 at ¥39,800. It was built for the Japanese domestic market, so it runs on 100V power and its tuning range tops out around 90 MHz. The feature that sets it apart is what Luxman called its "flash tuning system."
This is not a digital tuner. There's no keypad, no presets, no scanning. Luxman took the ordinary analog tuning knob and added a row of five LEDs. Turn the knob toward a station and the indicators flash, showing you which direction to go. When you land dead-on frequency, the flashing stops. You get a mechanical tuner's feel with feedback you'd expect from something more modern.
The engineering here is about doing the basics well. The IF stage uses a two-stage configuration of linear phase ceramic filters, chosen for low phase difference, low distortion, and high selectivity. Detection is handled by Kado Racea ICs, a less-common part in the Luxman parts bin, chosen for wide bandwidth and a low distortion factor. The multiplex section uses a PLL system to keep separation high and distortion low. None of these are flashy specs.
The cabinet has a natural rosewood veneer finish. The T-45A weighs 5.1kg and measures 466mm wide by 106mm high by 310mm deep. It draws just 7W from the mains.
Key Features
Flash Tuning System with Five-LED Indicator
This is the T-45A's party piece. When you rotate the tuning knob near an FM station, the five-LED indicator begins to flash, signaling the tuning direction. Keep turning toward the station and the flashing continues. The instant you hit the correct frequency, the flashing stops and the tuner locks in. It takes a steady hand, and it guides you to the center of the channel instead of leaving you to spin a dial and hope.
The LEDs don't clock out once you've found your station. The same indicator then switches roles and displays the incoming signal strength in five discrete levels. One display does both jobs, which keeps the front panel clean and uncluttered.
Two-Stage Linear Phase Ceramic Filter IF Stage
Luxman specified a two-stage configuration of linear phase ceramic filters for the intermediate frequency stage. That points to a priority on phase accuracy over raw selectivity numbers. Linear phase filters minimize group delay distortion, the smearing of transient information that can make music sound vague and unfocused. So the T-45A separates stations cleanly and also preserves the audio signal passing through. The spec sheet shows a two-signal selectivity figure of 55 dB at ±400 kHz and a spurious characteristic of 80 dB.
Kado Racea Detection ICs
The Kado Racea detection ICs are an interesting choice. They are less commonly encountered than the usual Japanese IC fare, and they were picked for wide bandwidth, a low distortion factor and a high signal-to-noise ratio. Paired with the linear phase filters upstream, the detection stage is designed to pull the maximum amount of clean signal from the IF strip. The measured results are respectable for the era: FM stereo distortion of 0.15% at 1kHz and a signal-to-noise ratio of 75dB. That puts the T-45A in the upper tier of late-1970s/early-1980s tuner performance.
PLL Multiplex Decoder
The stereo multiplex section runs on a phase-locked loop system, which Luxman adopted for its stability and precision. PLL decoding keeps the 38kHz subcarrier regeneration locked tight, and that translates directly to channel separation. The T-45A manages 48dB of separation at 1kHz. The PLL approach also contributes to the low distortion rate, so the stereo blend doesn't add artifacts of its own.
Built-In Test Tone Oscillator
The T-45A has a built-in test tone oscillator that outputs a 440Hz tone at a level equivalent to 50% modulation. It's handy for aligning tape decks, since you can record the tone and check for level matching and flutter. You can also use it to verify the tuner's own output stage. Luxman evidently expected its buyers to own a reel-to-reel and care about getting levels right.
Performance and Reception
On the FM side, the T-45A's IHF practical sensitivity is rated at 1.9 µV (10.8 dBf), with 50 dB quieting achieved at 3.5 µV (16.0 dBf). The capture ratio is 1.3dB, so the tuner can lock onto the stronger of two competing stations on the same frequency with minimal distortion. That helps in areas with multipath reflections or adjacent-channel interference.
The frequency characteristic runs from 30 Hz to 15 kHz within -1dB, which covers the full FM broadcast bandwidth with minimal rolloff at the extremes. Output voltage is 0.8V, plenty of drive for whatever preamp or integrated amp follows. Stereo distortion at 1kHz measures 0.15%, and the 75dB signal-to-noise ratio keeps the noise floor well below the music.
The AM section is more utilitarian, as AM was in this era. IHF practical sensitivity is rated at 220 µV/m, with an image ratio of 50dB and a signal-to-noise ratio of 50dB. Distortion comes in at 0.5%, and output voltage is 0.25V (250 mV at 400 Hz, 30% modulation). These are workmanlike numbers. AM was never the point of a tuner like this, but it handles talk radio or news when FM isn't an option.
Korean forum owner comments (via soriaudio.com) are brief: "음질은 참좋네요" - "the sound quality is really good." It comes from an owner rather than a spec sheet.
Collectibility & Value
The T-45A is not a flagship, and it isn't a rare collectible the way some of Luxman's top-end separates have become. It is a well-built, good-sounding Japanese domestic tuner from a respected brand, and that combination has a steady audience. Recent market evidence shows a unit listed on eBay UK (tracked via HifiShark) at £264 as of June 2026, and Russian platforms show listings at 18,000 rubles on both meshok.net and Avito. The Avito listing describes the unit as being in good working condition.
One caution for buyers: the T-45A is a 100V Japanese domestic model, and its FM tuning range tops out around 90 MHz. That means it won't receive the upper portion of the US FM band (87.5-108 MHz) without modification, and it requires a step-down transformer for use on 120V or 240V mains. Buyers outside Japan should factor in both the voltage conversion and the frequency limitation. The rosewood veneer cabinet can suffer from finish degradation over four decades, so inspect photos carefully for veneer condition.
One Avito listing mentions "confident digital reception" and "station memory." These features do not match the T-45A's analog tuning design as documented by audio-database.com. That listing likely conflates the T-45A with another unit shown alongside it, so treat such claims with skepticism.
Spare parts availability is undocumented, and no professional reviews of the T-45A have surfaced in the period press. The record here is built from owner reports and market listings rather than lab tests.
eBay Listings
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