It would be great to say that all audio network transports were the same but in our experience there are large differences between them. Crucially you do not need a flagship system to discern the differences. We have run countless tests plus regular customer demonstrations and the difference between say a Bluesound Node and a Lumin U2 Mini is marked with the Lumin winning the day in the majority of systems.  We recently pitched the Lumin against a Hi-Fi Rose RS130 and that was more of a surprise – the sound from the Hi-Fi Rose just didn’t sit with what we are looking to achieve from our digital music.

Further up the chain we have the Lumin U2x and given how good the Lumin U2 is ( a step up over the U2 Mini with better casework, power supply and connections) you would be forgiving for thinking there was no point. The U2x is the best network transport that Lumin offer and with an offboard power supply ( like in the X2) plus isolated USB it makes a really wonderful sound. We ran it as a transport into our Hegel H600 and also our Esoteric K-01XD SE and it is at home in both systems. The U2x has a Clock option that allows you to change between the Femto , 10M clock or an external clock. It can also act as a clock for other devices – this really sets it apart at this performance point. The Femto clock has been used in Lumin players before and is superb – it is what really helps the top performing players sound so good. I was very surprised to see the option of changing the internal clock given how good the Femto is but as there was a button on the App it made sense to push it and see what would happen. A total shock is what happened, engaging the 10M clock changed the sound significantly. The lift in sound was at the level we would expect with an external clock on products at the next level up. A change similar to moving from the U2mini to the U2 or U2 to U2x – not a small jump at all. It is still early days with our testing but right now the U2x is a main recommendation regardless of you DAC. 

Equalling X1 in both status and build-quality, LUMIN U2X is a completely new flagship streaming transport designed to be the ultimate in digital output.

LUMIN U2X and its separate power supply use the indestructible single-billet CNC chassis construction methods from LUMIN X1 and focusses on transport-specific innovations like a newly developed isolated circuit architecture for the increasingly common USB digital output.

Also completely new for U2X are our most advanced clocking circuits to date which include new 10M clock input and output connections.

A flagship Transport-only unit featuring brand new LUMIN components

• Solid billet CNC chassis for maximum stiffness and isolation
• External power supply featuring solid billet CNC construction and dual toroids and low-noise linear regulator
• Native DSD512 & PCM768 playback
• 10M Clock input and outputs
• New isolated USB audio output
• 3 USB ports including a NEW dedicated isolated USB output
• Fibre Network provides complete isolation from network digital noise
• Dual-Network interface with built-in Network Switch
• Leedh Processing lossless volume control

External dual-toroidal linear power supply

• Solid billet construction using all the same techniques as the main chassis
• Thick aluminium walls provide even more shielding
• Separate digital and analogue circuitry
• Low-noise Linear Regulator
• The highest quality components used throughout

Completely new clocking circuitry
LUMIN U2X is the first LUMIN model to include 10M Clock I/O.

Two 10M clock outputs provide flexibility in synchronising multiple digital audio devices and allows for a “master” clock configuration, where one unit dictates the timing for other units. This approach can help minimize jitter by ensuring all devices are operating on a consistent and stable timing reference.

Dedicated USB port for Audio Output

• New dedicated isolated USB digital audio output port
• Leaves two ports free for music storage and accessories

Latest processing system

• The first LUMIN flagship to feature our fastest processor
• First launched in 2022, the latest architecture provides a new foundation for LUMIN
• Increased processing power and storage capacity provide greater resampling flexibility, audio processing performance and future-proofing.
• Up/down sampling up to DSD256

Single-billet CNC chassis construction

• Like our other flagship products, LUMIN U2X is milled from a solid block of aluminium
• The thick uninterrupted walls provide maximum stiffness and isolation

Builds on the very best of the LUMIN range
External dual-toroid power supply and battleship solid-billet chassis taken from the incredible X1.

Fibre networking and dual networking now a famous LUMIN innovation

The very latest processing hardware and software

All the usual LUMIN refinements

• LUMIN is always evolving. The full LUMIN range benefits from our programme of continuous development, allowing you to relax in the knowledge that wherever possible we’ll bring you the latest streaming technologies.
• Unlike many manufacturers, LUMIN have in-house expertise to cover the full software and hardware development process from top to bottom, resulting in lightning-fast implementation of new features.
• The last 3 major releases have seen the introduction of Qobuz Connect, KKBox, QQMusic, Audirvāna Certification, TIDAL Max high-res FLAC support, Plex server support, additional free FLAC Lossless Radio Stations, improved Spotify Connect sound quality, JPlay iOS app support, and much more – all absolutely free of charge for all users!

Advanced streaming services & technologies
Every LUMIN player comes with support for a wide range of popular streaming services including Roon, TIDAL, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz, Qobuz Connect, Spotify, KKBox, QQMusic, FLAC Radio Stations and more…