Yamaha's new crop of integrated amps

You'd be amazed at how many people discount Yamaha out of hand rather than comparing models like the A-S3000 and A-S2100 to Accuphase, Luxman, and McIntosh in person.

I had a discount on McIntosh gear when I bought the A-S3000 and compared it to the McIntosh MA6700. The Yamaha was significantly better for my application. People forget that companies like Sony and Yamaha have resources that few niche hifi companies can match when they decide to do hifi well.

My audiophile friends who have spent well above the cost of the A-S3000 on Esoteric, Devialet, McIntosh, etc think it's funny that I have a Yamaha amp and the Sony HAP-Z1ES... Until they hear them and see the level of connectivity and simplicity.

The only thing I've changed since buying the A-S3000 is that I sold my black one and bought a silver one. If you like the Yamaha sound--neutral and resolving-- but have larger speakers to drive, the A-S3000 has too many strengths to overlook. The best part is that you will be hard pressed to find an amp from the more "credible" hifi companies with fully balanced design, two sets of XLR inputs, two sets of speaker connections, a great photo section, etc.

I do think that the amplifier would be wasted if paired with darker sounding speakers or highly efficient speakers where the A-S2000 or A-S2100 would do. Just depends on your "ear" or preferred sound profile.

SeanMG - do you have a clue what the peak current capacity of the AS-3000 is? I'm looking at getting it or a Musical Fidelity M6500i integrated.

Thanks!

recent Yamaha amps build etc

I use a Yamaha AS 500 and I am really happy with the sound quality and general performance. Never gets hot, the IPod connection from amp (bought the YDS 12 for that purpose) is really convenient and useful. I agree that the plastic knobs are a bit of a skimp but as was mentioned I rarely use them as I never use tone controls.
My issue with the amplifier and its mates is the poor quality speaker connectors - it would have been great to have real binding posts that could take spade connectors. The sound quality is really good though so money was spent where it counts and matters it seems.

I added an A-S701 to my main system and I'm very happy with it. I still have the A-S501 pulling TV and background duties in the living room.

A couple of things I like about the 701 is a removable power cord, a bit more juice and the CD direct is a nice feature. Sound wise they are very close but the 701 has a bit better separation of vocals/instruments. The phono stage sounds cleaner and more defined as well. Obviously, I'm a big fan of the new Yammy's!

I have the as500. My first Yamaha. And am very happy with it. In the future when I upgrade it will be another Yamaha with no hesitation.

I have the A-S801 and I'm wondering if it's worthwhile to spend on good speaker cables and interconnects. My current speakers are Boston Acoustics A 360, I'm currently using Monoprice interconnects and 12g wire designed for car subwoofers.

spdracer said:

I have the A-S801 and I'm wondering if it's worthwhile to spend on good speaker cables and interconnects. My current speakers are Boston Acoustics A 360, I'm currently using Monoprice interconnects and 12g wire designed for car subwoofers.

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NO. Your just fine with what you have. Unless you need special shielding or a robust build quality you should be good. Cables IMO opinion are one of the biggest scams in audio.

If you need something with a really durable build quality and better shielding then Blue Jeans Cable would be all you will ever need.

sbaradaran said:

SeanMG - do you have a clue what the peak current capacity of the AS-3000 is? I'm looking at getting it or a Musical Fidelity M6500i integrated.

Thanks!

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Sorry for the delay. I don't have the numbers on hand but I think that Australian Hifi did lots of tests on the A-S3000. I considered Musical Fidelity (M6I) but they have a different house sound from what I was looking for. Very enjoyable sound just too warm sounding for my taste in speakers.

I have the A-S300 and was so impressed that I spent some of the money I was saving for a Mcintosh tube pre / solid state amp on a A-S2100 / CDS2100 combo. I could not be more pleased, but I am confused about the Pure Direct Mode in this model. I cannot tell the difference, except to see the lights go out on the SACD player display. Am I missing something? The A-S300 clearly demonstrates a sound difference between both modes. I am using balanced XLR cables.

Blaubaer said:

That's really weird, is Yamaha lying when they say "Simple yet sophisticated design (aluminium front panel and knobs)" on their website?

http://europe.yamaha.com/en/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/a-s501/?mode=model

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I live in Europe and both my AS300 and AS2100 are Euro specs. the lower model has plastic knobs and the higher model has Aluminum. Both sound fantastic. Don't hung up on the knob. I upgraded not for the knob but for the increase in sound quality. I have no regrets, but I will tell you that ten times the price for only 20 percent increase is not a good return for the money; meaning that the AS300 is very good for the money. So far the knobs and the display has not added any enjoyment to my music. Hope this helps!

A-S801

Frequency Response is 20hz-20khz, the same as a cheap throw away Panasonic back in the seventies ! Then they are not even listing the Total Harmonic Distortion !

I know why....cause it is horrible !

For nine hundred dollars you can shop the used markets and luck out and find an impressive complete setup piece by piece and have it all rebuilt for the same money as one inferior unit !

I guess, some people need that feeling when they buy something new ! I can see, a new turntable or a new set of speakers ! But not amps and receivers !

Plenty of excellent specs on Yamaha's web site for those that can click twice to see them. 100wpc into 8 ohms 20-20k @ 0.019% is nothing to mock, with a flat frequency response of 10 Hz - 100 kHz +/- 1.0 dB.

Specs
Receiver / Integrated Amplifier
Minimum RMS Output Power (8 ohms, 20 Hz-20 kHz) 100 W + 100 W (0.019% THD)
High Dynamic Power/Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms) 140 / 170 / 220 / 290 W
Damping Factor 240
Frequency Response 10 Hz - 100 kHz +/- 1.0 dB
Total Harmonic Distortion (CD to Sp Out, 20 Hz-20 kHz) 0.019% (50 W / 8 ohms)
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (CD) 99 dB (input shorted, 200 mV)
Audio In / Out 8 / 2
Digital Input Yes (optical / coaxial)
USB Input Yes (type B)
Subwoofer Out Yes
DC out Yes
Pure Direct Yes
ToP-ART Yes
Switchable CD Direct Amplification Yes
Standby Power Consumption 0.5 W
Power Management (Auto Power Standby) Yes
Dimensions (W x H x D) 17-1/8" x 6" x 15-1/4"
Weight 26.7 lbs.

Djcoolray said:

A-S801

Frequency Response is 20hz-20khz, the same as a cheap throw away Panasonic back in the seventies ! Then they are not even listing the Total Harmonic Distortion !

I know why....cause it is horrible !

For nine hundred dollars you can shop the used markets and luck out and find an impressive complete setup piece by piece and have it all rebuilt for the same money as one inferior unit !

I guess, some people need that feeling when they buy something new ! I can see, a new turntable or a new set of speakers ! But not amps and receivers !

Click to expand...

THD doesn't really mean a whole lot these days, IMO. From what I've been told by a buddy who has been auditioning an A-S801, it's a hell of a piece of kit for the money. Especially the built-in DAC he said. DSD compatible and more.

This same buddy has owned a huge array of gear, vintage and new, he has been A/Bing the 801 against his Accuphase E202 which is fully restored... He says the Accuphase will be going up for sale soon.

I guess, some people need to use a lot of exclamation points !

- Woody

I'm currently using an A-S801 and find it rather bright and irritating with only a slight improvement in bass compared to the A-S500 I was using. From my understanding Yamaha has changed the amp circuitry in the 701, and 801 models compared to the A-S700. The 301, and 501 are the same. There is an Audioholics video review on YouTube for the A-S801 with some power output numbers. It's an impressively built piece it's just not working in my system. I also use warmer speakers but this new model is not to my liking sound wise.

There's so much more to the 801 than you can gather from exploring forums. I personally do not think you can touch the 801's performance with the $900 price tag on the used market, let alone NEW.

It comes stock with a phenomenal built in DAC (with USB and DSD compatible), quality phono stage, plenty of line level inputs, and a very user friendly set of tone controls that make sense (if that's your thing). And if you like headphones, the headphone section is discreet and dead quiet. Definitely not an afterthought. On top of all of that, the build quality is completely acceptable. And that's coming from a vintage gear nut!

I am currently running one with somewhat easy to drive KEF R500's and am floored with the performance.

With the features listed above, all of which I care about, this amp, to me, is major value. No doubt more money would get you higher performance, but at this point in my life, I feel like this machine is a gift from the audio gods.

As far as it sounding "bright"...

I have modern speakers that I would put into the "laid back" category. I've paired my speakers with more expensive gear and felt that I wasn't really giving them the life I wanted. The Yamaha breathes some air and life into the KEFs. $2600 retail speakers might deserve better, but I think this is the best sound I've had in my living room since I started the hobby. So whatever that's worth...

When I think about upgrading, I wouldn't know where to begin without feeling major pains in my bank account. Starting with just the simple DAC, I'd already be forced to spend 2/3 of my entire $900 budget to get right back where I started!

How's the phono pre-amp on this thing sound? Just sold my pre-amp with the intent to upgrade to a Pro-ject Tube Box S (or DS), but now I'm wondering if the money might be better spent on an a-s501.

spdracer said:

My A-S801 is due to be delivered today and I'm wondering if anyone has connected a sub to this unit and if it has the capability to adjust the sub level from the amp bass control. Also would you recommend using the rca red and white out from the cd player, or the coaxial digital out. The cd player is a vintage NAD 515 5 disc changer

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Use the digital out on the CD player. I run a modern NAD CD player and the DAC is much better on the Yamaha.

Sounds like I'm the only person to not be that impressed with the A-S801. In fact I'm tempted to go back to NAD even though I just got a bad unit. However with all the great responses from non reviewers about this amp I'm gonna hold on to it for a week or two longer and see what happens.

What speakers are you using with it? What cables?

- Woody

Energy RC-10's and some regular 12 gauge speaker wire terminated with banana plugs.

Just gonna live with it for a couple of weeks and try and forget about it and just listen. I have found that things can sometimes be over analyzed and it's good to just step back relax. Especially with this hobby. If it still bugs me in a week or two I will send it back with no regrets. I hope I'm wrong because this is a beast of an amp with great build quality.