THE HI–FI
HEADLINES
64 Burns Bay Road, Lane Cove, NSW 2066
(02) 9427 6755
[email protected] http://www.lenwallisaudio.com.auNEWSLETTER No.YAMAHA’S NEW AMPLIFIERS
A CLASS ABOVE!
W
hat’s in a name?
In the Hi-Fi industry
a brand name can
automatically dictate
the expectation
of quality and performance. Mention
Marantz and most people visualise
a good quality, well priced, middle-
of-the-road product. Mention Krell
and immediately the ultimate in what
this industry has to offer springs to
mind. However, occasionally a brand
challenges the norm – and Yamaha
has just done that.
Yamaha has earned a solid reputation
as an above average, well priced and
reliable brand. A few years ago they
released a range of high-end integrated
amplifiers and matching CD players
ranging in price from $2,600 through
to $9,000. They quickly established
themselves as the equivalent of any
product at those price points, irrespective
of the brand name. Beautifully sounding,
and meticulously built.
Yamaha have now thrown down
the gauntlet to the heavy hitters in our
industry. The new C-5000 pre-amplifier
and matching M-5000 power amplifier
are priced at $12,995 each, audiophile
territory. The good news is that they can
justify the asking price – sonically they
hold their own with others at this price,
and the build quality is better than most.Yamaha has earned an enviable
name in the Home Theatre market.
Every generation of their Aventage AV
receivers (now in its 10th generation)
has won a Sound+Image AV Receiver of
the Year award. However the C/M-
release is pure Hi-Fi. No HDMI inputs, no
on-board DACs, and no in-built streamer.
Just high performance 2-channel audio.
Yamaha has been making musical
instruments for over 125 years, and
built their first Hi-Fi component in 1954.
They know what good sound is. They
also have the resources to design and
build what they consider to be the finest
components on the market – the C/M-
5000 combination is the result.
There is a lot of established high-level
competition at this price point, so this is
a brave move by Yamaha. They are going
head-to-head with iconic companies
such as Krell, and have positioned
the product above high-performance
companies such as Musical Fidelity. In the
few weeks we have had this amplifier we
have formed the opinion that Yamaha
have achieved what they set out to do- produce an amplifier which can hold
its head up in the company of the best
the world can offer. The fact that the
construction quality puts much of its
opposition to shame is a bonus.
It is going to be interesting to see
what influence a ‘name’ will have with
the acceptance of this product. Will
the buying public accept a $26,
amplifier manufactured in Japan, even if
it is designed and manufactured by the
largest (and one of the oldest) musical
company in the world? If they trust their
ears they should, but history has proven
that sometimes choices are based on
more than the obvious. In preparing this
I scrolled though a few forums and was
intrigued by comments along the lines
that Yamaha could not compete against
the established ‘audiophile’ brands,
and that they could not justify asking
‘audiophile’ prices. I am aware that few,
if any, of the people passing comment
have actually heard the product!
It’s a tough gig breaking new ground.
We currently have the C-5000/
M-5000 combination playing through
their very underrated NS-5000 speakers
(described by Edgar Kramer from on-line
review publication Soundstage Australia
as ‘a new icon worthy of veneration’)
in our showroom. Bring your favourite
piece of music and have a listen – you
will be impressed.STOP-PRESS!
PrimaLuna has released a
new range of amplifiers, and
consequently we are clearing
our display stock at very attractive
prices. Please visit our website
for more information.