Yamaha RX-A8A Aventage 11.2-Channel AV Receiver

The A6A produces outstanding precision and definition across the spectrum of DSP processing (ATMOS to hall simulation). I used to be a stereo purist back in the day when older AV receivers introduced a fair amount of DSP noise in the signal path, but today the quality is much improved. Today's multichannel flagship AV receivers deliver a far more satisfying, interesting and emotive experience than even the costliest 2 channel Monobloc stereo systems IMHO. Here's a recipe for the best sound in Home Theater in a 12x20 room that won't break the bank. Yamaha AVENTAGE RX-A6A powering eight surround channel speakers. Emotiva BasX A3 to power FL, FR Mains and Center channel speakers. (Optional) Emotiva BasX A4 to power four Dayton BST-1 Bass Shakers mounted to your choice ... MoreThe A6A produces outstanding precision and definition across the spectrum of DSP processing (ATMOS to hall simulation). I used to be a stereo purist back in the day when older AV receivers introduced a fair amount of DSP noise in the signal path, but today the quality is much improved. Today's multichannel flagship AV receivers deliver a far more satisfying, interesting and emotive experience than even the costliest 2 channel Monobloc stereo systems IMHO. Here's a recipe for the best sound in Home Theater in a 12x20 room that won't break the bank. Yamaha AVENTAGE RX-A6A powering eight surround channel speakers. Emotiva BasX A3 to power FL, FR Mains and Center channel speakers. (Optional) Emotiva BasX A4 to power four Dayton BST-1 Bass Shakers mounted to your choice of furniture. Dual Subwoofers (12" minimum) in opposing corners of the room. I use all SVS Prime speakers and subwoofers. Just be sure all of your speakers have identical tweeters for uniform high frequency and preferably matching midrange drivers. Use 12AWG speaker wire (oxygen free copper) with 90 degree banana plugs and decent quality RCA jacks. Keep your power cables a few inches away from audio and video cables where possible. The YAMAHA's ES9026PRO will produce a clear, precise, stunning sound stage, you'll notice it immediately, and the ES9007S will complete the receivers incredible DSP driving the 8 surround channels in the A6A. The A8A replaces the ES9007S with another ES9026PRO, but I've got to tell you the ES9007S is no slouch. I heard sounds in the A6A that my 2016 YAMAHA RX-A3050 flagship could not reproduce with the same definition. My 7.2.4 Atmos reference disk really came alive on the A6A system. I attribute the higher definition to the newer ES chips and the additional wattage provided by the Emotive A3. The other noticeable difference between the A6A and the A3050 was its seamless integration with my other components, my NAS, Tidal, YouTube and FLAC file streaming. The A3050 had issues with the newest HDMI 2.1 and it was generally more temperamental because of its dated technology. The A6A loafed with everything I connected to it: LG OLED, PANASONIC DP-UB8020EB. And it handles all the different file formats with ease. The Music Cast App gives you access to every detailed setting in the receiver; I use it with my iPad.

This is my second RX receiver, my first is an RX 567 that still sounds as good as it did the day I brought it home. Unfortunately it is not able to decode Dolby atmos or other modern formats. Fortunately the A8A is more than up to the task. Let me say that I have just scratched the surface of it's ability's. Primarily the A8A is used as a home theater,and simply put it sounds like a movie theater. Immersive,thrilling,effortlessly reproducing bombastic sounds one moment and then the delicate sounds of an insect's wings. As for music the A8A is a revelation,at night time the classical radio station switches to jazz ,I am more of an album oriented rock guy, but this station is a one hundred thousand watt blowtorch.plus it's only a mile away from my house. It was so ... MoreThis is my second RX receiver, my first is an RX 567 that still sounds as good as it did the day I brought it home. Unfortunately it is not able to decode Dolby atmos or other modern formats. Fortunately the A8A is more than up to the task. Let me say that I have just scratched the surface of it's ability's. Primarily the A8A is used as a home theater,and simply put it sounds like a movie theater. Immersive,thrilling,effortlessly reproducing bombastic sounds one moment and then the delicate sounds of an insect's wings. As for music the A8A is a revelation,at night time the classical radio station switches to jazz ,I am more of an album oriented rock guy, but this station is a one hundred thousand watt blowtorch.plus it's only a mile away from my house. It was so beautiful sounding Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington preforming Caravan.It literally took my breath away and brought a tear to my eye. My former audio systems have included a pair of klipsch corner horns,Martin Logan monoliths and Bob Carver designed Phase Linear 3 speakers. Yamaha is proud of this product and that pride is reflected in the price. Is it worth it? If you love music,I mean really really really love music,the answer is yes. It's worth every cent.

My Budget Yamaha receiver was on its last legs, so was in the market for a new AVR fully equipt with the latest features and could perform sound wise on par with my previous Yamaha (RV381D).First, I tried the Denon AVR S760H which was (at the time of writing this) relatively new so assumed it would be a safe bet, however for TV viewing (Sky Q, Netflix) the sound was perfectly acceptable, however when using the Phono inputs for my Technics SL1500, I found stereo sound very disappointing, flat, dull, a lack of treble.After many different settings tried, I returned the amp and was recommended to try the Marantz Cinema 70S, what a stunning amp and for TV viewing the sound was superb, it looked the business and felt like a premium receiver, however like the Denon ... MoreMy Budget Yamaha receiver was on its last legs, so was in the market for a new AVR fully equipt with the latest features and could perform sound wise on par with my previous Yamaha (RV381D).First, I tried the Denon AVR S760H which was (at the time of writing this) relatively new so assumed it would be a safe bet, however for TV viewing (Sky Q, Netflix) the sound was perfectly acceptable, however when using the Phono inputs for my Technics SL1500, I found stereo sound very disappointing, flat, dull, a lack of treble.After many different settings tried, I returned the amp and was recommended to try the Marantz Cinema 70S, what a stunning amp and for TV viewing the sound was superb, it looked the business and felt like a premium receiver, however like the Denon stereo listening was again a real let down which to be quite honest I was very disappointed but for the cost, I could not accept and live with the amp especially when my old budget £350 amp sounded better.My last shot was this Yamaha, I would have gone for the model down the R6, however I didn't like the rounded edges of the receiver, and so far, so good, my turntable has come alive again and sounds just like my old budget amp, but better, so sound wise I am very happy with it, and also watching Sky Sports UHD through it, I don't get the annoying delay flicking between UHD and HD channels which I was experiencing on the Denon & Marantz.The drawbacks however, and the main one is the this amp and the models below it cannot output Dolby Vision, reading online this is a well known fault and a big fix is being waited on to solve it, but currently my Nvidia Shield cannot do Dolby Vision, the screen just goes blank which for a £900 amp, I would of expected this to not be an issue, especially as the A2 has been out for a good while.Other minor niggles are having to manually switch between Surround Sound decoder when watching Sky, to 2 channel stereo when listening to music either through Sky, You tube or my turntable, the Marantz would do this automatically with no need to mess.My last current irritation is using the ARC function on the amp, currently if I am using my turntable, I have the video output set to Sky Q, but whenever you press the home button to go on the tv guide whilst listening to a record, it switches the input to Sky Q automatically.Again all the above niggles I feel for an amp of this cost, shouldn't be an issue, however on the flip side it sounds very good on all the inputs I have going through it and ultimately sound is king.