Audio Video News

Yamaha today reaffirmed its commitment to home audio with a new collection of high-end audio components for the “most discerning and passionate audiophiles.”

Eight years in the making, the 5000 series draws on the company’s deep expertise in musical instruments in striving to “reproduce sound exactly as the artist intended it to be heard” and builds on the highly regarded 1000 and 2000 series from the ’70s and ’80s.

More than just standalone products, the series comprises five components that have been engineered to work as a system: the NS-5000 speakers ($15,000/pair with stands), C-5000 preamp ($10,000), M-5000 amplifier ($10,000), and GT-5000 turntable ($8,000).

The amp and preamp are available now, while the speakers are slated for delivery in late October; the turntable is due out in early 2020. The products will initially be available at “experience centers” in Chicago (Abt Electronics and Music Direct), Los Angeles (Shelley’s Stereo) Miami (Soundlux Audio), New York (Stereo Exchange), and Washington D.C. (Gramophone).

The NS-5000 is a three-way speaker featuring tweeter, midrange and woofer diaphragms made of a strong yet lightweight synthetic fiber called Zylon that’s said to provide “exceptional acoustic velocity and the ability to reproduce the most delicate details of audio without the sharp resonance peak inherent of harder materials.” A patented acoustic absorber helps “revive the original presence of the music” by eliminating the need for sound-absorbing material, while patented chambers suppress unwanted resonance in the mid and upper frequency ranges.

Cabinet construction is 0.75-inch laminated plywood made from white Japanese birch (with a 1.1-inch-thick baffle) and finished in the same luxurious piano black finish used on Yamaha’s grand pianos.

The C-5000 preamp features fully balanced discrete circuits, with each channel built as a mirror image of the other to minimize the number of connections. Each channel also has its own dual toroidal transformer to ensure “excellent channel separation and voltage stability,” while thick wires and screw-type connections are employed to reduce power supply impedance.

Yamaha’s patented design “floats” the phono EQ, input amp, and line-amp stages to “remove the influence of ground noise,” while a copper-plated chassis minimizes the influence of voltage on the circuit and heavy-duty brass feet provide stability. Connections include six RCA (including phono) and four XLR inputs, one XLR and three RCA outputs, two trigger outputs, and three RCA outputs.

Rated to deliver 100 watts per channel into 8 ohms or 200 watts in to 4 ohms with 0.07% THD, the M-5000 power amplifier features a patented floating and balanced design said to reduce the signal path as much as possible, while minimizing energy loss and lowering impedance for enhanced performance. Unlike conventional amplifier designs, the power supply “floats” from the ground, which is said to remove undesirable impacts of minute voltage fluctuations and ground noise.

The M-5000 also employs a mechanical ground concept, whereby the power transformer, block capacitors, and heat sink are fixed mechanically to the frame to eliminate vibration. It also boasts a massive toroidal transformer for “less flux leakage and excellent power conversion and efficiency.” As with the preamp, thick wires and screw-type connections are used to ensure low-impedance, “minimizing the loss that would otherwise occur with conventional connections and wire assemblies.” In a design that is as functional as it is beautiful, high-precision meters sit behind Asahi glass on a chassis supported by custom-designed feet. Connections include RCA, XLR, and trigger inputs (one each), a trigger output, and brass screw-type speaker output terminals.

Drawing inspiration and design characteristics from Yamaha’s acclaimed GT (Gigantic and Tremendous) series, the GT-5000 turntable features a custom belt-drive system with quartz timing to minimize the influence of the motor; a straight tonearm made of carbon fiber and copper-plated aluminum for “superior rigidity, weight balance, and mechanics,” and a 24-pole AC synchronous motor that generates an accurate sine wave. Rounding out the package is an 11.5-pound outer platter, 4.4-pound inner platter, and heavy-duty feet for increased stability. Like the speakers, the turntable’s wooden base is finished in piano black.

“With this new system, the focus is less on the individual components and more on the immersive and uniquely moving experience created for the listener,” said Alex Sadeghian, Yamaha’s director of consumer audio. “Achieving purity of sound is critical and our new 5000 series was designed with this, and the discerning listener, in mind. Authentic sound reproduction is in the Yamaha DNA, from our musical instruments and the smallest wireless speaker all the way to our flagship hi-fi gear. That is the entire concept behind the 5000 series. It’s an achievement in both art and sound.”

For more information, visit usa.yamaha.com.