Yamaha A-S500 Integrated Stereo Amplifier
Though the Yamaha brand has in recent years not been at the forefront of consumer conciousness when it comes to amplifiers, their design team has been making serious inroads into improving this situation with the award winning A-S700 and similar models. Now from the same stable comes the Yamaha A-S500 Integrated Stereo Amplifier, and it would seem that the Yamaha development team is not sitting on their laurels and instead taking their efforts to the next level.
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The A-S500 is aimed squarely at the budget end of the separates market which is generally dominated by other manufacturers such as Marantz and Cambridge Audio so does this new entry to this crowded market sector stack up? In a word “Yes” in two “Hell Yes!!!”. I would go so far as to say this amp is one of the best value for money components out there today.
The build is unfussy, simple and solid with a reinforced casing and substantial anti-vibration but still allowing for modern additions such as an iPod dock port. Power wise it is ample for an amplifier aimed at this end of the market providing a convincing 85W per channel. The sound quality is oriented towards tautness, speed of response and rhythmic timing, it is extremely comfortable with complex and fast passages with a clear top end (though staying away form overly top heavy speakers may be a good idea with the A-S500) and a very respectable bass performance. The unit has also made room for the now standard subwoofer, though one minor niggle with the A-S500 is that the sub out is a pre-amp out with summed left and right channels. We did not find this to be a problem and to be honest on much material the Sub is actually an unnecessary distraction.
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It would appear that Yamaha have spend a great deal of time making this unit very capable of standing up against and beating most other amplifiers in its class both in terms of sound quality and features/”bang for the buck”. Apart from the iPod dock (which has an independent power supply for extremely high S/N ratio) the A-S500 also sports a very decent sounding phono input stage and a couple of recording loops and two separately switched sets of speaker sockets. We found that the the A-S500 to work well the Yamaha CD-S300 CD Player with the added advantage that a single Yamaha remote could control both components.
Manufacturers Specs:
Minimum RMS Output Power: 85W x 2
Dynamic Power per Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms): 130/150/185/220 W
Frequency Response (CD etc, Pure Direct On): 10 Hz-100 kHz В±1 dB
Controls: Volume, bass, treble, loudness & balance, source selection, record out selection, speaker selection, pure direct mode selection
Inputs – REAR
3 x stereo line in (via 3 pairs RCA/phono, gold plated)
2 x tape loops (stereo in and out via 4 pairs RCA/phono, gold plated)
Turntable (phono) in (via 2 x RCA/phono, gold plated)
Dock socket for iPod dock
Outputs – REAR
2 pairs independently switchable speaker outputs (4mm banana plug/binding posts)
Subwoofer pre-amp out (via RCA/phono)
Outputs – FRONT
Headphone socket (via 6.3mm (1/4″) stereo jack, gold plated)
Extra-stable with dual aluminum-extruded heat sinks and center bar construction
ToP-ART (Total Performance Anti-Resonance Technology)
Built-in port for compatible Yamaha iPod docks (EG: Yamaha YDS-12. Sold separately)
Auto Power Off
Dimensions (W x H x D): 17-1/8″ x 6″ x 15-1/4″
Weight: 22.7 lbs
Price: $399 (Check Amazon For Current Pricing)
November 23, 2010
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Aiki В· 
2 Comments
Tags: A-S500, Amplifiers, Home Theater Amplifier, Stereo Amplifer, Yamaha В· Posted in: Amplifiers
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[...] stop there though, we tested a pair of the P362s in a simple stereo configuration with our Yamaha A-S500 Amplifier and found the bass to be excellent, these units can handle almost anything you throw at [...]
The Yamaha a-s500 integrated amplifier is everything a music lover could reasonably ask for all in one unit!
In the United Kingdom this amp was voted product of the year by “What Hi-Fi” and is simply considered to be the best amp ever made in the sub ВЈ500 category sector …. That speaks for itself!
I own one of these and am well pleased with it’s overall stereo sound quality.
I wish that they would have put a IEC power socket on the rear so i could have fitted my upgraded power cable to her as opposed to the captive one that is fitted, but hey, i guess that you cant get everything!
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