Audio A-S301BL Natural Sound Integrated Stereo Amplifier (Black)

After many years with surround sound, a move has forced me to simplify to two channels to fit the available space. I chose the Yamaha A-S801 integrated amplifier because it reminds me of the stereo amplifiers I admired in the 1970s, except that it includes optical and coaxial digital inputs and a USB DAC. Yamaha A-S801 provides old school class AB power that sounds smooth, clean, and powerful, and effortlessly drives my speakers to high volume. It is flexible enough to provide all the inputs and outputs I need. It is easy to configure and control. It is not permanently limited to an internal tuner, surround decoders, DSP, center and surround amplifier channels, complex menus and on-screen displays, or streaming device interface and services. I chose an external HD radio tuner. Optical digital input allows connecting my TV for PCM digital audio and my TV provides HDMI switching for Blu-ray player and digital video devices. The internal USB DAC allows me to choose any computer Operating System and streaming services. I connect a turntable and an external Bluetooth receiver. The variable loudness control is useful. A fixed loudness button would be useless. I wish it had tape monitor / signal processor loops and preamplifier outputs. I let my wife pick the color. This will likely be the last amplifier I will ever need.

What a great piece of gear this is, I retired a long in the tooth Jolida tube amp in desperate need of a full recap for this. No hum or distortion out of this unit, just puer smooth power. Pushes the Polk XT70s beautifully. Also rear B+W bookshelf speakers and never breaks a sweat. No cooling fan required. Im Running it through a Yamaha EQ70 equalizer. And it just pushes clean quiet power. The amp functions flawlessly, with a soft mute feature. When a LP is done press mute, the volume lowers to a just audable level, push it again when your ready and it slowly ramps up to the previous preset level. There is no blutooth but thats an easy fix for 20 to 30 dollars buy a add on box and plug it in. Overall value is very good on this. You get a lot of head space for your buck. Im Running Polk XT70s and B and W 603s all 8ohms ,the rear swith set to high power, and this amp is 100% clean, powerfull and dosent even flinch or get warm.

The Yamaha A-S801SL is a fantastic integrated stereo amplifier. I am not exaggerating when I say that you will need to spend 2-3x more to get something better due to Hi-Fi diminishing returns. Clean, powerful, pretty linear/neutral, excellent sound-stage and separation, with good detail retrieval. Plenty of input options, the silver unit looks great, and has a nice build quality. The real gem here is the USB connection for a PC or streamer. I've read some of the other reviews about low loudness/SPL and lack of bass. I can assure you that the A-S801 has plenty of power (the power ratings are conservative, it's actually about 105 watts/channel into 8-ohms, and 150+ into 4-ohms) and it has tight/punchy bass, so I have a few thoughts... 1. Make sure that your streamer or source device is at 100% output volume. 2. Double-check your speaker wire/connection polarities and subwoofer phase if you're using a sub. 3. Many people are used to compressed music and over-emphasized, bloated bass. Use CD-quality or higher music and then allow some time to get used to how music should sound. Overall, I'm extremely happy that I got this unit for $799 during Black Friday, it's a steal at that price. I'm going back and playing my CD collection as well as streaming hi-res music from Qobuz via my Wiim Ultra, which is a superb combination. Curiously, USPS was chosen for the last mile of delivery, and that was a disaster. The package was dropped off by Amazon on-time with USPS in my city and was to be delivered later that day. But it was not delivered. Three days elapsed and USPS sent it to another city, then they sent it back to Denver (from which it had already transited), at which point it seemed like it was lost, before it found its way back to my city a second time. I cannot say anything positive for USPS. Amazon customer service was great though.

Not bad

I just love it I have used it for two weeks so glad I got it in silver. I’ve got a project tube phono box I use for vinyl and my cheap cd player has never sounded this good. I plug my iPad into the usb and I think it has a cleaner sound than my cd player. It shipped the same day I bought it & it came double boxed. Great price and great seller. Thanks

Me tomé mi tiempo para probar este amplificador. Llevo más de 2 meses con él, y puedo decir que es una excelente opción para un sistema HI-RES, suena excelente, y la nitidez del sonido es maravillosa. Lo uso con unas bocinas de torre Polk XT70 y las "llena" completamente. Para una habitación de 4x8 metros sinceramente nunca paso más de la mitad del volumen que da el amplificador, por lo que después de algunas horas de uso apenas y se calienta, usandolo a 8 ohms, aún así opte por comprarle un extractor de aire para disipar el calor. Me encanta el hecho de que se pueda conectar un segundo par de bocinas, y hacer sonar las 4 bocinas al mismo tiempo, o elegir a qué canal mandar el audio. Cómo tip, para sacarle el mayor provecho a este amplificador es muy importante que todo el sistema sea de alta fidelidad: audio lossless, DAC externo, cableado y bocinas. También recomiendo comprar un regulador de voltaje de alta capacidad, ya que acá en México existen muchas variaciones de voltaje que pueden afectar al equipo. Sinceramente, estoy muy feliz con esta compra, ya que por primera vez puedo escuchar música en alta fidelidad, es como pasar del blanco y negro a un mundo lleno de colores. YAMAHA es sinónimo de calidad, por lo que lo recomiendo 100%, sin ninguna duda.

Excelente amplificador. Recomendo-o a todos.

Excellent, Thank you.