A Japanese Hi-fi Great’s New Bookshelf Speakers Are Targeting Modern Audiophiles

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Yamaha continues to be one of the biggest names in home theater AVRs, with models that range from a few hundred bucks to its flagship RX-A8A, which goes for $3,300.

In fact, just last month, the brand introduced two affordable AVRs that it claims aim to “close the gap between soundbars and true AV receiver-based home theater.”

And while business appears to be running as usual on the AVR side of things, the famed Japanese hi-fi maker is giving customers a new option that fills (not closes) the gap between soundbars and AVR-based systems.

First in a decade

That’s right, Yamaha is joining the growing field of wireless active speaker systems with the all-new NX70A. It’s the first active speaker system that the company has released in a decade.

And while there are a lot of active speaker systems today, many of which now support an HDMI input and thus can be used as TV speakers (no AVR required), Yamaha’s newest offering is aimed at the high-end of the market, targeting other flagship systems by the likes of KEF, Klipsch and Cambridge Audio.

Like other wireless active speakers, the Yamaha NX70A is “plug-and-play” ready. The amplification and DSP are built right into the speakers, as is a robust range of both wireless and wired connections. So they’re easy to setup, and extremely versatile.

Powerwise, the NX70A promises to be a beefy wireless stereo system. Each speaker has its own built-in amplification (as opposed to one speaker housing them both), sending 100 watts to the woofer and 60 watts to the tweeter. That’s 160 watts per speaker or 320 watts for the system.

Stereo power, soundbar alternative

Like all active speaker systems, Yamaha has perfectly matched the amplifier and circuitry for the speaker, which it calls Synergistic Drive technology, ensuring the system sounds best. (This is a big advantage of active speaker systems, as you don’t worry about speaker and amp pairings.)

Each speaker features a two-way, bass-reflex design with a 1.25-inch tweeter and a 5.25-inch woofer. Both drivers feature diaphragms with the brand’s proprietary Harmonious Diaphragm technology, which is a blend of Zylon and spruce wood, which Yamaha uses in its flagship 5000 Series loudspeakers and in its grand pianos, respectively.

Yamaha claims this results in a sound “that feels natural, cohesive, and deeply musical, faithfully reproducing both instruments and voices.”

Like many of today’s wireless soundbars and speaker systems, Yamaha has integrated the NX70A with its own room-calibrating technology, YPAO (Yamaha Parametric Room Acoustic Optimizer), ensuring the system sounds best no matter where the speakers are placed.

Availability and pricing

As mentioned, the Yamaha NX70A is positioned as a premium wireless active speaker system that’s designed to sound better (or, at least deliver significantly better stereo sound) than many of today’s flagship soundbars. And naturally, it’s quite expensive.

The Yamaha NX70A costs approximately $3,500 and will be released in European markets this July. US availability has yet to be announced.