Bryston or Yamaha?

Yamaha has known how to make ultra-quiet and refined electronics for many decades now. Some will argue that their older stuff is even better than current flagships, so I wouldn’t presume the newer Bryston is superior. I’ve pitted the preamp section of a Yamaha A-S1100 integrated against various $3K—$5K tube and SS preamps and it came out on top every time. It shouldn’t really surprise us though considering how long Yamaha has been at this game compared to most companies. 

The preamp section of even a decent integrated amp is usually the weak link due to parts quality, component space and heat issues. To many unknow variables to verify your claims.
 

Yeah that is true of a typical integrated amps but not the upper tier Yamahas. But sure, if you’re one who equates price with performance then no Yamaha is going to satisfy your expectation bias.