Yamaha NS 5000

They are reviewed, very favorably, in the June issue of HiFi News.

I read that review. I do not understand why they have not hit the US or Canada yet.

It looks like the NS 5000 finally hit Canada but not the USA yet. Anybody who went to the recent audio show in Toronto and heard these speakers want to chime in one their impressions. The most recent reviews I have read have been rather conflicting. 

This reviewer does not understand the accolades thrown towards the speaker:
https://www.soundstageaustralia.com/index.php/reviews/114-yamaha-ns-5000-loudspeakers  

While the followup in the same site contradicts that review.

https://www.soundstageaustralia.com/index.php/reviews/110-follow-up-yamaha-ns-5000-loudspeakers-edit...

I am about to place an order for the Magico A3 speaker but I always wanted to hear the Yamaha NS 5000. Now that it may come to the USA and I could easily get it from Canada (I have non-audiophile family in Toronto)  this speaker has re-emerged as a candidate to consider. So any feedback would be appreciated.

Heard the ns5000 today at Toronto audiofest and I can say that it was one of the best speakers at the show. Incredible big live Dynamic Sound with one of the most impressive sound stages I've ever heard. Will do a write-up of my full impressions of the show on my website Sonic Visions dot Org

@smodtactical; So your dealer was mistaken when he said you would not like the sound of the Yamaha NS 5000 if you liked the Paradigm Persona 9H. My dad heard the Persona 3F and then the Yamaha NS 5000 and preferred the Yamaha a little bit more (Yamaha is 50% more expensive speaker). He went to the same dealer as you.

Looking forward to reading your impressions. I would be interested in what you thought of the the imaging, the separation and laying of instruments. Only review that was not so positive view on the NS 5000 was the Soundstage.com Australia reviewer who said the sound seemed tied to the speakers baffle. However, he was contradicted next month by his colleague who basically said the speaker was amazing.

My dad told me that the NS 5000 would be too big for my upstairs office. What do you think at low to mid volume levels?

I have a bigger room downstairs which I am thinking either the Yamaha or Persona 9H. Leaning more towards the 9H for the downstairs since it is bigger and heavier and harder for a toddler to mess around with.

https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/7605

https://www.avhub.com.au/product-reviews/hi-fi/yamaha-ns-5000-loudspeakers-review-test-488372

according to this review it has a horribly ruler flat response. I havent heard them but it looks like they would need to be custom tuned to match your hearing. 

I havent heard them but it looks like they would need to be custom tuned to match your hearing.

If you need to do that, then enter the discrete direct coupled Shiit Loki for $149.
Amazingly transparent tool for changing the color of a speaker.
https://www.schiit.com/products/loki

Cheers George

or just modify the crossover so its not ruler flat

What a coincidence, USA! USA! USA! 

https://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio_visual/speaker_systems/ns-5000/index.html

George-I bought this little Loki, its amazing what it can do, I just love it!

Yeah @wolf_garcia put me onto this, everyone needs one in their arsenal, they can work wonders.
Can't wait if Schiit to maybe bring out a + version with 10 band instead of 4. I emailed them, they said maybe?

Cheers George 

yzsantabarbara Are you on our discord? If not come on by and have a chat with us. Same website has the link that I mentioned.

As for 9H vs NS5000, thats a tough one. The NS5000 is of course much cheaper and has a super impressive soundstage.. but the 9H is no slouch and the ARC room correction makes it very versatile. From what I heard both great speakers.

Im surprised your father only  preferred NS5000 slightly over 3H. I know that for me the 9H is far far superior to even the 7F. And if we say 9H is in the same class of performance as the NS5000 than it shoudl be very comfortably beyond 3H. But of course this is all subjective :)

Also to be fair I did not hear NS5000 vs any persona, back to back on the same exact system, so take my views wtih a grain. 

@smodtactical I am on your web site and we chatted there too. I went there yesterday to see your new posts.

My dad only listened for about 30 minutes. He is now a movie home theater guy at heart. Not so much into music as he was in his younger days. His hearing must also be not as sharp as in the past. That is why I was looking forward to hearing this my self and also your opinions. Based on my dad’s feedback, I have a feeling I will like the NS 5000 more than the 3F, doubt I would say the same for the 9H.

I did some research and it turns out my local Paradigm Persona dealer, Shelley Stereo, is going to carry the NS 5000 (at least from Yamaha’s web site). I have contacted the dealer there and hope to hear a confirmation. I demoed the Persona 5F with him. I liked it a lot.

So now I will have the same opportunity as you to hear both the Yamaha and Persona in the same system, though they only had the Persona 5F and not the 9H.

In an ideal world I would love the NS 5000 and be able to put it in my small office. Then for the downstairs I could put the 9H. Whatever the case I am happy now that I can demo all the speakers I am considering,

1) TAD ME1
2) Vivid Kaya 45
3) Yamaha NS 5000
4) Persona (3F or 9H depending on room)

BTW - a lot of argument on this site about detailed vs musical sound. Seems you and I like both.

BTW2 -  http://www.kennedy-hifi.com/myblog/new-yamaha-ns-5000-speakers-surpassing-legend/

The 5000 sells for $14,995 on music direct with a 4-5 week delivery wait. I really like the idea of a 12” woofer and rear port for the lows. ADS, back in the day showed how revealing a dome midrange can be and if yamaha could lose the hard edge those speakers had while preserving the presence I’m in. Terested 

The top end of the NS 5000 is supposed to be a little soft or musical as folks here would say,.

I thought the tweeter in the salon2 was a little soft but also the best I’ve heard so far. I just invested heavily into my speakers or I would probably order a pair. Md has the 60 day guarantee on them.

I had the Salon1 and I blew the tweeter out 2x. I think it was during the advent of SACD and the high frequencies on DSD must have done it.

I am surprised to hear you say the Salon2 twitter is soft since I thought it was made of Be.

I had the salon1 before the 2, bought both used, but the salon 1 was voiced with more presence making the tweeter in that model sound more forward and really made live recordings sound more ‘live’. the salon2 tweeter had all the detail without ever sounding hot. 

They not only sound superb but they measure superbly too.Which at least in part explains why they sound so completely "right" and natural.
And unlike most modern high end speakers are an easy load.That is how a well engineered speaker should measure.Not like so many modern speakers with their impedance dropping down below 3 ohm so you need a monster power amp/arc welder to drive them properly.Many of them also have lifted bass and treble to make them sound more impressive but which causes listener fatigue and which is simply not accurate.This is an excellent review with detailed measurements.https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&...

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/yamaha-announces-new-5000-series/

The NS 5000 are coming to Southern Cal dealer in Nov 2019.

In stock at Music Direct
https://www.musicdirect.com/speakers/Yamaha-NS-5000-3-Way-Bookshelf-Speakers

The reviews or audio show comments from the last 3 years that I have been reading (and also conversing with reviewers by email) tell me this speaker competes with others much higher in price. Of course, many factors with regards to preference come into play here.

Agreed. Though since I live within 30 mins drive of Gramaphone in DC, I'm looking forward to auditioning these in person once they are on display. :)

The LA dealer is 75 miles from me. MusicDirect.com is MSRP but allows for a 2 month trial.

I went and demoed the Yamaha NS 5000 with the 5000 series Yamaha preamp and amp (so $35K of Yamaha gear + Linn streamer + wire).

It was a huge disappointment to see the room the Yamaha was setup in. It was a conference room a little bigger than my 12x11x9 home office. I think the demo room was 16’L x 14W’ x 9H’. The NS 5000 was about 2 feet in front of the short wall. In-between the speakers was a short large cabinet where the gear was placed (not a good acoustic setup). There was a large OLED TV hung in-between the speakers. The room also contained various Magnapan speakers (I counted 3). It also had some Steinway Lyngdorf speaker lying around along with some separate speaker drivers. There was a huge fake wood conference desk in the middle of the room and 6 office chairs. There was a glass wall behind me and a full wall side sliding glass wall to enter this conference room. So basically as acoustically bad as it could get.

Nevertheless, I said let’s make lemonade out of this and I thought my room is small so there will some benefit to demoing here. My current speaker search is for my 12x11x9 (https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/7605 ) office. The finalists are the following, in no particular order (the first 3 listed have been demoed at a store and are audiophile awesome):

TAD ME1
Paradigm Persona 3F
Vivid Kaya 45
Yamaha NS 5000
Vimberg Amea (I may consider this one with ceramic drivers not diamond)

The Yamaha sounded not so special in some audiophile sense, it did not have great imaging (though rather good) and it did not have that excitement factor that I get from music. However, I could sense that all the pieces were there it was just the room that was the wet blanket on the musical enjoyment. So I decided to focus on the tone of the sound instead of things like soundstage, imaging, seperation or layering. These aspects were all there but not to the awesome degree I heard on the first 3 speakers on my list.

So I played some piano, Bob Marley (I like his voice), and my current favorite female singer Karen O (Lux Prima disk). The tone coming from this music was the best I have ever heard. I though that the Paradigm Persona was better than the Magico A3 because I felt the top and mid-range sounded more coherent with the Persona. Well I think the Yamaha sounds even more coherent than the Persona, maybe because all 3 drivers are made from a material that is supposed to compete with the BE material of the Persona. I can see why people have said that the Yamaha sounds like real instruments.

I demoed for about 2.5 hours and listened at both low and mostly loud levels. I did not have a problem with my ears or head while demoing (which was shocking since I am sensitive to bad setups). However, as I was driving home I realized I was playing the music too loud and felt the fatigue (it was that room). I was wondering why I did not have a headache while listening. I figured out it was not too much bass that gave me a headache, it was a bad top end. They Yamaha was awesome in the top end. One or 2 reviews have said a little recessed but I did not get that impression. I listened to some Neil Peart on drums and the cymbals sounded good as did When the Levee Breaks by Zeppelin.

There is nothing more to really describe about the demo sound wise other than to say that the Yamaha did the best at reproducing instruments that I have ever heard. I would love to hear a musician comment on the sound of these.

So I have a choice to make. Get the following:

Luxman c900 preamp
Luxman m900u amp

and 1 of TAD ME1 || Paradigm Persona 3F || Vivid Kaya 45

OR

Lyngdorf 3400 integrated with ROOM PERFECT DSP
Luxman m900u amp
and Yamaha NS 5000

I still have some time to decide since I am waiting on a stock investment to blow up before I go shopping, https://stocktwits.com/symbol/ISR

Until then I will let the gears in my head spin to figure out the way I go. At the moment I am leaning towards the Yamaha.

BTW - The store carries Anthem STR (with ARC) || Lyngdorf (with ROOM PERFECT) || Linn (with SPACE OPTIMIZATION). The guy working there said he liked the Lyngdorf and Linn better and told me why from a design perspective they would sound better (his opinion I am not stating this as a fact). I like the microphone based DSP approach because I am lazy.

Thanks for taking the time for the write up. Yamaha must be trying to control the pricing uf the speakers by selling at big box stores. Shame since there's usually very little to compare to and those half glass rooms just suck for demoing music playback.

This was not a big bx store, I do not think they sell the 5000 series at these big stores. Shelley’ s in Los Angeles area, where I went, is a super high end store.

http://www.shelleysstereo.com/

The other stores in the USA that have them are also high end stores. There is of course the online sellers.

www.musicdirect.com

https://www.abt.com/product/140313/Yamaha-NS-5000-Black-Bookshelf-Speakers-With-Stands-NS5000PNST.html?utm_source=connexity&utm_medium=cse&utm_campaign=NS-5000PNST#

The reason the Yamaha was placed in this room was they had the other rooms occupied with their existing gear. They did not buy the Yamaha system and are displaying this as a favor to Yamaha. In fact, I brought up the NS 5000 11 months ago to them when I audition the Paradigm Persona. They were not too interested nor that familiar in the NS 5000. I can understand their view since Yamaha does not have the rarefied audio reputation today as other brands. I think Techinics is in the same boat today, I believe Luxman had that perception a decade prior.

Saying all of that I think a purchase of the NS 5000 speaker will happen for me. I went back and read some reviews and they also stated the beautiful sound or tone aspect of the NS5000’s, that I clearly heard. They also complimented the speaker for things like imaging, size of soundstage, and placement of sound (instruments, singers). Things I thought were their but were obscured by the room.

I was thinking of even buying the Yamaha M-5000 and C-5000 amp and pre because the connectivity and output options to the speaker(s) is better than the Luxman gear I have in mind. However, the Luxman gear seemed to sound better when I auditioned but again the room comes into play. I am pretty sure I will stick with the Luxman’s.

I was reading that insertion of the foam plug into the back of the speaker will move the low frequency to 49 Hz from 26 Hz. That may be OK for me to try sans DSP and use only the Tone controls of the preamp, it is worth a try. Otherwise, the Lyngdorf 2170 or 3400 will be used. If I get the NS 5000 I will also keep my KEF LS50’s in the same room and have them hooked up.

http://www.livingsound.com.au/2017/01/yamaha-ns-5000/

@steve59 See my post from November 1.  Distribution initially will be very limited and through a handful of stores selected by Yamaha.  How those stores demo the speakers is obviously less carefully curated by Yamaha.

Not that it is relevant in your case, but I wonder how the resale value will be on the NS5000?  I wish you could have heard them in a better room, I can sense your not being totally sure, and selling them if that 1% of not knowing grows after purchase could be a big hurt.

If you look at the gallery pictures here you will find a picture of the  NS5000s set up in a sound room.They sound superb in there.Any of my audio friends who have heard them in this system have been very impressed.It looks nothing special but sounds really good.Note the acoustic panels behind them which are a Yamaha product and must be there for a reason.Wrong West Coast for you though yyzsantabarbara!
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&...

@jetter I have a bigger room downstairs, it is 21'L x 12'W (+5 on entrance) x 25'H. I cannot put anything there for a few years because my toddler is the boss of that room at the moment. Once he gets about 18 months older I was thinking of putting a KEF Blade2 in that room, though the NS 5000 would likely be better suited for that space. So if the NS 5000 is too big for my office then the downstairs is a safety net. 

The NS 5000 is likely harder to knock down than the KEF Blade2. This is an important point since my 3.5 year old son is unusually big and strong for his age. He already wears clothes sized for 6 and 7 year old kids. That is one reason I want to wait a bit for the downstairs system purchase, until he gets a bit more mentally mature.

There are a few things that I have going for me that should make the NS 5000 work in my office.

1) My enthusiasm to try something new and cutting edge in the office
2) DSP (ROOM PERFECT) on the Lyngdorf
3) The foam bung to reduce low frequency output to 49Hz on the speaker
4) I listen at low to mid volume level
5) My room is acoustically treated and currently sounds great with KEF LS50's
6) I could always order from Music Direct and do a 2 month home demo. 

Anyways, these are first world problems and I am not going to sweat it. I am going to believe the reviews on the imaging, soundstage, etc. I forgot to mention that the NS 5000 owners manual recommends a little toe in. The demo had the speakers facing straight out.

I am enjoying the process of buying the next speaker. It has been a long time since I had the space and almost the money to buy something cool.

@jtgofish Thanks for the time to find the photo. You actually mentioned that to me more than a year ago in a private conversation. I currently have some acoustic panels behind my current speakers that maybe are doing the same thing. I think mine are for absorption, whatever the case, they made massive improvements in my existing speakers.

I had a sound tech remotely look at my room and suggest treatment options. I just told him to do what is needed and give me the bill, so I am not sure what technically is happening, diffusion or absorption.

I'm in the chicago burbs and so far the only showroom i've found the speakers listed that had have a showroom is ABT electronics, which is a big box store. As to the other shops i'll take your word.

You might think this one is about the Yamaha NS-5000 loudspeaker shown, but it’s not. Instead, it’s what’s behind the speaker -- an acoustic panel from Yamaha named ACP-2 that works with a pair of loudspeakers to help strategically tame their output into the room. Priced from ¥45,000 to ¥60,000, depending on the finish (the dark wood one shown is ¥60,000), the ACP-2 measures 23.11”W x 47.24”H x 1.18”D and weighs 12.5 pounds. It’s said to work from 80Hz to 4000Hz, but I am not sure how much sound it absorbs and how much it reflects. What I do know is that Yamaha not only had these panels behind the speakers, they had them in many other places in the room, such as along the walls and in the corners. They were also showing and using a slightly smaller, lighter panel that looks similar called TCH, which is priced at ¥36,000 and works from 125Hz to 4000Hz. These panels seem like interesting acoustic treatments, but, unfortunately, I was told that they’re only available in Japan.

https://www.soundstageglobal.com/index.php/shows-events/tokyo-international-audio-show-2019-tokyo-japan/899-tias-2019-speakers

Ok so I went on a bit of an audio tour today. I am going to write up some full impressions on my website soon, sonic visions dot org.

But briefly.

Executive stereo
Joseph audio perspective 2 graphene: This was not in an ideal setup it was kind of in a tiled hall way that is very wide, but was impressed with the dynamics, clarity and huge sound for such a small speaker. Sadly dealer not willing to budge from msrp so will pass on these.

Kennedy hifi
Sopra 3: Very precise crystalline top end.. kind of reminded me of the precise sound of the persona that I heard at the same dealer. Excellent imaging, separation.

Yamaha NS 5000: Wow. Now bear in mind that it was a huge room they were in but not optimal. Incredible holographic imaging... acoustic images float in the air around you like projections.. the speakers completely disappear, very pure clear yet somehow extremely musically intoxicating sound. Although the sopra 3 was maybe a hair bit more detailed or possibly leaner... the yamaha had the better imaging, more lifelike natural timbre. I am extremely impressed. 

Going to think hard on this. 

@smodtactical The room I heard the NS 5000 was the worst room imaginable for a demo. I was rather upset that I had driven a far distance to only hear them in a makeshift glass walled boardroom. Just a pathetic demo room. 

However, I was able to focus on those speaker drivers and also heard the "very pure clear yet somehow extremely musically intoxicating sound". I was not able to figure out if the speakers disappeared and the other things you mentioned but I had a feeling in my own room or any other room those attributes would show up.

I heard the NS 5000 with the new Yamaha separates. The room being so bad I cannot really comment on those electronics either. 

I am also very interested in the NS 5000.  Also considering Cube Nenuphars and Harbeths 40.2's.  The NS 5000 is the dark horse because it seems very few have really heard it.  Yamaha has done a very poor job marketing a speaker that was first being shown in 2017. I wish we could here from someone who owns is speaker.

There are a couple of places that allow a home demo of these speakers for 2 months. That is you buy them and if they don not work in your space they will take them back. I have posted some places that sell them in the posts above.

An additional point with the Yamaha is that if anything goes wrong in the first year of ownership they will send you a new pair. The warranty on the speakers is 10 years.

@yyzsantbarbara the warranty is only 5 years. My dealer asked them. If it was 10 I'd buy immediately. 

Ok well after listening again and being moved to tears and uncontrollably laughing at the ridiculously good tonality I pulled the trigger on the ns5000. I'm hoping it will work well in my room and my electronics.  Delivery in about a week, will report back.

Congratulations. 

Congrats. In the event that your speakers maybe a little too big for the room, I think you are covered in that case by DSP.

If you use digital streaming and digital files for playback via ROON or JRiver, you can use convolution files to adjust the response curve to the room. There is a guy up in Canada that I will be working with (remotely) to get the NS 5000 to fit into my room. My room is only 12x11xx9 (plus some extra space).

I asked him whether his DSP expertise can make the NS5000 fit into my room via the photos I sent him and he said no problem. I found out about the convolution based approach to DSP from reading the great discussion on Computer Audiophile web site.

The founder of the site has a nice review of what I will also do.

https://audiophilestyle.com/ca/bits-and-bytes/a-new-listening-room-part-two-acoustics-speakers-dsp-r863/

One great thing about using this approach to DSP is that you can use any preamp. I was looking at preamps like the Lyngdorf 3400 (integrated), Linn Selekt, Anthem, and another dedicated DSP device int he $1000 range (forgot the name).

Reading posts here and on Computer Audio files leads me to believe the convolution file based approach could be the best if applied properly.


BTW - the warranty on the NS5000 in the USA is now 2 years. I was told 10 years in Canada from the same dealer you likely went to in Canada. However, it looks like the Yamaha accountants got involved and lowered it everywhere.

Just saw this post by the guy that will remotely do my DSP convolution files. This is for Direc 2 but highlights the mans knowledge.

https://audiophilestyle.com/ca/reviews/dirac-live-2-digital-room-correction-software-walkthrough-r884/

Yyz that looks really cool will definitely look into it. I know right off the bat that if I overload the room I’ll start with bunging the rear port. There is also two levels of bunging based on which foam plugs you use. I actually love bass and dont mind if it’s a little heavy handed and loose so I think it should be ok. Can also open the door in my room or into room treatment.

Few thoughts i have.

At my last listen i was initially playing a bit low and noticed the holographic magic was not quite there. When i turned them up a bit to a level that might be the upper limit of what I would normally listen at, they grew and scaled like a dragon being awoken and became imaging masters. Now I was in a very large space listening.. probably 50x50 feet or more.. so I wonder if that was the reason. I just hope that they sound great at even low levels.

I listened to them vs sopra 3 and persona 5f and I preferred the ns5000 to both of them. I find that both of those speakers didn’t have the same level of imaging, holography and pure magic and I guess beautiful tone colour that ns5000 has. The 5f was also a bit thin and brittle and had less body.

Question for you. What made you choose ns5000 over persona and magico a3? I think for me the speaker that came the close to challenging the ns5000 was the talis s300. That speaker had a beautiful crystalline sound, amazing metal build quality ... but again imaging not as strong as ns5000... also was getting much better pricing on the yamaha.

I think I may get some custom covers made to protect them when not in use. In addition to using the grills. Your thoughts ?

The custom covers maybe a good idea since you have a toddler. I should also look into something like that. Those grills are a huge part of my decision since they look solid and my toddler will have some difficulty getting into the drivers. The black gloss of the speaker is rather gorgeous. I am not usually a fan of the glossy black finish.

The reason I decided on the NS5000 was the tone of the speakers. I think the tone (sounding like real acoustic instruments) was likely due to the same driver material on the 3 NS5000 drivers. The sound was so coherent and lifelike to me.

I also liked the Persona's 5f's and 3f's coherence but it was not better than the NS5000 for me. The Persona is really following in the 40 year old footsteps of the Yamaha NS1000 with the dual BE drivers. The Persona sounded more coherent than the Magico A3. Now all 3 speakers are wonderful. If someone gave me anyone 1 of them I would be a happy camper, but since I am spending my money that coherence/tone thing seemed to be the best on the NS5000.

I did not get to really tell if the sound was diminished at low volume. I tried but the room was so bad that I just said the heck with it and just listened at a mid volume level. What electronics were attached to the speakers? My demo had the latest top end Yamaha separates.

The sweet top end of the NS5000 also contributed to my decision for the NS5000. Since I will be using it in my office for long periods of time. I thought the NS5000 would be great for very long listening sessions. Now this top end was not dull or tubey to me so that was also important.

For my downstairs I want to get either a KEF Blade2 or Persona 9H since I find both amazing and exciting speakers to listening too. Those listening session will be much shorter.

That 50x50 demo room definitely did not help the speaker. For your own room you should look into room treatments. Yamaha has built some room treatments that they use in shows, they are placed behind the speaker. I think there is a link I posted somewhere in this thread. It is incredible how much of a difference my acoustic treatments made in my room. I am also looking forward to hearing what the DSP magician from Canada can do for my system. I would not be buying the NS5000 if not for my room treatments and the potential of the convolution files to tame the bass nodes.

can you ns5000 owners list the components you’re happy with in the system, tia

@steve59 Have not got it yet. Howver, I will be using the following:

Luxman m900u amp
Mola Mola Makua DAC/Preamp/Streamer (almost 100% sure)


BTW - Shellely’s Stereo will be holding a listening party for the NS 5000. Most likely in there better rooms. I may head down for another listen.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/yamaha-event-near-los-angeles

@smodtactical Has posted some videos on YouTube of the NS5000 he got delivery on yesterday. He is a very happy camper. Hopefully he can chime in after he stops listening.

He has to come up for air sometime 

Lol sorry can't stop listening to this magical speaker.