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Yamaha R-N803 one of the best values in high-end audio?

I’ve now lived with the Yamaha R-N803 STEREO receiver (it is not an audio/video receiver) for over 6 months. I believe it’s one of the best values in high-end audio. For $750, you get a preamp, amp, phono preamp, DAC, and Wi-Fi streamer (Tidal, Spotify, Pandora, etc) all controlled by Yamaha’s excellent Android/IPad MusicCast app. The amp is a discrete 100 wpc into 8 ohms with two pairs of binding posts for each channel. The DAC supports up to DSD 5.6 MHz and the internet connection can be wired or wireless. It has the YPAO (Yamaha Parametric Room Acoustic Optimizer) which is an automatic speaker calibration system. Its well engineered and made. I’ve read reviews of other All-In-One (AIO) units with various problems such as supposedly having Wi-Fi streaming but it never materializes or doesn’t work, or having insufficient power, or hum problems. The Yamaha has non of those problems.

The sound quality is excellent right-out-of-the-box but (as with a lot of gear) an upgraded power cord, footers and fuse (please don’t go off on "the fuse debate") substantially improved its sound quality. The soundstage width, depth and height is excellent. The midrange clarity is very, very good as well as the control of the bass. The treble improved the most with the upgrades but is now excellent.

I don’t know of any AIOs, or even systems, anywhere near $750 that does all of this so well. Have others tried this unit? What do you think? Are there better ones out there in this price range with the same or more functions?

128x128sbayne
mike_in_nc
1,147 posts
 
@sbayne - My experience is, all those programs (e.g., YPAO, ARC) have a learning curve if you want to get the best from them. Careful measurement, careful listening, careful tweaking. That said, none of that matters if you're doing it all by ear (the final judge).
sbayne's avatar
sbayne OP
493 posts
 
@mike_in_nc - yeah that's probably true. I admit I wasn't very patient with YPAO. Since I've been working from home because of COVID-19 this may a good time delve in to it again.
doogabayne
3 posts
 
@sbayne Another Bayne here, I'm debating between Yamaha R-N803 and the Marantz PM7000N.  I have the Marantz and it sounds great except for the midrange is a little lacking for my ears but otherwise it is amazing.  I have other Yamaha equipment and want to keep the MusicCast ecosystem.  One problem with the Marantz is that it gets real loud even at 25% (driving B&W 606 S2) so there is some detail I miss at lower volumes and the next tick is too loud (using the app).  How is the Yamaha sound and volume?
schubert
7,386 posts
 
Yamaha is one of the worlds largest firms  with some of the world greatest engineers .
Marantz is a name held by a financial firm .
perkadin's avatar
perkadin
286 posts
 
There are two big features I wished the Yamaha 803 had, their sound enhancer for compressed files and pre outs (to upgrade the amp section at some point). Although the power amp is optimized for stereo playback and is better then most of their multichannel AV offerings, there are better options out there in the used market.  For example the 803 can be found used for around 500-600.  With that budget I’d recommend something like the Yamaha WXC-50 streamer / pre instead ($300 or less) and a dedicated 2ch amp like a Linn LK140, ATI1502, Adcom 5400 etc (around $300-400).  Or use the WXC-50 as a streamer/DAC and go w an entry level integrated amp (NAD/Rotel/Arcam).  The options are endless. 
I’m not saying the 803 isn’t a great value, it is one of the best values for a single box solution, but it’s limited from an upgrade standpoint. 
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