Selecting between a vintage NiB SONY GX-50 ES Receiver and new Yamaha RS-202

[Count Dacula]

Selecting between a vintage NiB SONY GX-50 ES Receiver from 1991 and new Yamaha RS-202 based on power and SQ.

Basically, I'm organizing and matching up speakers and receivers I've accrued over time. For two rarely used systems I want to deploy, these are the two receivers I already have. To be used with two bookshelves; "larger" Polk Monitor 40 II 2x5" and smaller old KEF C25 1x6" that are sealed box and really do soak up more power than you'd expect. I just gave them a quickie refirb. I don't think the technicals of the speakers matter much, just which amplifier section is "preferred" by specs and opinion. I'll post the speaker specs anyway. These two systems should be thought of as disposable, located at remote locations.

First I'll tell you my experience. I had the RS-202 for about 2 years, and used it extensively for 2ch AV, and it is quite surprising. There are no threads on it here, so I guess this will be the de facto RS-202 thread. For sure it drove various floor-tower KEFs (Q55.2) rather effortlessly, compared to other receivers and rather nicely compared to the decent power amps I'm accustomed to. So with bookshelves, it delivers exactly what I'm looking for.

In comes the SONY GX-50 ES NiB from my wife's uncle, hello 1991. I only got it working enough to test it on a few speakers, and it sounded thinner than the Yamaha, and it had a chassis hum. So on the C25s, it played nicely, but the Yamaha drove the Polks dual-woofers much better. That should be the combo. I even hooked up a Polk passive sub which it drove great. I haven't used that thing in 10 years. It's cautioned against 4 ohm loads on this receiver, but it sounded great and got a lil hot, like I'd expect. I play dynamic music a little loud, to say the least, which matters for this discussion.

Am I missing anything? Wondering more about PWR and SQ than an overall critique of the applications.

Here's the specs... I have trouble comparing them directly, but that's what ASR is good at! Thanks.

Sony STR-GX50ES AM/FM Stereo Receiver Manual | HiFi Engine

www.hifiengine.com

R-S202 - Specs - Yamaha - United States

Yamaha, the most trusted brand in home audio, adds Bluetooth® compatibility in this Hi-Fi receiver for easy wireless access to streaming music services and music on your smartphone or other devices. Enjoy the connectivity and the outstanding and legendary quality of Yamaha natural sound.

usa.yamaha.com

more...

They might actually be closer in performance than at first glance. I'm not sure if the specs directly compare, or easily compare, that's why I'm asking. I could explain what I think Yamaha is doing with the specs, but would rather no embarrass myself. Thanks.

 

[Count Dacula]

KEF C25 specs

www.hifi-review.com

KEF C25 Specification​

System type	2-way
Enclosure type	Closed box
Frequency response ± 3dB	65 - 20000 Hz
Nominal impedance	4 Ohm
Amplifier Requirements	10 - 70 W
Sensitivity (2.83V/1m)	87 dB
Maximum output (SPL)	106 dB

Polk Monitor 40 Series II Review (Speaker)

This is a review and detailed measurements of the Polk Monitor 40 Series II bookshelf "MTM" speaker. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $200 on Amazon for a pair including Prime shipping. The Monitor 40 looks pretty decent for such a budget speaker: After decades of surviving in...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Accessories4less: High End Audio at Low End Prices!

www.accessories4less.com

 

[MaxwellsEq]

Your description of the hum and thin sound of the Sony suggests a possible fault (assuming no ground loops). If that's the case, I would definitely prefer the newer amplifier!

I don't buy into the "everything vintage is good" arguments. I think it's true that there were standout products possibly as good as anything made today (although, modern modelling makes it possible to achieve lower noise floors and hence better SINAD). But, just as now, there were poor designs in every manufacturer's product line, so you can have a poor Sansui, Pioneer or Sony amplifier from the 90s.

 

[TonyJZX]

to me i dont mind a lot of vintage gear but in the end it s a bit of a curio

that sony looks pretty neat and that just sounds like a working but 40yo piece of equipment

the yamaha looks like an amazing feat of engineering for $200!

this place generally does not hold a lot of lower end equipment in high regard given most of us do not have a lot of experience with 'big box' type japanese receivers... you will note however people love the AS701/801 types

 

[Count Dacula]

The thing is, I can't haul tower speakers to the ends of the Earth, then home again if I bail out. Mostly, these are destined for a 1-way trip, so I'm purposely selecting from the lower end of what I already own. SOTA is not an option, but AV and music is a must-have. Even though I have 3 vacation homes, I'm too cheap to buy a SS for them, and none should be necessary. The pictured location in near NYS, and gives me the space to assemble and test this equipment before it goes into service.

Pretty near SOTA at the first two places. Here I have the Q65 and big B&W with ADCOM and Parasound for fun, plus a JBL E0N PA system someone gave me w/2 powered subs. In my small Pennsylvania "home" it's the Q350s in the bedroom w/dual subs on a Vidar. Living room WAF means the NAK Receiver 2 and walnut Q150s. A nice mix of new and old. A cheap TT out there keeps guests happy, and streaming their old AC/DC videos ...lol. We try to watch movies out in the LR, but the BR is very comfortable.

The remote locations are; in the Outer Banks, which floods. it's a modern brick bank with a vault, quite echo-y in side. Just got it last week, and going there in a month, so it needs a modest "disposable" SS. That'll be the SONY ES and C25s ...even though it's a high end forum here, I say this is the way to go. The other spot is near Daytona, I've had it for about 6 years. 2000sq ft I previously had those big KEFs there, but I rented out the place and hauled everything home to PA a few years ago. What a mistake, I don't want any SS there that I care enough about to haul home again.

However, I bought a vintage Denon receiver down there and got it serviced too. Only used it for a few days with the very old KEF C10 still down there. I'll swap it out for the Yamaha, which could be easily replaced, if desired. The Denon can do AV at the big NYS place instead of firing up the big system. Believe me, I'm not excited about the Polks either, but they will suffice and maybe some used speakers local will come along. I only paid $250 with tax for the NOB Q150s, in a perfect world I would toss the old stuff on a fire and get more Q-Series, but I am just too cheap. tbh, with the Yamaha RS-202, the Polks will literally sound as good as they can. That's the beauty of matching up this old equipment, there is always a sweet spot to getting the most effect possible from equipment you pick up on the battlefield. Anyway, typing this outloud gives me a chance to figure this stuff out.

 

[Doodski]

I noticed some gear that I recognize in your image. The KEF C25 are designed to be wall mounted as in placed directly against a wall. One of the few speakers to ever be designed specifically for this. I owned them and retailed them and they are a very nice bookshelf speaker that likes a fair amount of clean power.

 

[Count Dacula]

I saw that info about wall mount and close-to-wall installation this last time I researched the C25. I will keep it in mind when I get them installed. Those and the iQ1 are very surprising little units. They were happy on the more powerful Yamaha, but I don't think any sized classic AB power amp would be appropriate, such as an ADCOM 535, it would be too powerful... in a sense. This is where the modest 2ch receiver comes into play, for bookshelf speakers. After having two vintage receivers resurrected, after opening a 30 year old NiB SONY and purchasing the Yamaha RS-202 I feel like this approach is valid, especially considering how bookshelves are an ascendant form factor now. Like I said, I would love a new set of Q-series for every occasion, but I prefer to practice the art of being selective, frugal and patient.

ASR has been a great influence in the last few months. I updated my main systems, and pushed all of the existing equipment down a notch, meaning every system actually got a bump. When I get more organized, I will post some observations about the better systems, and their relative merits. It's better than doing audio stuff in a vacuum....pun intended.

 

[Count Dacula]

My power amps are ADCOM 545-II, Parasound 2125 NC, Vidar and a crazy QSC thing that came with the building. I want to set it up to drive the JBL EONs, but am unfamiliar with the connectors.

From this more popular group of amps, I will stick with the ADCOM on the KEF Q65s, the Parasound on the B&W when I get the internal short figured out (not before) and well, the Vidar has worked nicely on the Q350s for about 7 years now. Everything else gets receiver power. I got sick of chasing down good preamps (in my budget) after letting an NAD 1300 go. I ended up using mini mixers as a pre, that was kind of cool, but I was ignoring SQ concerns. Now I use an Asgard 2 to drive the amps, and no switching inputs, I do that on the DAC now.

 

[TimF]

Do you live in a converted school building?

 

[Doodski]

Do you live in a converted school building?

Whatever it is I love it. Very gearhead oriented in the layout and with lots of desktop space for projects and gear.

 

[TonyJZX]

Do you live in a converted school building?

or an old persons retirement village dining area

i mean it faces a serene background

i had a further look at the RS202 and although the face is quite impressive as yamaha can quite easily do with metallised plastic the rear end does it no favors

https://images.crutchfieldonline.com/ImageHandler/trim/750/457/products/2016/18/022/g022RS202-B.jpg

its a bit below the expecations of this place, in fact, its below the expectations of sub $100 chinese class d amps

but i mean if you can get over that and have meagre needs as far as inputs goes it could be ok?

 

[restorer-john]

The Sony STR GX-50ES specs listed above are incorrect.

Correct:

I know which one is better and it isn't the Yamaha...

 

[Count Dacula]

Do you live in a converted school building?

Yes, but not quite living there. Mostly a summer getaway/storage/etc. There's a bunch of classrooms I would consider converting to apartments, but we use the hexagon addition, with it's folding walls it's pretty awesome. I have a gym too, that i want to use for cars.

 

[Count Dacula]

or an old persons retirement village dining area

i mean it faces a serene background

I have 6 acres and a creek

 

[Count Dacula]

The Sony STR GX-50ES specs listed above are incorrect.

Correct:


I know which one is better and it isn't the Yamaha...

Thanks for the feedback. Man, I can't stop making audio puns. I think I will take your advice and keep the ES with the Polks + sub in Daytona, which is fine, I will use it all the more there vs the OB. I thought the two receivers were pretty damn close, still I want to A->B them with bigger speakers to reveal how they work under load. I'll only have one shot at getting the set-ups right. Frankly, both of these systems are ripe for new speakers, but I can't do it. At least these decent receivers allow for an upgrade speaker, like with the Q150s.

But yeah, a typo...who would have thought! .8% THD vs .08% THD is a BFD! No SONY receiver puts out .8% THD, yet alone an ES. I was thinking the Yamaha specs were off, duh.

I know it's bad form to blunder on here with dumb questions about marginal gear, but trust me I won't disappoint. That's why I wanted to start with a post that included as much equip as possible, just to convey that I'm serious and pretty experienced. Having a nice system while living in Philly impressed lots of musicians and exec types which opened a lot of fun doors for me. I spent 1000s of hours in major studios, back when that was a thang. Built some "humble" DJ club systems from scratch (there I go again) One of my best friends is an EE who quit his Bell Labs job to open a club. Funny how I'm his "guy" for anything tech. We count like five Bell employees in my family of IBEW execs. So, I'm not exactly slouching with an old busted NuMark mixer. I just took myself out of the commercial home audio scene when AVRs started to replace 2ch. I felt like I mastered 2ch and I was done relying on media publications for audio, just to trust myself. On the other end, I never jumped onto audio internet forums for more than a little research. I had my ADCOM, KEF Uni-Q and NAK MB1-s in 1991, where else was there to go for a poor kid? Nice $1000 interconnects? No thanks.

 

[Count Dacula]

Here's some old systems to make fun of...

 

[Count Dacula]

Thanks again everyone.