Yamaha CA-800 - Issues with it, or issues with me?

[mhardy6647]

yeah, I missed that, too.

 

[orangetang]

Just looked in more detail - you are comparing with your Onkyo AVR - did you use the "automatic speaker setup" with the ONKYO.

If so that would explain a significant difference in bass perception - the Yamaha - as far as I can see - doesn't have any sort of room EQ available.

No - The Onkyo was reset to factory defaults and is not using any room or eq corrections - it's essentially out of the box with pure direct mode enabled. Has good bass and lively sound. The Yamaha has nothing other than acceptable treble, hollow mids and lacking bass. Adjustments to the bass tone on either filter setting just results in muddy boomy bass from the yamaha which doesn't get anywhere near as low as the Onkyo produces. Speakers are in the same location, nothing is changed other than switching out amplifiers.

 

[orangetang]

Holy shit.


Didn't even look at the picture. @orangetang, listen to @DSJR, and get the turntable *way* away from the amp.

Why, so my digital audio will sound exactly the same? The OP clearly states the complaints are from both sources, TT and DAC. This has nothing to do with where the TT is sitting. This is a 90% digital source setup, in my office running from a PC. There happens to be a turntable in here too.

 

[Gibsonian]

Sick amp, needs a doctor

 

[mhardy6647]

Sick amp, needs a doctor

Certainly sounds like it.

 

[orangetang]

There is some critical listening left to do. If anyone here is interested I'll share a link to some recordings I did from the pre-outs on both units, and also with a microphone from the speakers. The mic isn't well suited for this purpose and a lot of the detail in the sound is lost but the difference is there. Not as much as I had thought perhaps. More low end punch from the Onkyo it seems, and more of a 100-500 Hz bump with the Yamaha which may actually mean the Yamaha is showing the true hump of the KEF Q-150s and the Onkyo may have a bit of a v curve built into it's 'pure direct' mode. Both amps scale in the bass tone adjustments quite differently.

Anyway, I've now stolen the Focal subwoofer from the living room and chucked it under my desk for now, rolled back the bass to neutral on the yamaha and filled it in with the filters and gain on the sub - I think I'm going to stay with this combo for now...

After a week or two or whatever it's been listening to this Yamaha, I've adjusted to it a bit. It still feels a little more clinical than the Onkyo. There is less sparkle and it feels little less refined even but it sounds fine (maybe) with this lower end filled in and the muddy hump removed.

I do appreciate the loudness curve on this amp. For low level listening its nice to drop some of the mids out - for me anyway.

 

[JSmith]

Issue is, I really don't like how this unit sounds. I find I need to dial the loudness between 5 - 9 and boost the treble to make anything listenable. My vocabulary and definitions for explaining characteristics of sound is poor, but mainly the issue is with overwhelming mids and higher end of the bass frequencies. The sound is possibly a bit shrill and the bass feels very boomy and without precision with no punch at all. There are frequencies in the low-mid end that seem overly powerful that no adjustments to the tone controls can really mitigate without rolling back the bass all the way - which obviously is not an option.

Maybe a simple question... however you don't have the speakers out of phase do you?


JSmith

 

[BeeKay]

Maybe a simple question... however you don't have the speakers out of phase do you?


JSmith

Means … does it sound way better with just a single speaker connected?

 

[orangetang]

Maybe a simple question... however you don't have the speakers out of phase do you?


JSmith

100% checked to ensure not the issue, ran individual wires. That said, I haven't actually checked polarity. This is a valid question since the guy that repaired this unit replaced the A speaker block... I should ensure it's pinned out correctly

 

[DanielT]

I have sent a message to him earlier today but not heard back yet. This is a 700 km round trip to drop it off even if we came to an agreement so it's not going to be ideal in any scenario.

Generally speaking, would the monitor outs allow me to record a sample of what I'm hearing, or is the signal out of the line level outs comparatively different than the high level speaker outs if there is an internal issue - or might it specifically depend on where an issue lies?

I've got a multimeter... with some instruction I could test some stuff, but that's all I've got for electronics testing equipment. No scope or otherwise.

Contact the seller again, and again. Don't give up. You just need to say that he sold you something he said worked but doesn't.

Can you see what reviews that seller has now? Is there anything written online about him? Is he reliable, does he keep his promises, and so on?

It's tricky buying used stuff online. If I do it (without examining the thing on site before buying) I only buy via an auction site (which everyone in Sweden uses) where buyers have given overwhelmingly positive reviews about the seller. Auction site where you can also buy with:
Tradera Buyer Protection
With Tradera Buyer Protection, you are guaranteed to get your money back if the item is not delivered or is significantly different from the description. You shop second hand with the same security as when you buy new.

How much does buyer protection cost?

Buyer protection costs 2 SEK + 5% of the order value, max 499 SEK. This also applies regardless of whether you have chosen invoice or installment payment.

Tradera (auction site) has introduced that option even though you can see reviews on the sellers. Just shows the problem with buying online without researching and buying things on site.