Last Updated: December 11, 2019 (Refresh Now)
Yamaha A S301BL Natural Sound Integrated Stereo Amplifier Black
Last Updated: December 11, 2019 (Refresh Now)
8.3
SCORE
/10
Total Reviews
412
Old Reviews
278
Unverified
43
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Review Analysis - 91 recent, verified reviews
Detailed Mode
Sound Quality
58yamaha, klipsch, amplifier, dac, elac
+95%
-5%
" ... sound quality superb. ... "
" ... Very clean sounding amp! ... The variable "Loudness" control works great, tames that bright sound from CDs. ... Listening to them is now a joy! ... This amp replaced a vintage NAD 3140. ... With this Yamaha, you select the playing source. ... For sound quality, I don't miss my vintage NAD. ... "
" ... My front speakers rock now! ... I was running my RP-260f front speakers through a solid Yamaha receiver and they sounded good. ... I'm impressed at the awesome sound using the 2-channel speaker setting on the receiver for the two fronts and two 15" subs. ... "
" ... Good stereo sound. ... "
" ... Great heavy duty amp has the sound I was looking for. ... "
" ... it's actually a pretty cool amp for music with decent power and clear sound. ... It can drive 4 ohm speakers without destroying the amp, which is pretty impressive. ... It sounds smooth in an analogue, nostalgic kind of way, which is what vinyl is all about. ... I paired it with the Elac Debut 6.2 2.0 bookshelf speakers and the combination totally rocks. ... "
" ... great sound, the DAC with optical input works very well with TV DVD streaming sound. ... "
" ... Has good phono amp. ... "
Controls
14loudness button, button, controls, control, tone controls
+57%
-43%
" ... Turning these buttons off lowered the volume significantly but WOW! ... "
" ... So where's the "Loudness" button that we're all familiar with? ... But if you think about it (and I have), the Loudness button just boosts the bass and treble for you right? ... "
" ... rings and you can quickly hit the Mute button. ... "
" ... Nice feature to switch out all tone controls and go direct. ... "
" ... They are magic buttons that give you enhanced detail and clarity. ... "
" ... The convenience of the full set of controls is nice although 95% of the time I only use the "pure direct" and the volume setting. ... "
" ... The variable "Loudness" control works great, tames that bright sound from CDs. ... "
" ... The variable "Loudness" control works great, tames that bright sound from CDs. ... "
Volume
12amp, turn the volume, small apartment, pure direct, control
+67%
-33%
" ... It has plenty of power and stays really clean at higher volumes. ... "
" ... Excellent sound reproduction and superb at low volume. ... "
" ... I have owned a lot of audio equipment in my day and currently have three systems, a shop stereo, a front room theater and then the stereo with this new Yamaha in the workout room. ... "
" ... Once I did that I now have plenty of volume. ... "
" ... This is a nice little amp and perfect for smaller spaces but it helps to understand your room's acoustic limitations. ... "
" ... The 85 wpc is more than sufficient to power my speakers to "high" sound levels at 50% volume. ... The convenience of the full set of controls is nice although 95% of the time I only use the "pure direct" and the volume setting. ... "
" ... I listened to Johnny Cash's "American IV: The man comes around" and it sounds like Mr. cash is sitting in my living room playing for me. ... "
Price
12amp, yamaha, s701, great sound, great amp
+100%
" ... Very nice amp for the money! ... "
" ... Should have saved $100 and gone with the A-S701SL. ... "
" ... Totally worth it. ... "
" ... Very high quality for the price. ... "
" ... Pros: Incredible value for money! ... "
" ... High quality sound for the price. ... "
" ... I highly recommend this amplifier to anyone looking for an excellent one priced under $1000.00 ... "
" ... Very nice amp for the money! ... "
Bass
9treble, bass and treble, amp, loudness, pure direct
+89%
-11%
" ... I have a Klipsch R-10SWi subwoofer with them. ... "
" ... But if you think about it (and I have), the Loudness button just boosts the bass and treble for you right? ... So just turn up the bass and treble and you've achieved "Loudness", right?. ... Turning up the bass and treble (even just a little) makes a big difference in the sound and really gives it the crisp and full sound that good old Loudness button did. ... "
" ... I love the crystal clear sound it produces and it has punch, not boomy. ... Phono soundstage is good not great but in fairness I am using a Stanton T52. ... "
" ... This Yamaha A-S701BL amp provided the basics of what I needed for this particular room setup: 2-channel output, 4 speakers, treble & bass controls, balance control, volume, 100wpc (100 watts per channel). ... "
" ... Bass very well controlled. ... "
" ... Very clean sounding amp! ... Bass very well controlled. ... "
Product Reliability
8year, died, yamaha, past, owned
+88%
-13%
" ... My old 100W Harmon Kardon died after 25 years and I'm loving how simple this one is. ... "
" ... all functions working as advertised ... "
" ... I've been using this integrated amp nearly every day since buying it several months ago. ... "
" ... I've now owned it for almost 1 year. ... There have been no issues. ... "
" ... Working great so far! ... "
" ... I just got this last week. ... "
" ... After a few months of use, with no noticeable break-in period, I have come to appreciate the Yamaha philosophy. ... "
CD/DVD
7player, direct, yamaha, optical, dac
+86%
-14%
" ... The other parts of my system are a Pioneer Elite PD65 CDP (upgrade from the Sony disc player), A Kenwood KT-7001 tuner, and a restored Pioneer PL-550 TT. ... "
" ... Amp has it's own DAC and you can sue it if you have an optical output on your CD deck. ... "
" ... When using the bypass feature CD Direct for CD's or Pure Direct for other inputs you get a sound that is as Yamaha advertises: Natural, pure, undistorted, quality sound. ... "
" ... A few days later I hooked up the blue-ray player via optical and the (region free) DVD player via digital coaxial cable: what a difference !! ... "
" ... One thing - the CD/Source direct features on this amp? ... "
" ... I have a high end Sony cd player with a good DAC and connected to this via optical or analog you can't tell the difference. ... "
Remote
6control, volume, uses, treble, inputs
+67%
-33%
" ... An illuminated remote would be nice. ... "
" ... The functions on the remote are easy. ... "
" ... Remote is easy to use and responds satisfactorily to inputs with no lag time. ... "
" ... The remote is very ergonomic and well constructed. ... "
Ports
6digital, yamaha a s801, via, optical, inputs
+100%
" ... However then I hooked up the Nucelus directly to the usb input of the Yamaha A-S801, wow is all I can say! ... "
" ... Hdmi world be nice ... "
" ... I have it hooked up USB A to B 3.0 with an Audioquest Cinnamon cable streaming Spotify from my desktop computer to bypass the onboard sound card and it leaves me stunned with it's performance. ... "
" ... A few days later I hooked up the blue-ray player via optical and the (region free) DVD player via digital coaxial cable: what a difference !! ... "
" ... After I plugged the transceiver into a regular power source, it worked fine. ... "
" ... This receiver also has an optical input for a TV/PS4 and a coax digital input for Blu-ray players. ... "
Cleaning
6amplifier, amp, power, plenty
+100%
" ... It isn't as harmonically advanced as a tube amplifier but it sounds great and clean. ... It has plenty of gain and is clean. ... "
" ... I wanted clean, no gimmick, sound and this amplifier delivers. ... "
" ... A good natural sound for the 90% of us that want clean power at a reasonable price. ... "
" ... Nice and clean. ... "
" ... Very clean sounding amp! ... "
" ... Very clean sounding amp! ... "
Design
6vintage, simplicity, silver, set, looks
+83%
-17%
" ... Nice silver finish. ... "
" ... I purchased the black version and the looks are very good. ... "
" ... Overall, I love the design and build quality. ... "
" ... Easy to set up, very attractive looking. ... "
Build Quality
5knobs, aluminum, solid, inside, flimsy
+60%
-40%
" ... No problems stand out. ... "
" ... Material Quality and Durability: as advertised, well designed and built - flawless ... "
" ... Overall, I love the design and build quality. ... "
Ease of Use
4easy, wanted, use, set, easy to use
+100%
" ... I wanted an easy, simple CD stereo music system, primarily for background listening. ... "
" ... Simple to use. ... "
" ... Easy to use and accomodates all of my components. ... "
" ... Easy to set up, very attractive looking. ... "
Device Compatibility
4transceiver, inputs, amplifier, turn the volume, spotify
+100%
" ... Paired with Yamaha Cd player, running through Bose 901s and Mitsibushi DS 50 CS . ... "
" ... I can also switch the transceiver to a Line output and connect this to a portable bluetooth speaker that I use outside. ... "
" ... This integrated amplifier was purchased to drive headphones, and nothing more. ... "
" ... Paired with Elac UB5 and the power is totally sufficient to drive these speakers beautifully! ... "
For Running
3speakers, yamaha, set, good, 2
+100%
" ... I have been running the variable loudness in the 'flat' position which really does all aspects of the music justice. ... "
" ... I was running my RP-260f front speakers through a solid Yamaha receiver and they sounded good. ... "
" ... It runs very well the Elac Debut 6.2. ... "
Features
3useless, direct, convenience, cd
+100%
" ... I like the fact that it's not flashy in regards to all kinds of useless lights. ... "
" ... Cons / room for improvement (mainly convenience features): ... "
" ... It has a CD direct function to bypass the source selector, and direct mode. ... "
Bluetooth
3bluetooth speaker, tooth, spotify, speakers, inputs
+100%
" ... -no blue tooth, which would also allow to show the artist name and song title on the amplifier display ... "
" ... I can also switch the transceiver to a Line output and connect this to a portable bluetooth speaker that I use outside. ... "
Storage
3inside
+67%
-33%
" ... awesome, bucket list in place . ... "
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Specifications
No specs available.