What are some good speakers to pair this amp with? And whats a good size? How big /powerful can the speakers be?

@@cristovalortega1968 Go with Ascend Acoustics Sierra-1 V2, for $948/pair. They are extremely neutral and accurate. Layered bamboo cabinets, custom spec SEAS drivers, and designed and tested on the $100K Klippel NFS. Build and performance slaughters anything up to $3000/pair. You can step up your game with the Ascend Acoustics Sierra LX, for $1315/pair. Best bookshelf up to $5000/pair. Also designed and tested on the Klippel NFS.

Will my Kef q150's be able to handle this Amp?

@@zacharylagler242 yes

@@zacharylagler242 Speakers can handle any Amp as long as you don't push them too far. But not every Amp can handle any speaker. Such as speakers that run in the 2 Ohm range.

you are so right about this yamaha amp is a kick ass love it the sound is so powerful I would recommend it for any one who is looking for a good sound in a amp this is the one.

that is why high end stuff is sometimes better than live. Becouse it smoothens some parts which sounds better.

If you go by that logic, then everyone would love horn speakers, but most do not. Horn speakers acoustically amplify the strengths and weaknesses of what comes before meaning the tweeter material and characteristic, cables and interconnects material, amplifier noise floor and sound signature etc. Humans are negative aversive and we are a lot happier with decreasing flaws than we are increasing the good stuff, and the flaws are enhanced with horns and the horn itself is a flaw.

Thanks. The 2100 is a very solid integrated. I have no doubt that Yamaha's aim for neutrality shines through on that unit. Still, the 801's deviation from neutrality helps to give it a lot of charm. :)

So which one is better ?

Great review, although I think the Yamaha deserves WAY more credit overall..such a tough review

Enjoy the 801 Eric! I had a set of Monitor 10's from back in the day. I have no doubt that your system bangs out some sweet sounding tunes!

@@ZeroFidelity Yeah, I'm cool for now but I do intend to upgrade the speakers next.

when you say "new to the stereo world" it almost sounds like you just grew a set of new ears !!! :-)

@@BogdanWeiss lol indeed. My dad was into audio equipment so I grew up appreciating stereos but as an adult, I never purchased any equipment for myself. My source for music has been a Kenwood bookshelf system that I bought in college 20 years ago. This is my first pass at "high end" audio.

@@esk_71 I guess you must have been witness to a fair bit of effort & frustration trying to get the system to sound "decent"... If you're developing an "itch" I have to say that I can't fault any of Troel's designs ( which in itself is a bit of a miracle.. ) www.troelsgravesen.dk/Diy_Loudspeaker_Projects.htm

Thanks man.

What else does he have to do ?

The proper way wold be as follows. The filter on the subwoofer is so the subwoofer don't play ABOVE (LF filter) Certain frequency. The filter on the integrated is so the speakers don't play BELOW (HF filter) those frequencies. This is what actually yields proper benefits on using the subwoofer as you would be reliving the speakers to play the lowest octaves, cuausing less distortion and increasing the headroom of the speakers as the wattage to produce mid-bass is lesser than the one required to play full range, thus heating less the transducer. Also, allowing to play higher volumes. In the case of the yamaha... Well... It's only LF... So true, pretty useless. Speakers remain full-range. That's the actual purpose of the filter on the amps. Weird

A-S 1100 has no DAC.

Have you tried loudness control?

No, I’ve never used it.

@@nathanjones4039 that's the purpose. To give more bass and treble, more sparkle on low listening levels. Rise the volume until it gets exciting/loudish, turn the loudness until it gets comfortable at night. Listen to couple songs, you ear would adjust. It would not be exciting because dynamics are reduced, but it would be more enjoyable for sure. With compressed music that sounds awful at higher volumes... Use it too. You would be surprised. Though my experience is with pre - 90s yamaha gear. No idea if it has changed through the decades.

@@BastianUllr At last someone who knows how to use the loudness control on these amps! I have a 1992 AX-550 and a 2001 AX-596 the loudness still works how you describe, great amps.

Definately get a phono stage, rega mk3 or schiit mani. And wow yourself!

I would love to bring in the A-S3000. Gratz on the 2100!

Thanks! The others you mention offer up great content. Steve has experience and a strong shirt game. Zeos brings the entertainment. NRD vids are pretty. And Thomas is like the soft-spoken enthusiast next door.

Picked one up today. Awesome amplifier!

Erik B. I just ordered this amp to pair with Klipsch as well. Which Klipsch do you have?

@@freedomdance7601 i have a pair of rb81's and as a sub the rw12d... sounds great to my taste...

I have a pair of RB81's and for subwoofer I use the RW12D, perfectly happy with this set, which Klipsch do you use ?

Erik B. Just ordered a set of rp8000f!!

I am sure you will also be a happy listener :-)

I have no problem with my pioneer elite floor standers. I trust the amp to power much more expensive speakers.

Faisal Kadal Much better than this one

Did you ever have the A-S801? Thinking of upgrading

Grats on the KWI 200. Dan makes some good stuff. Of course, I'd fully expect it to kick the A-S1100 in the pants given the gigantic differences in price. :D Enjoy the music!

Nice! Enjoy the tunes and the Yammy gear!

Hi-Fi Haven glad to know I’m not the only Yamaha fan boy here!! I’ve got the A-S801, CD-S300 as well, excellent player, love the usb jack on the front, I’ve got an R-N500 stereo receiver and I’ve had a couple Yamaha AVR’s in the past. Great Rush album, what speakers you running?

@@nathanjones4039 Yamaha NS-777 speakers with two Yamaha YST-SW215 subs. Sewell Direct 12AWG speaker cables.

@@hi-fihaven2257 I have the Yamaha A-S801, A-S2100, WXA-50 amp, Yamaha NS-F901 Soavo speakers, Yamaha AV10sg violin, 1978 FG-300 acoustic, RSP20CR electric guitar and a 2010 Yamaha VMAX motorcycle. The wife has a Yamaha U3 Piano and a 2015 X-Max 400 she uses to get to work. I am on the look for a Yamaha keyboard for one of the kids. You think you're a fan boy?

@@wa2368 Sounds Awesome! For my main music system I have an A-S3000 stereo amplifier, CD-S3000 CD player, an a pair of NS-5000 speakers.

You’d need a separate DAC, there is no USB input on the IOTAVX SA3.

R-N does not compare to A-S

@@BastianUllr I second that. I was A/B testing the AS801 to an RN and the RN sounds like a cheap radio compared to the AS801.

What do you have the impedance switch set for 8 or 4 ohms?

Get your biases about prices out of your head. I have this amp and a A-S2100 amp as well. This is not a mid-fi amp. It IS HI-FI! It walks all over Cambridges and NADs that are twice the price. The DAC implementation on it alone keeps up with 500 to 1k standalone DACs. If they actually gave you a good deal, it is mid-fi eh? typical audiophlawed idiot thinking.

@@wa2368 I agree with you on the AS801. I bought the iota stack as well and returned it. It was the exact opposite of what this reviewer mentioned. The iota to me was worse in every aspect than the 801. He also fails to mention anything about the super nice DAC with full DSD and PCM you get on top of everything. After i got to make the comparison myself, this sounds like a super biased review. Can you please tell me if the S1100 or the S2100 is worth a future upgrade?

@@deepmystic333 Hello mystic, when a reviewer gets kickbacks from a certain manufacturer.....they will tend to rate that product higher on comparisons (it's human nature). So, it is best to skip the comparison part in reviews like these and not go down a rabbit hole. What is your budget? Do you have a 1k+ stand alone dac? what kinda music do you listen to? I assume you have a budget constraint. Otherwise, i think you would have gone with the A-S1100 or A-S2100 in the first place. You would not need a A-S2100 unless you have a very highly resolving system with 10k+ non-snake oil speakers, etc, etc. In such a system, the A-S2100 has a advantage at loud volumes with big swings and hence it works better for my very large listening room. The A-S2100 goes head to toe with certain 8k+ amps out there....In smaller rooms, you really didn't miss anything with the A-S801 and it really is a killer deal. I think Yamaha felt bad for folks with smaller budgets and gave them a lot more than they charged. You simply could not get sound like this at these prices 15 years ago. I still very much enjoy the A-S801 in my mid-sized bedroom and i tend to be a very unforgiving audiophile. I would suggest that you forget about amp upgrades and get a 2nd DAC. Get a R2R dac like the Denafrips ares 2 instead for 750 bucks. You can enjoy 2 very different types of sound with the 801's dac and the denafrips dac. It would add more variety to your listening experience for different music genres and would be money that's well spent. Get more music, find new artists, etc...instead of thinking about 3k more for another amp.

@@wa2368 Thanks much for your suggestion. Yes, my budget is tight and i do not have a stand alone DAC. My speakers are Elac Uni-fi Uf5 from the thanksgiving sale. I would need to save for a long time to afford the higher end Yamaha amplifier. I will look into a second DAC instead. I never thought of it that way. It was very good advice.

Siegfried der Held really the only difference between my 801 and your 701 is the DAC, you’ve got the same amp I do in every respect minus the SABBRE DAC, I haven’t even used it yet, you’ve got to download Yamahas dedicated driver to your computer and all I’ve got on my computer is iTunes, I don’t stream Tidal or anything yet, but nice to have the option. Mines paired with KLH Kendalls, and you’re right clean power!!

I have the S701, also. Great little amp! Have it paired with Focal Chorus 706 speakers in a relatively small room. I've been a yamaha fan since the early 70's. Back then, it was an A1000 IA paired with a T1000 tuner.

I just bought the 801 and I have the Schiit Modi 3 as well. I compared both and I would say that the DAC in the 801 provides superior resolution and detail to the Modi. This is my first serious amp and I love it! My previous amp was an SVS Soundbase and in comparison the SVS somehow seemed slower, (maybe its just that the details seemed muddy), but the Yamaha presents all of the details in the music and then they're gone so that they don't slide over top of the next one. Anyway, I am new to all of this but I am loving the 801

@@McBeakerson huh, I didn’t know that

If Yamaha or Adorama Camera is willing to send me the A-S1100, I'd be down to try it. Heck, I may even go for the 3000. The topology that Yammy uses for that one is outstandingly good. :D

@@ZeroFidelity please do! I wonder actually if the 3000 actually stands its own against Luxman. That'd be very interesting!

I could not agree more, the 1100 is such a great amp. And the phono is awesome!

Andreas Nielsen oh yeah it’s a freaking awesome amp. It’s not the best amp in the world by any means, and there’s a few models above the A-S1100, but still it’s definitely high end. For me it would be the “end game” to own one and I’d be happy for a very long time if I did. There’s a video on KZfaq of a guy who owns one and running a pair of Klipsch Fortè lll floor standing speakers, which would be a really great combo. I think he upgraded to another high end floor standing Klipsch speaker but I can’t remember which one.

Ron over at New Record Day did a review of the mid-level A-S2100 and was seriously impressed with it. I guess it’s mainly due to the MOS-FET topology. Yamaha has been tinkering with VFETs and MOS-FETs for as long as I remember, and I’m OLD lol kzfaq.info/get/bejne/bdCadL2rnLSze2Q.html

The hold up sucks, but I'm nonetheless excited for ya. Give it a bit of time to break-in, and enjoy!

Yeah, I reckon you'll love your SA3 - I'd say 24 hours of use will get it where it needs to be performance wise.

yes i had a 801 then jumped up to the as1100 and love that one even more

The Yamaha A-S1100/2100/3000 series of amps are in another league altogether. They start at $2500 and go clear to $7000. Neither the Iota nor the Marantz can compare as they are not in the same class. You know what’s funny? Every single AB Yamaha stereo amp from $300 up to $7000 is rated at around 80-100 watts per channel. Now, you KNOW that $7000 amp can just destroy every Yamaha amp from $300 to $1000 and yet they are all rated the same! There oughta be a law...

Very cool. Glad you're diggin on the 1100!

Does the AS-1100 also have an amber power light? Is yours black or silver?

@@michaelphillippi4676 From what I can tell, the power light is the same as the 801s. Mine is black. I'll upload a video in the next few days.