Yamaha MX-1? Compared to other TOTL Yamaha amps

[theokalat]

Hi folks,
I just scooped an MX-1 off ebay in Australia for $200 today. Now anxiously waiting for delivery and that it doesn't get damaged by those gorillas at Australia Post.
I do have a matching CX-1 pre to go with it, but I also have the MX-2000.

Just wondering where in the pecking order does the MX-1 fit compared to all the other yamaha amps ever made since the 70's.

Some here have stated that the MX-1 is possibly the best power amp Yamaha ever made aside from the MX-10000.
Does that make it better than the B1, B-2x, M85, MX-1000 and MX-2000?

Has anyone had the pleasure to directly compare the MX-1 with other amps, and what did you conclude in terms of sound quality with the others.

theokalat

 

[marne]

This is interesting for me too. As an MX-1 owner I was overwhelmed, when using this unit for the first time. It's so clean, clean, clean and tight and powerful while always running cool. I love it. I was not able to A/B it with my PC2002Ms, but I will be able to so soon (they're installed in my 2nd flat). One thing I know is, that my MX-1 eats my AX1070 and my MX50 flawless. I'm excited how it wil compare to the MX-10000 which may come my way during the next two weeks. But also want to know how it sounds beside your MX-2000.
One thing is sure: 200$ is a true steal. Mine was 450€ . I had to put it in service to an old school Yamaha technician, bought it defective for 250€ while one channel was dead due to the dead of a small part (sry don't remember) and had to pay another 200€ for restoring the nearly complete burnt right channel, he showed me the box with many blown up transistors and resistors, while the elicitor was small like the head of a match. This was not a bargain. But I don't regret it.

I was asking if an MX-1000 may have been a better choice. He was laughing and gave a dismissive gesture . He said, that the MX-1 is way better, even an M-80/M-85 will beat the MX-1000 (in sound and built quality) and that the MX-1 is an amp for life, build rock solid, like a pro with some of the finest parts available. While he is a musician now and doing some pro gigs. He seemed to know pretty well what he is talking about. But please don't take this a bash on the MX-1000 I never heard it, this was just the opinion of the technician.

 

[the-real-mandak]

In general the talks about the MX-1 are not that flattering, since it was a last attempt from Yamaha to make a high-end separate amp setup. It was not a nothing speared development but more like "we need a new model, but the river is running dry" thing. In the catalog it was pushed all the way back to page 15, where the top story was the DSP-A2070 7 ch surround sound monster. So the MX-1 was not exactly the focus from Yamaha, but it did end up running for 8 years.

All this do not mean it is a bad amp, only that marketing did not push it to fame. But if you look a bit on the specs, the Dynamic Headroom rating is 1.46dB@8ohm. To comparison the M-85 has 2.18dB; this indicates a smaller power supply in the MX-1 - simply less muscle when it gets tough. But not all need to push there amp to the limit, so in real world the rumors might be unfair to the MX-1. In any case I am looking forward for you're comparison of the MX-2000 and the MX-1, since I also run a MX-2000.

And $200 is a steal; at that price it can not be disappointing

 

[stereofanboy]

I've had two M-70s and an M-80 and an MX-1. I've never done any sort of comparison testing, but, although I love them all, I love the MX-1 the most. It just seems so effortless.

 

[rabbit]

And $200 is a steal; at that price it can not be disappointing

Actually I saw this on ebay but was a bit concerned about it's condition which is quite poor from a cosmetic perspective.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140385957283&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Also I would be concerned about getting it sent via Australia Post. I once bought an old bakelite mantle radio off ebay and the guy sent it via Aus Post but it came to me in little pieces Fortunately the guy refunded me the money but I still would have preferred to have the item I bid for It's probably best to get it sent via Pack and Send but that will probably send you back at least a couple of hundred bucks based on the weight Keep fingers cross though that everything goes OK.

Now for the technical jive. I believe the MX-1 is based on the same design as the MX-1000 but with a slightly lower power rating. It has the HCA topology as well as a Class G output stage with multiple supply rails. It should be a good amp and I can't see why someone would say the MX-1000 is a lot inferior when they use similar design concepts ??

regards

 

[Nikko75]

The MX-1000U was not intended to be the last word in amplifiers and was tailored to have it's own sound. Very powerful, with 20 output devices and designed for use to 1 Ohm, the MX-1 was rated for 2 Ohms, still excellent. The MX-1 has a heavier heatsink but bares great similarity in build and layout to the MX-1000U. I haven't heard the MX-1 as of yet so I cannot comment on sound.

One thing that came up on another forum not long ago, that I can concur with, is the USA spec versions of the MX-2000 were not built to the same standard as the Canadian versions. In the C version the filter caps in the HCA input and voltage driver sections are all Rubycon Black Gates and two red "N" series Rubycon Black Gate non-polars, but in the U version they are mostly a mix of Nichicons. I've seen three versions of the input board so far, one that I haven't personally had in front of me was much different. Another thing I noted was on the US version the resistors R411/412 on the meter board were 1/4W and would heat up and turn the board brown but on the C version they were 1W and didn't heat up. The power reserve on the C version was also 4000uF larger in capacity.

 

[theokalat]

Quote from Marne

"I'm excited how it will compare to the MX-10000 which may come my way during the next two weeks."

Please let us all know how it compares to the MX-10000 and the PC2002. Very few have the privilage to listen to an MX10000, and to directly compare their own equipment to this Yamaha beast.

Quote from Rabbit

"Actually I saw this on ebay but was a bit concerned about it's condition which is quite poor from a cosmetic perspective."

Yeah, he had a BIN price of $550!, but due to its cosmetic condition, I made him an offer of $200.

And also these are extremely rare here and another one may never come up again on ebay Australia for many years, so I took the plunge and grabbed it.

Maybe I should have started off with an offer of only $100 and see if he would have taken the bait.

But I am quite happy when he accepted my offer, as I can easily have it restored back to its original glory cosmetic wise. He assured me it works 100% perfect. Which is the main thing.

If the MX-1 compares favourably with my MX-2000, I will have it recapped and see how she sings afterwards.

Quote from The-Real-Mandak

"To comparison the M-85 has 2.18dB; this indicates a smaller power supply in the MX-1 - simply less muscle when it gets tough."

I have listened to the M80 and M85, I was not impressed, my MX-2000 smokes both of them sound wise, much more detailed, better imaging and wider soundstage, which is more important to me, rather than outright power, as my speakers are an easy load for the majority of power amps.

Many others who have compared the M85 and MX-1 back to back all say the MX-1 easily came out on top soundwise.

This leads me to suspect that Yamaha did put all their technological know how in the design of the MX-1 to perform as well as it could at the price point and market it was intended for.

All the opinions on audioreview.com have nothing but glowing praise for the MX-1, and is compared very favourably by some to amps costing many times its price when new.

I will post my conclusion of the MX-1 soundwise against my MX2000 back here in a week or so.

 

[the-real-mandak]

I can only agree to the MX-2000 vs. M-80/85 statement, this is also my experince.

I made an error in my post abowe, it was ment to be Dynamic Headroom (stated in dB) not Power (stated in W). The comparison between the MX-1 and MX-1000 is 1.46dB vs. 2.38dB, witch is more interesting since they share design. On paper the MX-1000 is better to handel fast and large dynamics in the music, but as mentioned before - real life experince is better.

 

[rabbit]

does anyone have a schematic for an MX-1 ??

regards

 

[theokalat]

does anyone have a schematic for an MX-1 ??

regards

I only have the owners manual. If you want it, I can email it to you or anyone else that may want it.

 

[the-real-mandak]

The owners manual is here: http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/av/english/SepA/MX-1.pdf

 

[theokalat]

Got the MX-1 yesterday. This is one very heavy beast. 24kg I believe. Placed heavy stress on my back carrying the thing up two flights of stairs.

Well I hooked it up to my cx-1 after unplugging my MX-2000.
What a wonderful sounding amp.

Lots of power, I would say it handles high power better than the MX-2000.
Extremely clean and very transparent at any volume.

Handles any kind of music with complete authority.
I do not understand why this amp is not very popular among Yamaha fans.
Maybe it has something to do with its bland looks.

The MX-2000 looks alot better, but soundwise I really could not separate these two amps, in regards to imaging, soundstage and overall musicality.

The only difference I note, could be my imagination, but I feel the MX-1 could handle high power, high volume listening better than the MX-2000.
Cleaner.tighter and deeper bass, thats what I am hearing in my system when I do A/B comparo between the two.

In conclusion, this is an absolute sleeper amp amongst the other more well known Yamaha amps, but it just sounds much better than most of them, if not all of them, and I have listened to most Yamaha amps.

All I need to do now is have the scratches on the casing professionally resprayed and restored back to its factory looks, and it should be as good as new.

If anyone has a service manual or can point me to a site where I can buy one, I would greatly appreciate it.

Already have the owners manual though.

 

[the-real-mandak]

PM me you're email.

 

[the-real-mandak]

The only difference I note, could be my imagination, but I feel the MX-1 could handle high power, high volume listening better than the MX-2000.
Cleaner.tighter and deeper bass, thats what I am hearing in my system when I do A/B comparo between the two.

It would only be to expecte that when pushed harder the MX-1 with 200W vs. 130W from the MX-2000, is showing a bit more headroom in power handling.

 

[devnull]

Got the MX-1 yesterday. This is one very heavy beast. 24kg I believe. Placed heavy stress on my back carrying the thing up two flights of stairs.

They do have a few kilos to them.

In conclusion, this is an absolute sleeper amp amongst the other more well known Yamaha amps, but it just sounds much better than most of them, if not all of them, and I have listened to most Yamaha amps.

I don't have that much experience in amplifiers, as I haven't heard that many. I find my MX-1 to be a very good amplifier, though. When you peel that cover off and glimpse at the dual mono design, it's a nicely laid out. I feel the reason that Yamaha didn't market these amp more than they did was more a result of them knowing where the market was heading.

You got an excellent deal on yours, too. I paid over twice that amount for my MX-1.

Mine is hooked up to a pair of NS-1000Ms, and insofar as that combination is concerned, it works very well. Although I'm not in need of it at this time, it is rated by Yamaha at a 2 ohm load, of which most amplifiers are not -- including Yamaha's own range of amplifiers.

The reason I bought this amplifier is that I wanted an amp that wasn't going to go into clipping and destroy the tweeters/mids on my speakers. Replacing them would cost far more than what this amp is worth.

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of my MX-1 is the word 'solid'. I don't know why these don't get more respect from the Yamaha crowd. Eh, doesn't matter to me.

John

 

[rabbit]

There is a schematic for it available from audiocircuit.com

http://www.audiocircuit.com/index.php?c=YAM&m=MX-1&models=2

regards

 

[theokalat]

There is a schematic for it available from audiocircuit.com

http://www.audiocircuit.com/index.php?c=YAM&m=MX-1&models=2

regards

Thanks rabbit, an AK member emailed me a copy of the full sm.

I am getting to like the MX-1 better than my MX2000.


I was a little concerned looking at the ebay photos at the time I was going to buy it, but the amp turned out to be much better cosmetically than the actual photos showed.

Front face is completely scratch free. The top of front cover has a few minor scratches but should be good after a pro paint job.

The main top cover is a little bit faded, but it is a vinyl cover over the metal plate, so a good vinyl spray should fix this up quite well.

Only thing missing is the feet, but Jaycar has a closely matching gold coloured set.

Inside was quite dusty, but I cleaned it all out, no rust anywhere so overall I was really pleased at the price I paid for it especially after hooking it up and listening to it.

I do not think I could have found an amp of such quality, especially in Australia,that can match it soundwise and build quality for the price of $200 I paid.
You probably would have to spend at least $3000-4000 on an amp to better this beast.

Damn, it even sounds better than my MX2000.

 

[marne]

This was not a good thread... made me score my second MX-1 today. Now it's time to get a preamp which makes an MX-1 work monaural. Anyone has experience with a fine unit?

 

[the-real-mandak]

CX-10000 or a few steps down.

 

[brutal]

You mean bridged?

If the amp doesn't have internal bridging, then you need a preamp that has the inverted outputs.

The only Yamaha preamps I can think of that have the necessary inverted outputs for bridging are C-70/C80/C85.

I prefer the C-70 as it doesn't have the variable loudness that the C80/C85 do.