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Another "Natural Sound" convert

avionic said:
I use a C-4 on a daily basis..Excellent little control amp...:thmbsp:
Click to expand...

after a little more time with the C-4
I am so stoked over this unit I want to tell the whole
world about it.
It seems that Yamaha really built a super high quality
unit back in the day even my CD's sound analog.
I would say that this unit sounds [unlike most transistor solid state preamps]
Because I find it to be warm, detailed and totally involving.
Plus it drives my amps like nothing before has ever driving them
with absolute authority and total speaker control.
The sound stage is beyond anything I ever expected from
my system, now there is real air around the instruments
and vocals and a defined holographic stereo imaging.
I have skipped some of my favorite new run TV shows just to
keep listening to music something I have not done
in quite some time.
This unit brings back the sound of vinyl like I remember
how records used to sound in a way I have not experienced
since I was a kid.
My system did do a great job with vinyl through the NAD C-162
but the C-4 has that sound I remember music to sound like...
a wave of emotions came back when playing
my records even the ones I play most frequently.

So my thinking is that today's electronics reproduce music in a very different
way than they did in the 70's? (calling the in experts)
and I don't know what or how its different just that its different
in ways I have no words for.
To me it seems now that after listening to the C-4 for the past few
weeks that the magic that spark has somehow been lost in the
translation, so to speak, and over time I too had forgotten how vinyl
or any reproduced music for that matter is/was supposed to sound.
I'm sure many will say that "new and improved" is just that!

So hopefully I will come down from the cloud I have been an float
soon.

Bravo Yamaha bravo!
 
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I'd like to add my name to the Natural Sound Converts list. I found an A-1 integrated amp at a Salvation Army a couple of months ago. Prior to that I had a CR1040 that I liked but didn't love....but I have to say I love the A-1. It just had a perfect sound to my ears. I loved it so much that when I spotted a C85 preamp at a local store, I thought it might be just what I was looking for in a preamp. And after two weeks living with it, I can say without a doubt that it is exactly what I was looking for.

It replaces a modern and very simple tube pre and a vintage Sony TA2000, both of which are excellent. The tube pre didn't mate well with my amp, and the Sony is great but not as great as the Yamaha.

So..yes...I am now fully into the Natural Sound. It sounds neither vintage nor modern. It just sounds 'right'.
 
merrylander said:
All that I know (and that is not a hell of a lot) is that we have only four systems here,
starting upstairs;

Bedroom: CR-1000 with NS-670 speakers, Pioneer PL88FS TT Onkyo CDP, K-1000 cass

FamilyRoom: CR-2020 with Polk Monitor 7Bs Sony CDP/DVD

PlayRoom: CR-2040 with NS-690 series 1 and PX-2 TT CDC-755 CDP and K-1000 cass

Workshop: CR-800 with Polk Monitor 10Bs Pioneer PL44FS TT K-850 cass and CD-X5 CDP

They all sound pretty good to us and we are the only ones they need to please.
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I have posted about Yamaha before, some of you may get tired of hearing it, but the Yamaha/Polk combo is just great listening. I have a Yamaha CR 1020 that Merrylander went through for the previous owner (Kenindc) with Polk 7b's and am hooked on it. My son has a CR 820 with stacked Large Advents and he is in heaven also.
One thing about the Yamahas I like is the loudness dial. Unlike other makes it can be adjusted like the volume, just not on and off. I have to listen at very low volumes sometimes and the sound seems fuller at lower settings. Maybe it is just me (I have been to over 500 live shows and my hearing may be suspect,as well as racing cars and bikes) but it seems to me that it is just better than the rest.
I wish they were not so popular now as I want to buy a 2020 and prices have gone way up.
 
I've often posted that I don't subscribe to 'Brand-Loyalty',however having said that-I couldn't be more pleased than I am with the Yamaha GT 2000 turntable.
This is the best component I have ever bought and possibly the last turntable I will ever buy.(GT 2000x notwithstanding.)
What I acquired was not only a new turntable,but 1500+ new records and a new system.
Having heard how good it sounds,I'd be prepared to pay twice the price I paid for it.
 
Glad to hear you really like your c4 autobot. In my opinion though I wouldn't use "tubelike" in describing the sound of the c4. I'd say the sound is quite typical of the yamaha sound; very clean and uncolored. What tube unit might you be comparing the c4 to?
 
What I find fascinating is that what I'm hearing described of the über-fancy high end models is exactly how I'd describe my lowly CR-220... clean, pure, natural, etc. Not having heard the better machines, I don't know for sure, but it seems like Yamaha nailed a characteristic 'sound' (or maybe it is a lack of sound?) across the range.
 
motorstereo said:
Glad to hear you really like your c4 autobot. In my opinion though I wouldn't use "tubelike" in describing the sound of the c4. I'd say the sound is quite typical of the yamaha sound; very clean and uncolored. What tube unit might you be comparing the c4 to?
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No I know it is not a direct comparison.

My first Yamaha, what can I say? My bad sorry for even mentioning the word tubes.

I take it back, it is not tube like.
It is as you described thank you for providing me with the correct description

I have now edited my previous post

removed the word tubes and replaced it with [unlike most transistor solid state preamps]

I would say that this unit sounds more like tubes than transistor its very warm, detailed and totally involving.
Click to expand...
 
I'm a tube fan but my C85 has such a smooth "natural" sound that I replaced a tube preamp with it. Somehow, my SS system has taken on a tube-like character, but not an exaggerated bloom. Kind of the best of both worlds, with the really smooth upper frequencies but bass with quick, tight impact.
 
JohnVF said:
I'm a tube fan but my C85 has such a smooth "natural" sound that I replaced a tube preamp with it. Somehow, my SS system has taken on a tube-like character, but not an exaggerated bloom. Kind of the best of both worlds, with the really smooth upper frequencies but bass with quick, tight impact.
Click to expand...

I had a hard time finding the correct description but Tube Like is all I can come up with when comparing to my other solid state units.

Just wish I had a bigger vocabulary like the professional reviewers do.
 
avionic said:
:thmbsp: Photo's of my pieces..
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Hi,
That 3rd pic....what tuner is that? I just picked up an M-2 and I love the green glow of that tuner. Been thinking about what tuners match with the M-2/M-4 series..haven't researched it yet though...thanks.
 
herbd2 said:
Hi,
That 3rd pic....what tuner is that? I just picked up an M-2 and I love the green glow of that tuner. Been thinking about what tuners match with the M-2/M-4 series..haven't researched it yet though...thanks.
Click to expand...

Its a Yamaha T-1..The T-2 would be the match for your M-2.
 
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