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Yamaha a-s2000 owners?

G

guest111

Active Member
Well, my Cambridge 851a and 851c has gone back - turns out the build and component quality leaves a lot to be desired. It was fun while it lasted...

Looking to replace it with a Yamaha a-s2000/cd-s2000 combination, but have a couple of questions:

How many tape loops does the a-s2000 have?
How does the built in phono stage sound?
Anyone know the brands of components used, IE caps, volume encoders, etc?
Is the transport in the cd-s2000 really as good as they say? Is there any real transport noise?

Thanks for any and all help!
 
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Thanks for your reply and for clearing up the tape loop issue - I thought it only had 1, however on my local dealers website the specs said "1x tape loops via 4 pairs of rca/phono" so I wondered whether they'd made a mistake.

I wish they'd put more IO on modern amps - with the wide variety of sources in use today, it sucks that there's not enough room to have them all connected at once! Many people want to have a computer interface hooked up as well as a cassette/md recorder. That's one of the things I loved about my Cambridge audio 851a... unfortunately, they didn't put the same thought into the build/component quality as they did into the features.
 
The phono stage on this is very nice. I ultimatly bought a lehman black cube,and it's better, but not by much at all. In fact I may sell it and go back to the Yamaha so I can get a couple bucks for a different upgrade.
I haven't seen or heard the CDP, so I can't help you there.
 
On looks alone you can't beat that Yamaha. Those HK units do nothing for me. Pretty damn ugly, to my eyes, although I'm sure they have their fans as well.

cubdog
 
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I have the cd-s2000. It is a well built and good looking player with a smooth and quiet tray. As for how good it sounds, it sounds really good. Though that can be said about most modern CD players. As a comparison, it does sound very much like my Pioneer Elite dv-45a player, with the Yamaha having the teeniest of edge. I say that because it cost me 10 times as much as the Pioneer.
 
I've owned HK kit before, but never found it to be reliable... went through 3 HK980's before I got one that worked. It didn't sound very good either...

Don't suppose anyone's heard the rega elicit-r and could compare it to the a-s2000?
 
I love the looks of the Yamaha A-S2000/CD-S2000 but at their price point, IMO, you can do better from strictly an audio/sound quality perspective.

Not that the Yamaha sounds bad by any means, just that for my taste, something along the lines of a Naim Nait 5si and Naim CD5si sounds clearly better and is $300 cheaper for the combo.

As for the Rega Elicit-R, you're talking about a $3000 integrated which also opens up even more choices, including the excellent Naim Nait XS2.
 
Here in the UK, there's not much difference in price between an a-s2000 and elicit-r.

I think, in the long run, it looks like I'm going to end up going for the rega, despite the lack of features
 
I love mine and it's the best sounding amp I've had, better than the Creek 5350se.
The tone controls are really good and easy to cancel, solid phono stage, two sets of speaker outputs. Another cool thing is the speaker selector switch where you can turn the speaker output off while the unit is still on. This is great for switching components or cables or anything you are trying to compare.
That said, I got a really good deal used here through BT. Half the retail price.
For that money, it's really great. At full retail, I would have gone with something different. That Rega is very interesting.
 
I didn't notice you were from the UK. That makes the Yamaha an even worse value and the Rega an even better value versus buying them in the US.

Before jumping the gun on the Rega, you should do yourself a favor and take a listen to the Naim XS2 as well as the Cyrus 8 XPd as all the three have ardent followers in that price range.

ashleycox said:
Here in the UK, there's not much difference in price between an a-s2000 and elicit-r.

I think, in the long run, it looks like I'm going to end up going for the rega, despite the lack of features
Click to expand...
 
My friend and fellow AK'er owned an A-S2000. It was a very nice amp. On the tape loop issue: be warned that it is not a true tape loop. There is no way to monitor your recording as there is no monitor function. You have to change the input to Line 2 to listen to the playback which means you can't insert an equalizer. So it will record, but it is not a full function tape loop like you might be used to. It all depends on how you want to use the loop.
 
Ashleycox,
Rega Elicit-R owner here in the States. Mine's been in service now for a month and am very happy with it. (I'm also a big Yamaha fan; love the A-S2000 on looks alone.) My Rega has sounded great - more detail to the music; it's been a particular standout on jazz. I bi-wire mine with a pair of B&W 805s's. ( I have a thread in the British audio section; take a look)
Jeff
 
Migman said:
My friend and fellow AK'er owned an A-S2000. It was a very nice amp. On the tape loop issue: be warned that it is not a true tape loop. There is no way to monitor your recording as there is no monitor function. You have to change the input to Line 2 to listen to the playback which means you can't insert an equalizer. So it will record, but it is not a full function tape loop like you might be used to. It all depends on how you want to use the loop.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info - definitely useful. IMO Yamaha should've included 2 tape monitir loops, just like the old amps used to have...

I'm only using the output of the loop to pass audio to a computer for vinyl archival and such, so this wouldn't necessarily be a problem... the problem I have with the Yamaha is there's not enough inputs. I could just about connect everything, but I wouldn't be able to upgrade the phono stage in the future.
 
arcamguy1 said:
Ashleycox,
Rega Elicit-R owner here in the States. Mine's been in service now for a month and am very happy with it. (I'm also a big Yamaha fan; love the A-S2000 on looks alone.) My Rega has sounded great - more detail to the music; it's been a particular standout on jazz. I bi-wire mine with a pair of B&W 805s's. ( I have a thread in the British audio section; take a look)
Jeff
Click to expand...
Thanks Jeff - great to hear from an elicit-r owner! I thought the elicit-r had only 1 set of speaker terminals? Are the 2 sets only for bi-wiring, or can they be switched in and out independently?
Also, if you put your ear close to the speaker, do you hear any humming? I've heard this is a problem with rega amps...
 
Ashley,
You're correct: the Elicit-R has one set of speaker terminals; my speaker cable is configured for bi-wiring: one end with two connections, the other, with 4. In terms of the hum, I've never heard it. I'll make a point to listen for it next time I have it on. All-in-all...I think a very nice amp with the features I need.
Jeff
 
Thanks for the clarification Jeff. Did you get a noticeable improvement in sound quality when bi-wiring?
Apparently the hum can only be heard if you put your ear up to the speaker... some have it and some don't.
 
ashleycox said:
Thanks for the clarification Jeff. Did you get a noticeable improvement in sound quality when bi-wiring?
Apparently the hum can only be heard if you put your ear up to the speaker... some have it and some don't.
Click to expand...

Hi Ashley,
This is the first time I've bi-wired; before this, I was bi-amping an older pair of Arcam amps with my B&W's. I was/am a big fan of bi-amping, only because it sounded quite good with my Arcams. So, when I upgraded to the Rega I was a bit concerned about whether the sound quality would match what I was used to.

I would say it has. Besides upgrading the amp, I upgraded the speaker cable, going from Kimber 8TC to 12TC. I'm noticing a more fullness to the sound with the 12's.

The hum: now you have me curious. (I haven't had the Rega on in a few days; been using my HT system.) I will make a point to listen for it tomorrow night.

Again, I haven't noticed anything other than music coming out of my B&W's. Has this been a complaint specific to the Elicit-R?

Jeff
 
arcamguy1 said:
The hum: now you have me curious. (I haven't had the Rega on in a few days; been using my HT system.) I will make a point to listen for it tomorrow night.

Again, I haven't noticed anything other than music coming out of my B&W's. Has this been a complaint specific to the Elicit-R?

Jeff
Click to expand...

I haven't heard any complaints about hum with Elicit-R however it would not surprise me. I'm sure it's a great sounding amp. If you aren't leaving it on 24/7 you are probably not hearing it at it's best.
 
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