Have your say & ask the experts

hi folks , 5.1 surround is out for me , even a 2.1 system probably wont suit , as my tv is in a corner , and i couldnt handle the lack of symmetry , ie , not having the speakers placed the same distance from the tv ...

so a soundbar it has to be , i live in a semi detached timber framed house anyway and dont want anything that will shake it , so ive narrowed it down to these two , so i have a few questions to help me make my choice..

1. does anyone know if the upscaler in the 40d would be better than my humax foxsat hd box for sd ? presuming it can upscale sd as i understand it...

2. will i gain anything soundwise from the 40d over the 600 given that i wont be turning it up sky high ? my lounge is about 4m by 5m..

3.does anyone know where the best deals are for both , or either ? i cant get them locally , will have to buy in the uk and pay for delivery ...        

thanks in advance ...

polite bump...

I could not honestly say if the SD picture would be better and would suggest your post Note 1 in the Satellite boxes section.

On my Soundbar it will happily project from 1.8 Metres to 9 Metres from the listening positioning where the parameters for room width and length being 2 Metres to 12 Metres, plus it will allow you to manual adjust if necessary.  It works from corner settings too.

Are you planning to add a Sub woofer with your setup? as I hide mine under the coffee table.

Richer sounds used to sell the YSP 600 but I got mine from Sound and vision online site.  I would suggest you audition if you can and Yamaha are bringing out new ones that will utilise HD audio next year if you are prepared to wait.

Lastly the sizing and wattage of YSP40D and YSP600 differ considerably where the 600 is aimed at 40 inch TV and below.

thanks shado , i feel if i wait , i will probably pay a premium for the newer models ,money is tight,  i dont know about a subwoofer , i guess it would be a possibility in the future , my tv is a 46inch plasma so maybe im better of with the 40d ?? or would your 30d be ok ??

auditions are out as i live in ireland , waterford , and theres nowhere that even sells them here .. maybe in cork or dublin , how much i would learn from listening to one in a shop i dont know ..

i will have to buy on reviews and reccomendations , i am focusing on yamaha as their reviews are very good , but if theres anything else id welcome suggestions ??

Last year I paid £470 for the YSD30 and £120 for the Piano black Subwoofer but came to over £600 with postage on Sound and vision Site.  If you go on the Yamaha site it gives you the dimensions of both the YSP 30 and 40D.  I was after the 40D , but it would not fit on my TV stand hence I went for the lower model.  The main difference is mine is 82 watts and obviously the 40D has more 2 watt sound projectors (40 I believe in total plus two 20 Watt Bass).  Both have DAB that only seems to work during the day and whereas mine has 3 DSP settings (Cinema, Music and Sport), the 40D has six.

Rest assured Yamaha invented/introduced the Soundbar and it is an impressive bit of kit.  I listened to the older model a YSP 1100 in a 10 metre shop floor and the sound was jaw dropping.  I personally have not listened to a true 5.1/7.1 Surround Amp or accompanying speakers and was content back then with Panasonic CRT 32 inch TV that had room for decent Pro Logic Speakers built in.  There are other cheaper contenders in the Soundbar business who are by reviews catching up. 

If the Yamaha does not receive true 5.1 it reverts to normal PCM 48khz and shows stereo pickup but the beauty of this you can select neo 6.0/ Prologic II Cinema,Music,Games/ and normal prologic settings.  If DTS is available on the disc then you have to select it via the remote.  There are 5 Beam, 3 Beam & Stereo, Stereo, My Surround, My Beam and 5CH Stereo.  The DSP settings works with 5 Beam and 3 Beam/Stereo settings.  My Surround works with your room acoustics.  5 CH Stereo works really well with Music channels as does 3 Beam plus Stereo in Music mode.  There is also an Enhancer mode for all that is supposed to work with older ipod tracks.  But guess what it boosts older films that was not filmed in Surround sound.  There is also a Night version on Cinema/Music/Sport that allows nearby occupants to sleep that cuts the bass element and high volume settings.

I have had mine for nearly a year and it never ceases to amaze me,  I hate to say definately buy this if you have not heard it, but I can honestly say you will not be disappointed.  If you cannot afford the 40D then the 30D is just fine.  My neighbour has the 600 model plus Subwoofer and is content with it.  Yamaha has redefined Home Cinema with these products if you only desire a one product box and have even impressed WHF - just a shame you cannot audition.

p.s. Their Subwoofer is a slimmer design and not a Borg Cube ugly product which you might find appealing to display. 

 

 

shado thanks again for taking the time to post , from what you say i think a yamaha soundbar would be perfect for me , i wouldnt have even expected them to be as good as you describe , i will trawl the net for the best deals over the next few weeks , money is tight but im confident now it would be worth it , i will probably go for the cheapest of the 3 mentioned ,which would probably do me fine , unless i spot a really good deal on the 40d,30d , accomodating the size wouldnt be a problem for me , ill probably add a sub at a later date , anyway ill post my findings when i get one , thanks again .....

Not a problem, I know how frustrating it is not to have a true hifi shop nearby as when I used to live on Anglesey it was not until 1988 when Owens Hifi opened up in Bangor when I listened to the excellent Pioneer A400 Amp in years to come that replaced my disappointing Sansui AUG500X. 

The Sub offers deeper bass on movies which is why I recommend it.  Good luck with your quest.

shado:

Not a problem, I know how frustrating it is not to have a true hifi shop nearby as when I used to live on Anglesey it was not until 1988 when Owens Hifi opened up in Bangor when I listened to the excellent Pioneer A400 Amp in years to come that replaced my disappointing Sansui AUG500X. 

The Sub offers deeper bass on movies which is why I recommend it.  Good luck with your quest.