Yamaha RX-V1200. Enough grunt for HT...... (1 Viewer)

[Nick EV]

I am in the process of trading my Marantz SR7200 for the new Yamaha RX-V1200. (Got sick of the audio drop outs and popping issues with the new Marantz line) The only issue I have is the RX-V1200 puts out 80Watts RMS @ 8ohms into each of the six channels it is able to drive. (The SR7200 was 105Watts per channel but it felt like it was a little lacking when really cranked up) I have reasonably efficient 8ohm speakers and a medium sized living room. I was wondering if anyone else has this model and if it produced decent HT sound levels.
I have noted that now days a lot of figures quoted for power ratings do not equate to real power figures for all channels driven when professionally tested. This is one concern I have for the 1200. The RX-V2200 is 100Watts per channel but in Australia it is an extra $500 and won't be available to my dealer till early next year. (Which is some of the reasons I'm opting for the 1200)
Also the RX-V1200 and the RX-V2200 weight exactly the same. If the RX-V2200 is rated higher, I thought it would have a slightly bigger transformer to handle the extra output. I know there are lots of other brands to pick from but I have narrowed it down to the Yamaha for my needs and listening taste. (Also my dealer only has Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Pioneer and Yamaha)
The other thing I noted with the Yamaha models is they have an impedence switch for different speaker ratings i.e a 4/8 ohm selector. Typically lower the ohms the more current the amp draws and the greater the output to the speakers. Does this limit the overall output of the amp for lower impedence speakers or does it cause the amp to maintain a constant 80Watt output for different speaker loads?
Any comments appreciated.

 

[Charles J P]

I traded in my problematic SR-6200 for the RX-V1200, and I could not be happier. It has plenty of oomph. The calibration methods are not quite the same for the two receivers (the marantz I set referance to 0 on the dail... this cannot be done with the Yammie due to the way you balance the level of the mains, but both receivers kept all speakers within a few db of the factory default using avia) but to give you an idea, I used to listen to the Marantz from -15 to -5 on the volume, and I listen to the same movies with the Yammie at -40 to -30
It has plenty of power, and the processing kicks the Marantz ass around the room IMO

 

[Kevin C Brown]

If the Yammie doesn't have enough oomph, you could always just add an external 2 channel amp for the mains.

I did this a while ago with an RX-V793, and couldn't have been happier.

BTW, I agree with you in that because of the higher rated power, I would expect the 2200 to weight more than the 1200 too. Sort of strange actually...

 

[VicQ]

I just got my new issue of Sound and Vision and they review the Yammie rx-v1200 (which I currently own), they also reviewed the Marantz 7200 a few issues back and here are the lab numbers.
M - Marantz
Y - Yamaha
one channel 8 ohms M= 135W, Y=124W
two channels M=120W, Y=111W
five channels M=fronts 29W surrounds 52W, Y=50W all
six channels M=27W, Y=47W
noise levels M= -66, Y= -74
The reviewer happens to be the same for both units (Daniel Kumin). Bottom line he didn't like the Marantz and felt it was lacking in power. On the article for the Yamaha, he states "Despite its modest power ratings, the Yamaha should have plenty of grunt for most real-world needs." Basically, he liked the Yamaha. One note about the Yamaha's power rating is that he stated that impendance switch, no matter what position he set it for, did not affect the power test. This leads me to believe that the sample unit might not have been working 100% as far as power goes, but in he's article he never complained about lack of power. I
-Vic

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Either that, or it's a switch that is supposed to do absolutely nothing but make the owner feel better that he/she has an extra "knob to turn" !
Finally, a review to put all of the "Yamaha's are too forward sounding," "Yamaha makes my speakers sound too bright" crowd in their place.
When I had the RX-V793, I felt it was completely neutral. No "pops" or "dropouts" a la the Marantz x200's either.

 

[Bob_A]

I agree completely...I have never felt that my DSP-A1 was bright...very clear and neutral IMHO.

 

[Bob_M]

I have the Yamaha 2095 and cannot be happier with the unit. I upgraded from a DPL Yam 592. Neither unit ever gave me any problems. Yam just works.

The lab results for the RX-V1200 were outstanding. Extremely low noise in all tests. In fact the results rival the high end pre/pro's that were tested a few issues back. So this puzzle's me, why are Pre/Pro's so better? At least when it comes to distortion and background noise I don't see much of a difference. Love to hear opinions on this?

Thanks

Bob