Yamaha to Launch New Products at IFA 2014

UK tuning? Yes I know about it from reading advertising blurb, but what do they actually tune in an amplifier?

Nice products though and good to see Yamaha very much in the game.
 
UK tuning? Yes I know about it from reading advertising blurb, but what do they actually tune in an amplifier?

Yamaha used to release special SE editions of their receivers specifically tuned for the UK market. The following is in relation to the DSPAX863SE:

You'll also notice that the chassis carries a special ‘UK tuned' badge. This indicates that it has been specifically modified for the UK market.

How? Yamaha conducted research into how UK users want their products to sound and they came up with two aims: to make audio natural and to recreate the effects/music as the filmmaker or recording artist intended.

To achieve this, Yamaha has included special components ranging from power transformers to diodes to help promote a sound that Yamaha claims to be agile, transparent, powerful and balanced.


Yamaha stopped manufacturer the SE models after the recent economic crash and spent less on regional variations in order to cut costs. I guess their coffers are now full enough to once again start making SE models again?

Most if not all of these SE models were acclaimed and accredited with superior musical abilities when compared to what the competition had to offer for similar money.

The natural, slightly warmer sound signature associated with UK amps is a well known characteristic. It is also said that European audio products have a different audio signature to many products consieved entitrely in the east because of the differences in language. Japanese favours harder sound while spoken Englisk has softer vowel sounds. WE in England show favour towards audio products that are symaphetic to our language compared to the more clinical approach taken by many Japanese manufacturers.

As to whether it is possible to tune audio components, yes and Sony even went as far as marketing a CD player in the nineties that could theoretically be programmed to emulate any other CD player's audio signature. The product failed to catch on because of the complexity of the setup and programming and Sony's unwillingness to upset its competitors by giving out the exact settings needed to emulate their competitors players.

It should also be noted that Ken Ishiwata made his name "tuning" audio products for both Pioneer and then more notably for Marantz and these specially tuned KI Signature products were always regarded better than those that lacked the special KI treatment.

no rival could market a KI Signature product, the idea being to select affordable models with potential from the range, tune them using 'cost no object' strategies, and still sell them at a sensible prices.

Tuned to sound the way Ishiwata wanted, rather than compromised by cost or other concerns, the KI Signature products came with exclusive badging and a signed certificate.

Not only did they prove to be best-sellers, but for many people the 'KI' range also brought Ishiwata out from the Marantz backrooms and into the spotlight.


Read more at 60 years of Marantz are all about the music | What Hi-Fi?

It basically boils down to using higher quality components and the person employing them having an ear for how these components effect the audio signal.
 
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I'm still using a Yamaha 863 and still sounds nice and does the job very well. Probably time to upgrade to a RX-A2040.
 
You'll also notice that the chassis carries a special ‘UK tuned' badge. This indicates that it has been specifically modified for the UK market.

How? Yamaha conducted research into how UK users want their products to sound and they came up with two aims: to make audio natural and to recreate the effects/music as the filmmaker or recording artist intended.

To achieve this, Yamaha has included special components ranging from power transformers to diodes to help promote a sound that Yamaha claims to be agile, transparent, powerful and balanced.

What a load of marketing cobblers. So people from the US don't want natural audio or to listen to how the filmmaker intended?
 
At has nothing to do with reproducing exactly what the filmakers intended and everything to do with how those in the UK listen to audio. UK audio equipment is revered the world over and it is strongly associated with particular audio characteristics. Whether you believe that the SE products were tuned or not, they were acclaimed for their musical abilities and gained much praise.

Yamaha doesn't have to reintroduce UK tuning and could simply sell the same products it sells elsewhere in Europe here. I'm not sure what is to be gained by rejecting UK tuning and dismissing it without even hearing the products that will undergo the tuning?

People in the US who are into hifi and AV have slighly different purchasing criteria and indeed different audio preferences. The US manufacturers have always been more into big power amps as opposed to the subtleties of tuning. Their audio products are in many ways a lot like their cars :)
 
At has nothing to do with reproducing exactly what the filmakers intended

So you're agreeing with me that it's marketing guff ;)

and everything to do with how those in the UK listen to audio.

I'd be interested to see your sources for this research.

I'm not sure what is to be gained by rejecting UK tuning and dismissing it without even hearing the products that will undergo the tuning?

You mean like Pioneer's Air Studios tuning? :)


. The US manufacturers have always been more into big power amps as opposed to the subtleties of tuning. Their audio products are in many ways a lot like their cars :)

So Ada associates and other high end US AV manufacturers aren't interested in subtleties?

Next thing you'll be saying is the 5th Yamaha foot makes a difference to sound quality :laugh:

You're a marketing man's dream...
 
There is also the fact that a typical American room is different from a typical UK room. In terms of sizes and construction methods these can both affect how a amplifier / speakers interact with a room.
 
I'd be interested to see your sources for this research.

Would you? Its based on at least 25 years of my own personal experience over which time I've heard much the same opinion as my own expressed by a considerable number of individuals involved within the audio industry. What are you basing your conclusion upon that Yamaha are not tuning their audio equipment and it is simply marketing bunkum?

and no, I'm not agreeing with you and if you are so cock sure of what you say then I'd suggest you get in touch with trading standards and hand over the evidence you obviously have to substantiate your claims.

Ada specialise in equipment associated with home theatre installations, big power amps built like American cars that wouldn't fit into most homes in the UK. I'm not saying all USA audio equipment is inferior, but the vast majority appeals to the American ideal of bigger is better. Not much kit made in the USA by USA brands makes its way here to the UK. I can only assume this is because it wouldn't appeal to enough people here to make distributing it in the UK a worthwhile exercise? The interesting aspect to this is that Arcam now manufacture their wares in the USA which is ironic really :)

Again, I don't see why you'd want to be so dismissive of something without even having any experience of it? To tell you the truth, who cares as long as the products marked as being UK tuned use better components that result in better audio?
 
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Would you? Its based on at least 25 years of my own personal experience

You make a sweeping statement as to how "people in the UK" like to listen to audio, and then say it's based on personal experience :laugh:

the vast majority appeals to the American ideal of bigger is better

There's that broom sweeping massive statements around again :)

I'd suggest you get in touch with trading standards and hand over the evidence you obviously have to substantiate your claims.

You're the one making big claims (and believing a manufacturers baseless claims)...

Ada specialise in equipment associated with home theatre installations, big power amps built like American cars that wouldn't fit into most homes in the UK.

Some of the best audio equipment I've heard comes from the USA/Canada, in the form of Ada and Anthem products. In fact the Ada Suite processor is one of the least assuming units I've ever come across.

I'm not saying that Yamaha don't tune their products, but to suggest it's a selling point is exactly what I said previously...marketing guff. You can't tune to "UK rooms" as every UK room is different. You can't tune to "UK tastes" as that's not based on any empirical evidence, and none of us have the same tastes. The same as implying that American's don't like detailed, refined sound because for them "bigger is better".

I'm somewhat stunned that you struggle to grasp this concept.
 
Yamaha have never claimed to tune products for UK rooms. I think you've got your wires crossed and are under the belief this has something to do with room correction? Yamaha will be producing equipment tuned to correspond with UK listening tastes, not only AV equipment, but also stereo and other audio equipment. They've done this in the past with some degree of acclaim. Not all Yamaha kit sold here will have this treatment and it will only apply to special edition models.

To tell you the truth, my generalised opinion of US equipment is based on hifi as opposed to home cinema, but this is irrelevant anyway given that most stuff made in the USA is made for the US market and rarely gets distributed beyond the USA. I'm sure that a lot of quality equipment is indeed manufactured in the USA, but one hell of a lot of it is made to appeal to the American consumer and they tend to like big and brash.

What is it you are so against, the UK tuned aspect or the fact that Yamaha are using it to sell products? The badge will not sell the products and the products will still need to impress in order to make sales. I personally welcome the announcement given the quality of the products that resulted from Yamaha previous eneavours with UK tuning.

I'm somewhat stumped by the somewhat antagonist responses you appear to go out of your way to throw back. I'm entitled to my opinion as much as you are welcome to yours, yet you seem to demand I provide you with spurious evidence while you can just lampoon something without addressing why it is actually lampoonable? You are obviously welcome to your opinion, but I'm at a loss as to how you've come to one in relation to a product or products you've never heard? The fact of the matter is that Yamaha used to do this and the products they "marketed" as being UK tuned sounded good and were not sold elsewhere in the world. I see no reason to ridicule their claims for no apparent reason and I'm sure the reviews of these products will determine whether they are good or bad irrespective of the UK tuned monica?

Yes, its marketing, but so what? What should they do, tune products and use better components in selected models, but not tell anyone???? I suppose American brands have no marketing and sell goods at cost?

And by the way, Canada is not in the USA ;) Anthem/Paradigm products are are made in Canada and I fail to see what Anthem has to do with manufacturers in the USA or brands based there? Are there any Mexican brands you want to mention as well? I'd be rather insulted if I was involved with Anthem or a Canadian. You appear to think that there's no difference between Canada and the USA? I believe Anthem/Paradigm are particularly proud of their Canadian heritage and definitely wouldn't want to be lumped in with US concerns just because Canada borders the USA. My next door neighbour likes gardening so does this mean I should like it too?
 
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Yamaha have never claimed to tune products for UK rooms. I think you've got your wires crossed and are under the belief this has something to do with room correction?

My comment on rooms was from sounddog's comment.


What is it you are so against, the UK tuned aspect or the fact that Yamaha are using it to sell products?

I'm not against anything, but I just don't buy into "UK tuned" beyond it being marketing speak. Yamaha make good kit and I've owned many different iterations of their AVRs, from the venerable DSP-A3090 to the Z7. It just makes me laugh the way they try to justify new models every year, and the whole "UK taste" is baseless in my opinion.
 
I think I may be disappointed with what Yamaha are actually bringing to the table in terms of UK tuning. It would appear that this isn't a reintroduction of their UK SE models of yesteryear and simply a more generalised tweaking of models sold here. After saying this, this did result in the A-S500 which was one of the best budget stereo amps you could buy.

I think it will be still some time until we see tne SE models coming from Yamaha again if ever, especially now that they have a two tier approach to their AV receivers with the entry level RXV lineup and the higher tier Adventage models.
 
My comment on rooms was from sounddog's comment.
Sorry then I'm unsure if you were agreeing or disagreeing about UK vs US rooms...

Okay I am generalising: but in the UK most houses are constructed with rooms about 16m2 with full brick construction or at least brick outer walls. In the US rooms tend to be significantly larger and mostly of wooden / plaster board construction. This alters how an amplifier and speakers sound in a room and makes UK vs US voicing relevant regardless of differing "tastes" in sound.

Eloise
 

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