Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
i bought this amp(yamaha dsp-a3090) used at Goodwill for $6.99(six dollars and ninety-nine cents). it is the most amazing amp i've had yet, i didn't know the value of it when i bought it. pleasent surprise!

Price Paid:  $400.00 from second hand

Summary:
my system : sony dvd ns530 yamaha 3090 amp b&w matrix 805 main speakers jbl scs150 speakers set let me make it quick.i buy this amp second handed with 100% condition minus box n user manual,to replace my denon 1803 dts-es amp.why?its just i know quality but i dont have the budget,the result is..i dont believe how lucky i am n how sad i would be if i wasn't quick enough to buy this amp,$700-800 still fair,if u dont believe me,just go listen,tell u how it sounds with what cd n what dvd will not give u any good,if u have budget more than $1000,just buy Yamaha (dsp a series or ax series).below that it's up to u to choose.Yamaha amps have the best dsp,expecially the one with front effect (7-8 channel),u should try rock concert/jazz club for music n 70mm dsp for movie,than u will understand,i never turn on the dsp feature from another brand,this 3090 with all transistor power section (80 watts x 5 with only 0,015%thd),sounds excellent,as good as any top of the line japanese integrated amp.build quality n looks is excellent,weight 21kg,the best DSP sound i've ever heard,my second Dolby Digital amp,so no comment for that feature,should be excellent logically,well.. so much to say.. so little time,just read strenghts

Strengths:
for the price,it's offer excellent sound for music n for movie (dolby digital) + build quality n looks that u will happily live with,for any price it's offer the best dsp sound in the world (both for music n movie) :-)

Weaknesses:
no dts, no A/B speaker terminals for main channel, no 5/6 ch external input

Similar Products Used:
checked out my past! Denon 1803 Yamaha RX-V2090 Kenwood THX Pre Power

Price Paid:  $1400.00 from HiFi experience Lond

Summary:
I bought the 3090 when it first came out because I wanted AC3 decoding and at the time this was just about it trouble was I had to sell my Misson cyrus 3 to get it BIG mistake. For films great but for Hi/fi not close to the Misson I was gutted!

Strengths:
Big film soundstage flexable powerfull

Weaknesses:
sounds very "average" for mucic

Similar Products Used:
None

Price Paid:  $1600.00 from Singapore

Summary:
This is one of my best buys ever and I have bought and sold many audio and video equipment. I bought this to replace my previous Yamaha receiver which was one of their entry level products. I fell in love with their products ever since. And to jump from their entry level receiver to this giant-killer is quite a leap!!!! This beauty was Yamaha's flagship product before they introduced the A1.

When I bought this home theatre amp, DD5.1 had just come out. There were not many software that came encoded with DD5.1 either. But this one was promised to be future ready and man!!! is it!!! Okay, fine, DTS emerged soon afterwards, but who needs DTS anyway???? And how many LDs or DVDs can you get hold of that offers DTS???

The Yamaha DSPA 3090 has CD, LD, 2 tapes, DVD, tuner, 2 video and phono connections. It has both optical and coaxial digital inputs for CD, LD and DVD. And this came out in 1996!!!

The sound is tremendous. I was using Bose 2.2 with this and currently have Definitive Technology's Cinema 80 connected. I have not used it with real quality speakers yet (which is a temptation I have been resisting for quite some time due to the lack of space in my apartment), and I shiver at the thought of how rich it would sound if I did that. This is the amp that has tought me to listen to music and movies without turning the bass and treble knobs or even hitting the loudness button. It can give any product a run for all its worth, whether listen to music or enjoying home cinema. I can crank up the volume as much as I like and the sound does not distort a single bit. The amp can be connected to external power amps as well if you fancy that sort of thing.

Last year when I moved from Bangladesh to here in Dubai, I considered selling it off and getting a new amp. But my brother talked me out of it. I realise now that it would have been a stupid stupid mistake.

I have just one complaint: the speaker connections are not banana plug compatible. This makes connecting cables quite difficult.

Although this product is now obsolete, if you can get your hands on one and if you are contemplating on upgrading to home theatre or your current AV reveiver then go for it with your eyes closed. You will not regret it a single bit.

Strengths:
Solid build, great sound, look/feel, future-ready (did not feel any upgrades necessary for the last 5 years)

Weaknesses:
Speaker connectors at the rear. A speaker switch (between A and B) would have been nice

Similar Products Used:
Yamaha, Philips, Kenwood, Pioneer

Price Paid:  $400.00 from 2nd hand

Summary:
If you get a chance to audition this great receiver, jump on it. It will surprise you as it surprised me. HUGE soundstage for movies and 2 channel. Even watching TV is great.

This is a 2000+ receiver, top of the line for Yamaha in its day, and it shows in the sound. I think the prologic chipset in this must be the best you can get, because my old vhs movies never sounded like this. But again, you have to try it to believe it.

Dolby digital is great, and the audio qualities of this receiver really jump out. It sounds better in DD than the DTS of any receiver I've heard. I don't miss DTS, but I have to admit, I am curious how it would sound .

My wife is using the receiver to listen to music instead of my 2ch system. And it even makes her soap operas come to life~!


As you can tell, I'm really impressed by this unit. If I had the money, I'd love to see what the newer, Yamaha A1 sounds like. But for now, this modest investment has solved my receiver search for a while. I'm not kidding, this is perhaps 1 maybe 2 levels above the Marantz SR 7000, and maybe even more than the Onkyo 575x.. we're talking apples and oranges, I cannot stress that enough. I was thinking of going separates before I heard the Yamaha, that's how good it sounds.

If you read the comments of the other reviewers, I concur with them that to upgrade on the Yamaha, you'd have to spend at least 1500-2000 to get anything of this quality. If you can find this receiver used, or discounted new, you will not regret picking it up.

You can spend more for Home theater, but there is a point of diminshing returns. My system is relatively inexpensive, but if you hear it, you'd think I blew the bank on it. I'm not saying this is the best sound you can buy, but I do believe that this receiver probably sounds better than 95% of the receivers out there, INCLUDING those with DTS.

TRY IT~.. and post a review! Let me know if you agree!

Strengths:
Huge soundstage, equalizer for center channel makes tone matching easy, Best Prologic I've heard.

Weaknesses:
no DTS, no 5.1 inputs. Can be upgraded to DTS, however you need an external 2 channel amp. No component Video.

Similar Products Used:
Marantz Sr7000, Onkyo 575x