allan1836

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I don't usually write reviews on audio products that goes through my room, either good or bad, but I am going out of my way to write this review since I feel this speakers is something special. I said special because for it's price, I believe this is truly one of the very rare audio products that can really be regarded as "bang for the buck".

At first, I was hesitant to get this model since my objective is to use it for pure 2ch audio music listening, since this model was labeled by Yamaha as a home theater speakers. But apparently my budget left me with no choice and since I saw the reviews here which hinted me that this can be good also for music.

Well and behold! After a few weeks of breaking in, I am pleasantly surprised with the speakers performance! As described by other reviewers here, the music spectrum is well balanced with smoothness, refinement, detail, and honestly accurate deep bass. I am a long time self proclaimed audiophile with some experience with other hi end mega buck speakers but believe you me, this NS-555 can compete. Though not as truly complete as some of the hi end speakers but certainly for it's price, this is a no brainer choice.

Many of my friends pass up this speakers since the brand is not to famous on audiophile circles but one's they heard my system (with only mid fi gears), they were truly astounded! Add to the performance is the very hi end look and finish. Many audiophile brands has this finish too but at 10X the price.

Out of curiosity, I look inside this speakers and saw why this speakers sound so good. No wonder, the raw drivers used were of high quality with good size magnets and exotic materials. The inside baffles were braced very well and damp at the right places. Even the passive crossover were handmade with air core inductors, though the caps can use some upgrade (which means the speaker can get even better!).

As you can now imagine, I love this speakers simply because a got a whole lot of quality for the small price I paid. Also, I am for the underdogs, and surely this very underrated speakers are special. Do audition one if you can and thank me later. Thanks

john in covina

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $366.00 from online shop NJ

Summary:
Yamaha's NS-555 Home Theater speakers are a Great balance of quality and cost. After some reading of reviews and consideration of other speakers I chose to get these NS-555 towers. I have been listening to music, playing a variety of CD's thru my Oppo 983 DVD player, which sure seems to be a very capable DVD & CD player. I have been listening thru the RXV663 reciever and using the two channel set up under "Disc Listening" either 'Straight' or the 'Pure Direct' so that the speakers are recreating an unenhanced sound.

I am a believer in speaker break in for most speakers. As the cone and the surround flex patterns from the movement must form over time and allow for (hopefully) improved response. The first day I hooked them up at about the 90 minute mark I heard a change from tight, precise and a bit harsh to more smooth and natural. This week at probably the 40-50 hour mark another shift occured again smoother more natural less harshly precise. Many friends and some of the sites seem to believe that it takes about 100 hours for a good break in to occur.

I start with a cd of what ever i want to listen to and after a few tracks turn the volume up a bit and continue thru a number of cd's finally taking it to the volume settingon the receiver of about -4db to 0db which is plenty loud. this is the point in which the sound has changed and smoothed out the past tow times.

Actual improvement or Jedi mind trick? Some one outlined this and I just think it's true, that if a speaker was annoying in any way it would become more annoying over time, you'd reach a fatigue level that would not go away.

Strengths:
Improving sound that started as overly tight, precise to harsh and moving towards natural smooth while still precise.

Fabulous construction, at about 43 pounds they have a weighty solid feel.
The black piano finnish is stunning and you have a choice of grills on or off either way they look pretty cool.

While watching DVD;s they sound great.

You can use spade connectors or banana connectors for quick hook up.

They are set for Bi-Wiring so you can use seperate cables one for the tweeter and mid-range and one for the two bass speakers, that is also supposed to improve the bass response.

For home theater speakers they do really well with music so they are audio enthusiast friendly on a shoestring budget. I spent $366 for the pair including shipping.

Weaknesses:
The fact that they need a break in period will be a short coming to those that don't have the patience to wait.

The back porting makes proper placement an imperative to get the bass right. You may read about short comings on bass for these, i think they have great bass response but placement may be off for those not getting enough.

Similar Products Used:
I can't equate these to what I have used in the past so this is a stretch. However, i do have more audiophile friends and listening to their set ups of Polks and Chapmans, i think these are awesome for the price.

I have used several smaller Yamaha speakers and found them to have a good sound. My earliest ones, model # unknown at this time still sound good and are part of the 7.1 system in the 2nd set of rears.

hernyo05

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
2.50 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I was considering buying these speakers reading the reviews here at audioreview.com. The comments were very convincing and satisfying. As the speakers are...
Of course, as every speaker, they need to be used intensely for about 1-2 days at the first time, as they may sound a bit differently; they are "raw". After this I can tell you (as everybody told below me), the NS-555s are amazing in every aspect.
The highs are clear, there's no frizzling, even at very high sounds. Midbass is accurate and great. The bass is also pure and natural (at 2 channel music listening and high volume it's incredible), however, you need either a receiver with wide bass level-options or an additional subwoofer to get a very deep and rich low frequency sound. It's performance is outstanding in home theater use and in music listening too. (And I haven't been able to try out the bi-wired version yet!)
The look of the speaker is second best thing beside it's performance. I had the opportunity to look at the cherry colour, but I found the black piano much more elegant. It looks beautiful, but it's a great fan of fingerprints as well. I suggest buying white gloves. :)
To sum up, I can highly recommend this speaker for home theater use or just for listening music. There are no real cons. You won't regret it, as I didn't regret it either.

Strengths:
Sound: clarity, accuracy; it's beautiful
Look: piano black is elegant, stylish and also beautiful

Weaknesses:
There are no real weaknesses. Only some minor ones: bass is a bit deeper with a good receiver or a subwoofer; piano black loves fingerprints.

Similar Products Used:
JVC speakers

SPKRjunkie

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $198.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
These are not very efficient speakers at 88db. You need a good true 50 WPC at a minimum to drive them. Additionally, you must position speakers properly in an appropriate environment/room. (Any/all speakers)

My listening room is 11x14 with 8 foot ceilings. With the rear of the 555's positioned about 18" from the wall and 24" from the side walls with a seating position about 24" from the rooms back wall the bass is nothing short of incredible when called upon to "thump".

Bela Flecks "flight of the cosmic hippo" is literally jaw dropping.

On Royal Crown Revue's "Mugzy's Move" CD, The upright bass is full and articulate. The horn section is crisp and smooth.

Rock and roll of any flavor is fantastic.

Powered by a 1984 vintage Pioneer SA 1050 Integrated amp (100WPC) They simply perform beyond what their asking price would imply.

Set them up properly, feed them quality recordings with CLEAN power and they are fantastic speakers. And I concur with others that they are aesthetically elegant with the piano black finish.

Strengths:
Extremely satisfying speakers. Great soundstage and very dynamic. Well balanced neutral speakers. Great imaging. Deep and punchy bass.

Weaknesses:
Low Sensitivity/efficiency (88db)

Similar Products Used:
Athena, Cerwin Vega, Polk Audio, Acoustic Research.

HTholic

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $322.00 from electronicgiant

Summary:
This is seriously an overlooked speaker. Performance is outstanding when you use a decent receiver. The higs and mids are on the top notch and bass is precise deep and acurate. These are great for music and perfect for HT. I went to and high end store and audition a 1000$ monitor audio speakers and let me tell you the ns-555 has nothing short in performance. Get these and bi-wire them to your receiver; I recomend (Yamaha,Denon,Onkyo,Marantz,PioneerElite,H/K,sherwood....) and you'll get $1000+ audio from and afortable speaker and you'll get the plus that they look great in that piano gloss color.

Strengths:
Superb audio specially when bi-wired.Precise and very acurate music and HT performance.

Weaknesses:
None, just handle these with care

Similar Products Used:
JBL,polk,monitor audio,infity