I own this product almost 2 years and never be upset on its performance. I connect it up with B&W N804 and the sound is great. This unit is good for both music and movies. DSP-A1,Denon 5700 and B&K are all great unit. They all have their own strength and value, so giving 1 or 2 star on this product while you never own it is unfair and make the people confuse of its ability. 5 stars for this amp.

I picked up an A-1 in the local used/repair/vintage place. I set out lookingfor tubes, but decided that with my speakers being so inefficient, I'd be better
off with well built solid state (speakers are Angstrom Omega 5. 6ohm, 86db/W).
Looking at the solid state goods, I was very impressed with the build quality.
Solid chassis, separate power supplies for each side, defeatable tone controls,
MM/MC phono stage, adjustable cartridge loading. Very detailed, balanced sound.
Not quite what I expected from Yamaha! Last time I liked solid state this much
was a $2000 Copland int-amp. A very solid buy in used gear and definitly better
than anything new under a few thousand.

Bought DSP-A1, somewhat disappointed Well, after reading all the discussion on this forum, I finally went out and bought a DSP-A1 (from a brick-and-mortar authorized dealer, no less!).

Sound: I'm using Carver 5.2 speakers for the mains+subs, center, and rears, and Messina speakers for front effects (pair of MICS-50s). It sounds great, especially on Dolby Digital movies and concerts with the DSP modes engaged. The TV modes are extremely echoey, so I'm just using enhanced Pro Logic. Music modes are nice, but haven't played with them extensively yet.

Spouse (dis)approval: My wife claims she cannot hear a difference between the $2000+ DSP-A1 and the $400 JVC 884VBK that preceeded it. The DSP modes aside, she may be right to an extent. The difference in sound is definitely subtle, not "wow what an incredible improvement" like when we switched from our old Advent speakers a while back to the Carvers.

Setup and Use: Darn near impossible to use! It's not just the remote, folks (which is about as user-unfriendly a remote I've ever seen).
- Balancing the speaker levels doesn't work as advertised in the manual.
- SET and PARAMETER menus are non-intuitive, and the manual doesn't help much here, either.
- You can tweak things to your heart's delight, but the manual doesn't explain WHY you'd want to tweak parameter X, or even what parameter X DOES.
- There's no volume level indicator on the front panel or the on screen display. Once you find a comfortable volume level, there's no way to get back to it if you change anything. Is a simple 0-100 scale (or 0-11 for Spinal Tap fans) really too much to ask?
- No indication anywhere of how video switching does or doesn't work. It appears to be single source type only - no mixing S-video and composite (never mind component). This means that if I want the DSP-A1 to switch the video for me I need to use composite video out on my DVD player (I don't have an S-video VCR). In any case, my TV won't let me switch channels on a video input. Maybe it's my TV's fault (Sony 53v75), but Yamaha sure isn't making it easy to figure out.

I love endlessly playing with electronics - this is my hobby. But this piece was clearly designed for performance, not actual use. If the store I bought it from had a better return policy, I'd consider returning it.

-avi

Other random equipment info: Panasonic A310 DVD player, Hitachi Hi-fi VCR, Monster OMC speaker cables with AR bannanas, Monster 300mkII and 400mkII interconnects, AR video cables.

Just bought this product...very nice receiver...details can be heard and looks nice too. I like all those DSP features and I use most of them. Plenty of power for my room. Lets just say I love this receiver.

I have now had the DSP-A1 for just about a year now. I am running 5 NHT SuperOnes, 2 cheap Bose 100's for the effects channels, and an AR S12HO sub. In a nutshell, this unit has performed admirably. Plenty of clean sound for both home theater and music. DTS CD's especially shine. Diana Krall's Love Songs, Alan Parson's On Air, and Steely Dan's Gaucho are all crisp and lively.

Lots of people rag on this unit for the remote, and I agree that it is far from being the most user-friendly in the world. I don't buy audio gear for the remotes, though, I buy for the sound, and the sound from the DSP-A1 is hard to beat short of more expensive seperates.

Many

None that I've found

I've had the A1 for about a year, as I upgraded to Dolby Digital from Adcom separates (GTP-600, GFA 535, 2535). My intial thought was to use the Adcom amps with the Yamaha but quickly found out that it was not only unnecessary but that I prefer the Yamaha - best described as cleaner power. I use the DSP-A1 in 7-ch mode with Snell D's for mains, a Snell CC-1 for center, NHT Super Zeros for front surrounds,Boston Acoustic Micro 90's for rear surrounds and a Klipsch 150W sub. As far as the remote goes, all else is so good it's shortcomings are negligible. If you take the time to read the manual and program it, it's fine.

Yamaha's use 5.1 up'd to 7.1 soundfield; some of the audio only soundfield; complete defeat capabilities for 2 ch audio

cabling space very tight; I'll join in on the remote; it's lack changing its functions for the 1st three audio items of the remote to match equipment (you have use another space to program)

I am probably a salesman's nightmare. I appreciate a demonstration, but have to try at home before I'm satisfied. For that reason, I shop locally and buy locally. I'm willing to pay for the option to try before buying.
I tried a number of A/V processors and amplifiers. I know there are much more expensive equipment out there, but the price of the DSP-1 was a high end for me. I was able to do a side-by-side eval while I was buying.
For my room (15' by 35') and loudspeakers (4-Klipsch Chorus, Klipsch 303 center and KSW-15II subwoofer) this unit fit my ears best. Adding the 7.1 channels with Boston dipoles, put star on the tree.
I would lightly faulty the "techie" sound of some of the soundfields for audio only, but the complete defeat option restores the audio. Some of the encoded CD's out now benefit from some of the 4 channel soundfields.
I guess I'm saying: I like it!

Similar Products Used:

Denon's 5700

Just about everything.

Flimsey remote, Thermal shutdown (needs good ventilation)

I recently aquired this fine amplifier to upgrade from my previous Pro-logic amp. I use the DSP is in full 7.1 mode although the main front channels are driven by a seperate audiolab 8000P power amplifier. I very happy with the sound of the Yamaha that sounds wonderfull with my B&W P range loudspeakers.

The only small problem I have had with the device was when the device shutdown for ten minutes due to thermal overload. This amp realy does require space to keep the power amp section ventilated (An inch or two above the unit is not sufficient !).

I have read comments about DTS DVD's v DD. To me there is no competion DTS is far superior to DD on The DSPA1 at least. I would not recommend anyone to purchase a system that is not DTS ready.

A wonderfull product then, I have spent over £15,000 on Hifi in the last ten years this probably rates as the best Hifi froduct purchased.

Similar Products Used:

yamaha DSP-E390

looks,features

average sound!! remote, price.

i ordered the dsp a1 from aaaefes for 1799.00 ittook 4 weeks to get it so while i waited i tried the sony i really didnt want a sony but when i hooked it up wow!!ive the polk theater 5000rt system it rocks! so when the yamaha finally came in i was exited i hooked all 7 speakers through in eric clapton and was suprised to find out the sony kicked its ass! tried dvd movies same>thing i didnt want asony but imglad i tried both at home. dsp owners do not try the sony because for 800 dollrs less you well see that dsp a1 dont compare it sounds good but not great.

Similar Products Used:

sony 777es reciever.kenwood separetes

DSP modes, sound quality, build quality, 7 channels, value

Remote, but you will get use to it.

I have compared the Denon 5700 and the B&K 202 to the Yamaha DSP-1. I cannot say any more that has not been said in the previous reviews below. To summarize, the Denon has more features and the B&K sounds slightly better in stereo but for the price that I paid for the Yamaha ($1,500) is an overall better value. I purchased this unit from a local dealer (his last one) who was closing the line out in anticipation of the replacement that is due out in a few months. Previously, I was quite content with my old receiver, Yamaha 995 which is now for sale.

I place a lot of credence on the opinion of professional reviewers who have the opportunity to compare many pieces. They are unanimous in their opinion of the Yamaha DSP-A1—they give it extremely high marks. For example, Home Theater Magazine gave this unit an overall rating of 95 and a performance rating of 96. Sure, this evaluation was taken one point in time, but it was the best then and is still one of the top three receivers today. Those same reviewers rated the Denon 5700 slightly lower and the B&K 202 slightly higher. Those writers in the below reviews that have given this unit anything less than five stars either have not done a fair comparison or they are extremely bias to a particular brand.

As far as separates go, I was on the path to acquiring either the new Marantz AV-9000 preamp/ processor or the B&K Reference 20 preamp/ processor. I planned to mate one these units with either a ATI 505 amp ($1,400) or its close cousin, the Outlaw 750 ($1,100). After hearing both the B&K ($1,800) and the Marantz ($1,500) I did not recognize anything in sound quality or features, as compared to the Yamaha, worth the combined price difference. Further, with the Yamaha I got a 30 day return option and an extended 5 year warranty. And I have the option to add power and a little sound fidelity by adding amp at a latter date.

If you can still find the Yamaha DSP-A1 for less than $1,500, then at all means get one soon…you won’t be disappointed.

Similar Products Used:

Denon 5700, B&K 202