Having enjoyed my stereo for longer than I'd like to mention I have always had a fascination for the components that make up the chain or "system". A decent front end (eg CD or turntable) is a must as well as a good set of speakers to match your listening room. When it came to the box in the middle otherwise known as the amplifier I was a bit more ambivalent.
Many earlier models of amplifier are still on the market (eg Ebay) and are in fine fettle. So this component is the easiest to play around with. Easier than swapping speakers and cheaper than changing CD players. Having not taken to some of the more expensive newer models on the market I looked toward the older "cheap as chips" variety and lo and behold what should I espy on entering my local Cash Converters.
A black box with many knobs and a Made in Japan sticker on the front panel for £29.99. How could I resist. A Yamaha AX-430. Couldn't lose could I ?
This old 50(ish) watter probably dates from the late 80's. There are quite a few kicking around on the secondhand market. It's reasonably built with smart black satin finished metal front and a number of knobs including variable "Loudness" and a CD Direct button. On the back are good quality 4mm speaker terminals for two pairs of speakers (switchable).
Variable Loudness alters the tonal response with respect to level. The CD Direct button cuts out the tone and balance controls to the CD input only and definitely improves the sound quality. A shame it doesn't do the same on the other inputs.
After connecting it into the rest of my system at home I found it to be very pleasant and competent sounding and better than would be expected from the usual budget amp fare. The sound is rich and yet open and detailed with a tuneful if not tightly controlled bass. Treble is informative and quite sweet. Some of the controls are a bit superfluous but I don't find it to be outclassed by better than average modern components either - like the Arcam upsamling CD player and Dynaudio speakers I use.
If the soundstage had a little more depth and the bass a little more detailed I would have given it 5 stars. An enjoyable listen though - the words from vocalists seem particularly clear despite this being a warm sounding amp.
A nice surprise then. Proving that you can be better off spending more on the front and back end of your system than the amp in the middle of it.
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Sep 23rd, 2009
(Sep 24th, 2009)
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