Yamaha KX 580

Advantages: Excellent all round quality
Disadvantages: No microphone input

...Realistic reproduction is the only way I can describe the sound that emanates from this excellent cassette tape recorder / player. It's well in line with Yamaha's usual quality. I can't tell you the actual age of the KX 330 as I brought it second hand from a highly reputable audio shop from their part-ex range. The full title and description on the unit is, Yamaha Natural Sound KX 330, and after a quick demo at the shop I couldn't get my cash out fast enough. The sound really was natural. What ever we record tested sounded great, general music, solo vocals and even an animal sounds tape that had dozens of really lifelike zoo type sounds and more. It was astounding to say the least. Looking at the tape deck in a general way even makes it pleasing to the eye in a stylish black case with an assortment of controls including Dolby... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent recording quality thanks to advanced technical facilities
Disadvantages: Hidden minor controls are fiddly.

...I have been using this deck for two years. It cost around £250 then ,but it's less than £150 now, thanks partly to a strong pound. Grrrr! Yamaha really have done all they to wring out the last drop of quality from an analogue recording. You have Dolby's B, C AND S (S is a step further on in the battle against the dreaded hiss, and more compatible with B than C is). Good news if you play tapes in the car which only has Dolby B. Also there's HX Pro "headroom expansion" which adjust the machines record characteristics "on the fly", and last but not least, there's a tape-trimming facility which adjusts the machine for the make and type of tape you are using. It does this by making a few seconds of recording, and then plays it back to itself, "making notes" as it goes. If you combine this with a CD player like my Yamaha CDX-496, which... Read review

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Advantages: Great home theatre sound, fantastic value for money
Disadvantages: Unattractive styling, somewhat bulky

...My Home Theatre was a reasonable system by any measure and better than most. However, my wife re-arranged the living room furniture and in one stroke my cherished system was made redundant. My two rear wall mounted speakers were now on my left and with no possibility to be mounted somewhere else. It was time to look at the Polk & Yamaha products. Unable to audition a Polk SurroundBar and Yamaha YSP-1000 in an A/B comparison, I consequently decided to purchase both, with the idea that I would eventually keep one and sell the other. I have now had both units for about 10 weeks and when doing my A/B comparisons, both systems are set up so that one speaker is sitting just above the other, playing the same material at the same volume and with instant A/B switching via remote control. Note - It takes quite a few readings... Read review

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