Buena
Park, Calif. – Yamaha launched a receiver-based home-theater-in-a-box (HTiB)
system that uses a three-channel soundbar to reproduce the front stage.
The
$549.95-suggested
is a 5.1-channel system with A/V receiver, HDMI 1.4a inputs, two small rear
surround speakers, a 100-watt powered subwoofer, and a three-channel soundbar
that is only 2 inches high and fits in front of most 32- to 50-inch TVs without
blocking the screen, the company said. The soundbar’s feet can be adjusted or
removed entirely.
The system was designed “to provide consumers
with the greatest degree of simplicity” at an affordable price point, said Tom
Sumner, president of Yamaha Electronics Corp.
Another Yamaha receiver-based HTiB with
soundbar is the $599-suggested YHT-S500, but that model uses proprietary virtual
surround processing to deliver a seven-channel virtual surround field through
the included soundbar. The S500 also builds the powered subwoofer into the A/V
receiver for simpler setup.
For its part, the new YHT-494 decodes Dolby Pro Logic IIx, Dolby Digital, Dolby
Digital EX, DTS Digital Surround, DTS-ES Matrix 6.1, DTS-ES Discrete 6.1, DTS
Neo:6 and DTS 96/24 surround codecs. Other features include the company’s
Quad-Field CINEMA DSP with 17 surround-sound settings. Four SCENE buttons set the
system’s settings and inputs for Blu-ray/DVD playback, TV viewing, and CD and
radio listening.
The AVR is rated at 5×100 watts into 8cohms at
1kHz with 0.9 percent THD. It comes with four 1080p-compatible HDMI 1.4a inputs
and one HDMI 1.4a output, which does not support 1.4’s audio return channel.
The HDMI connections support Deep Color (30/36 bit), x.v Color Standard along
with high refresh rates.
The system is compatible with optional YDS-12 iPod
dock and YBA-10 Bluetooth wireless receiver.
