Buena Park, Calif. — Yamaha is bringing new features to its
opening-price RX-V series of A/V
receivers, including front-panel iPod/iPhone USB port, 4K by 2K video pass-through
over HDMI, a subwoofer-level adjustment and high-speed HDMI switching.
Compared with last year’s opening-price RX-V-series AVR at a
suggested $249, this year’s opening-price model at a suggested $299 also adds an
Eco mode to reduce power consumption during playback and proprietary Yamaha
Parametric Room Acoustic Optimizer (YPAO), which automatically compensates for
the deleterious sonic effects of a room’s acoustical qualities.
The new AVR is the 5×100-watt RX-V373, which is shipping.
Details on the remaining four AVRs in the company’s RX-V
series will be released in the coming weeks, when the industry will find out if
the company will adopt such features as Apple AirPlay, 4K by 2K up-scaling and iPad
charging via the front-panel USB input.
In the new $299 AVR, the new Eco mode reduces power
consumption when the AVR is playing, not just when it is in standby mode.
The front-panel USB port captures an iPod/iPhone’s music in
digital PCM form and displays song titles on an on-screen display.
The HDMI inputs and output pass through
future 4K by 2K video sources. That feature was not available in the 2011 line.
The subwoofer-level adjustment lets users increase bass
output without changing the system’s crossover point so that vocals and higher
frequency sounds aren’t directed to the subwoofer, where they’ll end up
sounding “boomy” or “muddy,” the company said.
The AVR’s high-speed HDMI switching function remembers the
settings of connected sources, eliminating the time it would take for the AVR
to adjust to each source after the source is selected.
Like last year’s $299 AVR, the RX-V373 features four
3D-capable HDMI 1.4a inputs, one 1.4a output with audio return channel, Dolby
TrueHD and DTS HD Master surround decoding, and optional stereo Bluetooth
module.
Other features carried over include Cinema DSP with 17 DSP modes,
Silent Cinema to play back surround sound through ordinary headphones, and
proprietary Compressed Music Enhancer technology, which restores lost detail
and high-frequency sounds in compressed music files.
Other carryover features in Yamaha’s opening-price AVR is four
programmable Scene buttons (BD/DVD, TV, CD and radio), which can be pressed to
activate the receiver’s appropriate inputs and other settings, including
surround modes, for the selected source.
Virtual Cinema DSP technology, which delivers surround sound
without setting up surround speakers, is also carried over.
