Yamaha’s R-N2000A Network Reciever is a successful fusion of retro design with today’s digital smarts.
It is now many years since Yamaha released their Premium Series (A-S) amplifiers. These amps are a throwback to the glory days of Hi-Fi, high performance, beautifully built, and affordable compared to some of their opposition. It’s no mistake that they look like products of yesteryear, heavily borrowing the design from their products of the ’80s. They sit in the traditionist Hi-Fi camp – intended as a stand-alone stereo amplifier only – and any sources you use (streaming, vinyl, CD etc.) need to be attached.
Yamaha recently released the R-N2000A receiver, a product based on the principles of the A-S series (high performance, retro design) but with a modern twist. This is a product designed for today. Behind the old-school facia lays a plethora of technology covering almost every wish the present-day listener would have. Firstly – while this looks like a conventional amplifier, it is a receiver, i.e. it has FM and DAB+ radio onboard.
It also features Yamaha’s streaming system – MusicCast – giving access to high-res music streaming via Amazon Music HD, Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz and more. It includes a high-performance USB DAC and an HDMI ARC connection to connect your TV. Tricky room acoustics can be treated with their Parametric Room Acoustics Optimiser (Yamaha was playing around with room optimisation way before this became a popular topic – stretching back to their Home Theater products of decades ago).
It has a phono input, multiple digital inputs, a subwoofer output, and both Bluetooth and AirPlay 2.
The concept of ‘just add speakers’ amplification continues to gather pace. An increasing number of people are content to listen to all of their music via streaming, a noticeable trend now that Hi-Res streaming is readily available (and convenient). The R-N2000A builds on this – simply add a pair of quality speakers to the R-N2000, and you have a high-performance, easy-to-use, and relatively unobtrusive system. As you wish to add additional sources – vinyl, CDs (yes, we see a slow return to CD) etc., it is simply a matter of plugging them in. The beauty of the R-N2000, and a handful of products like it, is that you are not sacrificing performance for convenience.
The R-N2000 ticks all the boxes. Great sounding, functional and meticulous construction (with online registration, it comes with five years warranty!) – and considering all the above, well priced.
The R-N2000 sells for $4,999. We have it available online here or in the showroom, where our friendly professional staff can demonstrate its considerable capabilities.
