Latest news with #TrueXSurround90A
Tom's Guide
5 days ago
- Tom's Guide
Yamaha's new Dolby Atmos soundbar is a spec-heavy audio system to rival them all — and it'll set you back $3,500
Yamaha's latest soundbar is a spec-heavy, ultra-premium speaker system built to turn your entertainment setup into a fully-fledged movie theater. It's called the Yamaha True X Surround 90A, and offers a total of 12 up-firing drivers, three tweeters, and four full-range speakers. You'll also find two rear wireless satellite speakers for added surround sound and a redesigned wireless subwoofer in the box. The Yamaha True X Surround 90A is set to hit store shelves sometime in September, but before you get your wallet ready, you're going to want to hear the price. It will set you back a whopping $3,300 (£2,499 across the pond). Yamaha has made some of the sleekest and most advanced soundbars for nearly 20 years, and its new True X Surround 90A is a worthy addition to the lineup. The speaker array is a one-of-a-kind high-end offering with some of the most advanced features on the block. Not only are there 12 up-firing speakers (an insane amount, even for a $3,000 plus system), but you'll also find six speakers used primarily for height channels, four oval full-range drivers, and three tweeters. Yamaha's YDA-141 amplifier powers the unit. It uses similar technology found in Yamaha's home cinema AV receivers, called Surround:AI processing, which optimizes the surround sound audio five times per second for a more immersive experience. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support is here, which should come as no surprise. Yamaha claims it offers an auditory experience "that goes beyond the realm of conventional soundbars," which sort of feels like an understatement. While the True X Surround 90A soundbar is the beating heart of the system, it wouldn't be able to compete with the best soundbars without including a wireless subwoofer and dual rear speakers. The subwoofer has been completely redesigned to ensure the audio is as bombastic and immersive as can possibly be. It uses a special symmetrical flare port with an internal plate for improved airflow, limiting speaker movement and vibrations. Yamaha claims that these advancements in the subwoofer design limit port noise by 20dB when compared to most major rivals. Port noise is often ascribed as "chuffing," in which high-velocity air moves through the subwoofer (often at lower frequencies) and creates annoying noises. Then there are the two rear surround speakers, which can act as stand-alone Bluetooth speakers as well. When coupled with the soundbar and subwoofer, they utilize Yamaha's True X wireless connectivity to bring the full system to life without any distortion. Is it all worth a whopping £2,499 ($3,300)? That's tough to say right now, but we'll definitely be getting the Yamaha True X Surround 90A in for testing, so stay tuned to Tom's Guide for a full hands-on and review later this year. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Yamaha Unveils New Flagship Soundbar With Surround:AI Technology
Yamaha has taken the wraps off its latest flagship soundbar, complete with so many speakers and so much full surround sound home theater technology that it barely still classes as a soundbar – in a good way. Called the True X Surround 90A (or the SR-X90A for short), Yamaha's new premium soundbar kicks off its attractions by being a multiple speaker system that includes external wireless subwoofer and rear speakers alongside the main bar. This instantly defines the system as a true surround sound package versus the front-soundstage-only set up most soundbars deliver – and the technology inside each unit sees Yamaha trying to take that full surround experience to a new level for the soundbar world. For starters, the system can decode and play Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and even, uniquely so far as I know, Auro-3D soundtracks. The X90A's main bar element also includes real up-firing speakers to deliver the height/overhead effects associated with the latest 3D sound formats, while proprietary SURROUND:AI technology works to continually optimize the X90A's sound to the content you're watching. Looking at these latter two key features in more detail, the upfiring speakers are based around the revolutionary 'beam' technology Yamaha introduced with the classic YSP-1 soundbar it released more than 25 years ago, with no less than 12 (six per side) precisely calibrated beam speakers tucked under the main soundbar's top edge. Using so many small but focused beam speakers rather than the usual single large drivers makes it possible, Yamaha claims, for the X90A to deliver more accurate sound localization that more closely resembles the performance of real in-ceiling speakers. The SURROUND:AI technology was developed initially for Yamaha's AV receivers, but the X90A marks its first appearance on a soundbar. It works by using artificial intelligence to analyse in real time the various sound elements (dialogue, score, ambient sounds, specific locational effects and so on) in any given movie scene, and then using that analysis to continually optimize the soundbar's audio staging. Yamaha is quick to add, too, that despite its AI foundation, SURROUND:AI has been carefully tuned by Yamaha's sound engineers; it's not just a machine's take on how something should sound! In fact, as you'd hope of a flagship soundbar from such a renowned audio brand as Yamaha, everything about the X90A has apparently been precision tuned – including the four newly designed full-range drivers found inside the main bar component. These new eye-shaped oval speakers have been engineered to deliver minimal distortion despite their slender profiles, as well as allegedly providing richer mid-range tones and high volume levels from fewer components to preserve sonic purity across the soundbar's frequency range. The 12 beam height speakers and four newly designed full-range speakers are additionally joined in the main bar by three dedicated tweeters to deliver cleaner, purer, more detail high frequency sounds. Turning to the external subwoofer that's part of the X90A package, this again features an all-new design that includes Yamaha's patented symmetrical flare port technology, where the sub's inlet and outlet ports use exactly the same shape and an internal plate carefully controls airflow to maintain symmetry, reducing the sort of distortions associated with air turbulence and speaker movement. In fact, Yamaha claims port noise is reduced by as much as 20dB compared to 'conventional designs', whatever those might be. The 'True X' rear speakers included in the X90A system are actually more than rear speakers, meanwhile. They're designed to be portable, and can be used as standalone stereo Bluetooth speakers anywhere in your home when they're not needed for surround channel movie duties. More signs of the X90A's premium positioning can be found, says Yamaha, in elements of its design such as its wide, precision-engineered table-top feet (though a wall-mount bracket is also included in the package), its acoustically optimized large aperture speaker grilles, and the system's generally high build quality. The main bar, in particular, is encased in a 1.6mm-thick metal housing. The X90A's built-in physical connections include an HDMI loop-through with eARC support, an optical audio input, while wireless connectivity is possible through MusicCast, AirPlay and Bluetooth. Last but not least on the True X Surround 90A's list of attractions is its support for Yamaha's proprietary MusicCast network system. This lets you easily link and control multiple MusicCast-capable components around your home using the dedicated MusicCast app. The Yamaha True X Surround 90A will go on sale in early September, priced at $3,499/£2,499. — Related Reading KEF Unveils Innovative New 'XIO' Soundbar With Exclusive Intelligent Placement Technology JBL Unveils New Soundbar Range—Including 16-Channel, 2,470W Flagship With Groundbreaking AI Sound Boost Technology Marshall Channels Its Rock Star Energy Into Its First Ever Soundbar
