Yamaha A-S1200 Amplifier Review 

Thank you for watching and commenting GV 😊

Hello Giang, I agree. I have a vintage Mitsubishi DAA15DC and DP10 amp/preamp combo that still sounds lovely. I am thinking of the Yamaha AS1200. I even came across a Yamaha Soavo NS 901 floor speaker. Beautiful. Odd measurements but I have been emailing a few people who own it and simply love the natural sound, "natural". They are going for 5K but I can get them for half off, the only catch is I can not demo them...Hmm could be a deal breaker, but so far, I pretty much like A Lot of Yamaha products from amps, to guitars, piano...of all the Eastern companies, Yamaha has much of my respect.

@Jingle Nuts Not sure. I would imagine. Will find out. But I think so.

Yes, exactly. I see most of the British media does not review some of the best equipments from Japan. And they also overly concentrated and sometimes overjoyed by British made equipment :-).

The snobbery is real. Look at the new arcams and their plastic power button and obvious cut back production quality, yet they are fawned over by most

Thank you Russel. I hope you liked the review 😊👍

My thoughts exactly.

@@yamakawa511 why not hit the like button every time? It's the British Audiophile

@@ranelime Good point but I was particularly pleased to see Tarun reviewing this amp so I mashed the like button at the start rather than the end. Y

Thank you Nuno. Very kind of you to say and much appreciated 😊👍👍

@@jos5067 Funny, I've the same amp (2100) and am considering the same upgrades! I'm leaning the 600x

@Baba Ganush I like it :) could be a personal taste. Lively presentation and great mid-range. Quick bass. Why did you think this could not work?

@@jos5067 Haven't heard yet unfortunately. Yes, ditto on other priorities at the moment, but all in good time.

I also have the AS2100 too. During the 1st year, I wanted to sell it also. But on the 2nd year the sound sort of mellowed and balanced out, and I became glad I didn't sell it.

Thank you buddy 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Much appreciated 😊👍

@TheRoswellCrash thank you buddy 😊👍

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences Juan 😊👍

Nice. I didn't get into KEF's but I am happy you are loving the combo. I demoed a pair of Klipsch (newer models: less bright more even toned). The store had it paired with the Yamaha 800, a few models below the 1200 and I got to say, it sounded darn good, even on a horn speaker. Go figure that.

Mine is paired with the KEF R300 . Totally agreed . For such a small cost , the sound is fascinating . My friends who own a very very expensive audiophile equipment just can't believe it how great is my system :-) . Love watching movies with this Integrated . I gave up more than 10 years ago stupid home theater systems .

Which power cable and speakers cable do you use? Bro

How does the Yamaha 1200 sound through headphones? Does it have a dedicated headphone amp? Does it need one?

That is great. Thank you for sharing 😊

How does the Yamaha 1200 sound through headphones? Do you hear enough bass on older recordings?

@@spiritualarchitect4276 I really can't say. I have only plugged a set of headphones into it once very briefly. I remember seeing in a review (Zero Fidelity?) before I bought it that it is known for having an indifferent quality headphone amp section, however I have no real personal experience.

Thank you Philip. Much appreciated. You will need to match your phonostage to your turntable and especially the cartridge 😊👍

Thank you my friend. I would love to review more of them 😊👍

I agree! Gosh, don't forget some of their guitars are very nice, and their pianos too. I have an old Mitsubishi DAA15DC dual mono amp/AB push pull that is still in perfect shape and it sounds lovely. Oh, and their bikes are pretty good too. Cheers

They still make terrific high end gear. Esoteric makes some of the best digital players in all of high end & their amplifiers are gaining more momentum here in the West & lesser known brands like Technical Brain & Zanden are also very revered in high end circles. Of course their low wattage single ended triode with high efficiency speakers gained a worldwide following with AirTight, Triode Labs among others.

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences 😊

Can u help me of i know, is it safe for the speakers with this amp to listen it on a very loud volume? (The speakers are warfdale evo 4.4)

Thank you Lennox. Very kind and much appreciated 😊👍👍

I agree, Tarun does a bang up job in his reviews. I pretty much stopped watching other reviewers, especially the guys over here in the US. I don't know, they just don't present the clarity and honesty as Tarun does. I love this guy.

Thank you Daniel. That is great feedback. I hope you enjoy your new purchase 😊👍👍

How does the Yamaha 1200 sound through headphones? Does it have a dedicated headphone amp? Does it need one?

Thank you Igal. That is much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you for watching and sharing Bengt 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you my friend 👍😊👍

Thank you Dan. I love the way you have described the A-S1200 😊👍

Thank you William. Very kind and much appreciated 😊👍

That is great 👍

Cool 😎 thank you for sharing Simon 😊👍

Thank you Simon. That is very kind 😊👍

@@abritishaudiophile7314 , you're very welcome and thank you.

Thank you Gordon. I appreciate you sharing your experiences 😊

Love those speakers!

Today i have bought as1200 with warfdale evo 4.4. Do u know, is it safe to listen to them increasing volume more than 50%? I mean is it safe for the speakers? How not to burn them?

What kind of 15” speakers are you using?

@@marcusaurelius2988 Dear Marcus, I am using PA drivers from Celestion - 15" FTR15-3070E in 185 liters ported cabinets, paired with 1" CDX1-1747 horn loaded compression driver. The FTR15-3070E is a bit bass shy because of it's QMS, but has a nice timbre and paired with the Yamaha sounds amazing. These were my first DIY speakers and I didn't have a lot of experience then. Now, I would probably go with some SB Audience drivers, instead. Nevertheless, I am still very happy with the Celestion drivers. Both have very nice timbre and the CDX1-1747 is a very smooth driver, unlike all assumptions about compression drivers. It easily outperforms metal dome and AMT "audiophile" tweeters at the market. Blends much better with the midbass.

How does your Yamaha 1200 sound through headphones? Do you hear enough bass on older recordings?

Thank you for sharing 😊

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences GDW 😊

Thank you for letting me know George. It is great feedback. The Yamaha A-S1200 is one of my personal favourite products from this year. As you have discovered, you can compensate for the leanness in the bass by speaker choice and positioning. The Ares II DAC is nothing short of a revelation. So pleased you are enjoying them. Thank you for the support 👍😊👍

Thank you buddy. That is very kind and much appreciated 😊👍👍

Thank you Daryl. That is great feedback. So pleased it worked out well. You have put together a very nice system 😊👍👍

That sounds great Daryl! Im actually thinking to upgrade to Evoke 50 with the same amp. Do you think AS1200 has any difficulty running the Evoke 50?

@@Boiler272 Hi Sasa, the AS1200 has absolutely no problems running the Evoke 50, and as mentioned above this pairing really sounds great. I actually bought the Evoke 50s first, then about 3 months later decided to get a new amp as the Cambridge CXA80 was just not up to runing the Evoke 50s. I auditioned 10 plus integrated amps like the Hegel 120/190, Roksan Caspian range, Rotel 1572MkII, Cambridge Audio 851A, and various Marantz and Denon integrated amps. My preferred choices based on sound quality was the Yamaha AS1200 in first place, second was the Hegel 190 (but the built-in streamer would have duplicated my Bluesound Node streamer setup, and added cost), followed by the Cambridge Audio 851A as third choice. These amps sounded nuetral to warm-ish, which is the sound charecteristic I prefer. These amps were tested on the Evoke 50 demo set in the store I bought the speakers from (they allowed me to bring in the other amps from other retailers to test out on the Evoke 50 - great service!!)

@@darylpereira9229 Man! Thanks a million on such a detailed walk through! Will go for it!!

@@darylpereira9229 I have the Cambridge 851a and used to have the CXA81. I'd say the CXA81 was more lively, more energetic in the mids & highs but in a dry crispy way which I quite liked. The 851a I would characterize as more neutral or even warm of neutral. I am interested in the A-S1200 since Tarun recommended to me. How do you characterize the A-S1200 sound tonally against the 851a or CXA80?

Thank you my friend 😊👍

Thank you for sharing John 😊👍

Thank you Richard 😊👍

Thank you my friend 😊👍👍

Thank you Steve. I appreciate you watching and sharing your experiences with the Yamaha A-S1100 😊👍

Most welcome 👍

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences Robert 😊👍

Thank you for watching and the sub Meng 😊👍

It is great that the old AUD-9 is still getting much love and use 😊

Thank you Jeremy. I appreciate all the support you have shown me 😊👍👍

Thank you my friend. Very much appreciate 😊👍👍

Thank you for watching and sharing Barry 😊👍

Thank you Raphael. I appreciate your suggestion 😊👍

I second that recommendation to Review the Technics top kit.

Thank you Phil. That means a great deal 😊👍👍

@@abritishaudiophile7314 Hi Sir May I ask if rhis unit has a subwooder output. Nice review

Thank you Scott. Very good idea to listen before you decide 😊👍

Thank you buddy 😊👍

Thank you Randy. I only have two qualifiers for being a audiophile. Love for music and care about how it sounds. I have a friend with £80 Edifier powered speakers fed by his computer and TV. He is an audiophile just like me. Great to have you here Randy and thank you for supporting me 😊👍👍

Thank you CG 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Much appreciated. I have enquired about reviewing that amp 😊👍👍

Thank you John 😊👍

Thank you Connor 👍

Cool 😎

That is great 😊👍

Ditto 😊

Those higher tier Yamaha amps are beautifully constructed and still sound good by today’s standards 😊

Thank you Paul. Great to hear about your experiences. I love that expression, “side cheeks.” I might Magpie that one, if that is okay? 😊👍

@@abritishaudiophile7314 I've never heard the expression Maggie, as in magpie I assume, I thought that's what people called the sides of hifi that used a insert etc, must be my Yorkshire roots showing 😂

Sorry, typo. Damn autocorrection 😂. Just amended it 👍

Thank you. That is a very informative appraisal. I hope to check it out for myself at some point 😊👍

@@abritishaudiophile7314 thanks Tarun. I have a friend in an audio shop who is very obliging when testing equipment. I was fortunate enough to hear both the AS3200 and AS2200. The 2200 is at a price sweetspot for a lot of their customers and its being cross shopped against the Hegel h190, even though it lacks the streaming features. Not cheap but easily justified for the quality. The 3200 has nicer capacitors and a fully balanced circuit. It is the better amp on paper and it has some modest sonic advantages. Yet the AS2200 has a bump in the midrange but that 'flaw' actually makes it sound nicer to me. It's a curious thing so I wonder what others think, particularly a listener as analytical as your good self. I had already bought a very nice digital amp a month or so earlier (Technics) and couldn't justify any more expenditure. But I've been thinking about that Yamaha as an amp that has some ineffable quality of "rightness".

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences Stephen 😊

Thank you for sharing. Tone controls can be useful but can impact on fidelity due the the phase problems they usually introduce 😊

How does your Yamaha A-S1200 sound through headphones? Do you hear enough bass on older recordings?

Not sure what happened but my previous reply seems to have disappeared, here is the link again ..... www.whisky-emporium.com/Pix-pool/001sm.jpg

That is great Keith. So glad you are enjoying them. They look really impressive. Having them away from walls must help a lot 😊👍

@@abritishaudiophile7314 They are stunning. I'd never have thought I'd spend so much money on a pair of speakers but wow, just wow and they aren't even 'run-in' yet, still a bit bright but I'm already hearing not only intonations in music I know well, but even complete instruments I haven't heard on the tracks before. I'm suddenly getting a whole new musical experience and that can't be so bad.

Cool 😎

Thank you for watching and sharing your experiences Spudnick 😊👍

Thank you for watching David 😊👍

Thank you Terry. Very kind and much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you Daniel. If I recall correctly the Howard’s have a warm tonal balance which is probably well balanced with the Atoll 😊👍

Thank you AD. That is good to know 😊👍

@Jingle Nuts The straight ones look good when all facing up but once adjusted they look a bit messy. But that’s just my opinion.

@Jingle Nuts You can order them through Yamaha. First double check the fitting by removing the function knob and the tone knob and check that it fits ok. My model fitted correctly. My knobs simply pulled off and pushed on.

@Jingle Nuts Yes some knobs have a locking screw, just unscrew it then pull the knob off. Mine have no locking screws.

Thank you for sharing your experiences Chris 👍

Thank you SR 😊👍

Thank you Ola. Always a pleasure to hear from you 😊👍

Thank you Keith. Very well said. I like the Piano black side panel but would have lived a wood veneer a little more 😊👍

Thank you Antti. Very kind of you to say 😊👍

Cool 😎

Thank you buddy 😊👍

That is great. The CD-S1000 would make a nice pair 😊👍

How much did you paid for it?

@@SacreDro I paid £1330 one month ago, and it’s probably just about one year old. Still very happy with it but know that this is a fully analog amplifier, no built-in DAC or other fancy features such as HDMI connection for TV sound. I guess that’s why people sell them, they may want all-in-one music systems such as NAD M10 etc.

Thank you buddy. I like my H160 too 😊

Thank you Steve. Quite a different topology in the A-S801. It would be interesting to see how that sounds 😊👍

Thanks guys... I think if I was in the market for a £2000 amp, I'd have to try a Sugden A21 and maybe a Roksan too. I have Harbeth P3ESRs and apparently Alan Shaw the designer used to demo them with an A-S801. For the price, it's a lovely amp... no idea why they discontinued it.

Thank you Alan 😊👍

Thank you you my friend. You can indeed compensate with the tone controls. My listening was almost entirely done in the flat settings though 😊👍

Thank you my friend. That is very kind of you to say. I greatly appreciate your support 😊👍👍

Thank you for sharing your experiences Carew 😊

Thank you Reid 😊👍

Thank you for sharing your experiences 😊

How does your Yamaha A-S1200 sound through headphones? Do you hear enough bass on older recordings?

Thank you Russell. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you my friend. Great to hear your thoughts on this amp 😊👍

@Baba Ganush, most people don’t get that the manufacturers have to compromise on a design by using more cost effective component choices. It is about making a profit. They have to do that, but I can upgrade their work without the value changes and use better quality parts. I learned a great deal working in a high end audio store. There design isn’t bad, they just deserve better internals. I like these retro builds the manufacturers are doing. The vintage gear benefits from upgraded component changes. It affords the gear to produce better sound for you. That’s what I do. I have stuff I haven’t got to yet. Great vintage equipment deserves to be revived and enjoyed. New gear is so expensive. It’s a cost effective choice.

Mark Philpot You are highly misstaken about upgrading from 750 to 850 VA give that benefits you looking for. AS 3200 has bigger toroid and stil lacking heft. Simply this amp is suited for big speakers with some serious heft and tonal warm with it. This amp sounds like it sound cause engeener wanted to sound like this. This amp is build better than most of them at this price and even way above.

Thank you my friend. I appreciate you watching and sharing your experiences with this amplifier 😊👍

Had it. Unfortunately, you can't get rid of the coolness this way...

@@trockenfish Putting Tarun's review aside because I dont know how long he has played this Yamaha... Other YT reviewers have stated at one point the sound becomes less cool or just better

Tone controls mess with the phase response. That was not the only reason it didn’t get an outstanding. That award is reserved for benchmark products only. As good as the A-S1200 is it didn’t quite reach that level of overall performance IMHO. Came close though 😊

Thank you for the heads up Rafe 😊👍

Thank you Steve 😊👍

Cool 😎 Sorry, for the pun. Thank you for sharing 😊

Thank you for watching and sharing 😊

Thank you Henrik 😊👍

Thank you 👍

Thank you Walter. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you Jake. Much appreciated 😊👍

Thank you Paul. Very kind. My review comment refer to the sound with using the tone controls 👍

Thank you for sharing your experiences 😊👍

Thank you David. It is a shame they don’t send out products to RU-vid reviewers 😊👍

@Baba Ganush I’ll have the same please 😊

Thank you. Please let me know how you get on 😊

@@abritishaudiophile7314 Hi Tarun and British audiophile viewers. Just wanna report my experience after 7 months with the new set up Yamaha AS1200+Lumin D2. I took time to listen and listen and the area where I find this combo superior to the H190 I previously had with the same set of Spendor A4 are the followings: imaging, speed of transients and micro detail. Even the bass tonality if you want. The problem is the weight of the bass. At some frequencies and with certain tracks it can hit hard but most of the time it is very bass light. The lean presentation is in fact leaner than I thought and when a song is leaner or slightly bright the Yamaha is not very forgiving, probably more transparent to the source than the Hegel in this sense but it ain't nice when your recordings are not extremely well recorded (I have many). The highs are crisper than the H190, they can be very beautiful but sometimes also fatiguing, to my ears at least (and I would consider my speakers on the "slightly warm side of neutral" category, not aggressive up top for sure). As per the Hegel I preferred its more relaxed and meatier presentation with slightly deeper soundstage, more natural midrange and softer top end. Bass and guitars are definitely more visceral with the Hegel which can hit much harder. Overall I have to say that I much preferred the Hegel house sound (with its own streamer and DAC), with my speaker and in my room at least. The Yamaha can sound better with a very few bass heavy and warm recordings but most of the time the Hegel gave me a better experience. I'm now considering the H390 (expensive and here in Hong Kong it only has a one year warranty plus my H190 broke down under warranty so the reliability of the brand is a concern for me) or the Supernait 2 or 3 (also not cheap) as the next step if I can sell the Yamaha without losing too much. An alternative path could be a warmer sounding DAC like the Denafrips Tarun runs but the Lumin D2 is supposed to be a warm sounding streaming DAC so I'm afraid that could be a waste of money. That's it, hope this can be helpful to the viewers and if anyone has a Yamaha amp paired with a warm sounding DAC or purchased one of the afore mentioned amps stepping up from the Yamaha I'd be happy to hear about it. Ciao!

@@massimilianozeni1848 thank you for the update. Based on your findings, I would change the amp. Changing for a warmer DAC will be a bandaid at best 😊

@@massimilianozeni1848 Honestly, this evaluation is a huge help. I currently have my AS-1200 paired with KLH model 5 speakers (2 years of ownership) and I find the presentation enjoyable from the mid-range up. However, in my room there is very little bass weight, especially upper bass, which makes a lot of recordings feel empty/gutless. I feel like compromising some midrange clarity and imaging precision for a solid lower frequency foundation will be worth a try. I have also considered purchasing a warm DAC from denafrips or Schiit (bifrost 2), but from the input below it seems that an amplifier swap would be more beneficial.

Agreed. Thank you for watching JK 😊👍