Yamaha RX-Z1 Audio/Video Receiver. (Equipment).

Manufacturer: Yamaha Electronics Corporation, 6660 Orangethorpe Ave., Buena Park, CA 90620; 800/4-YAMAHA

Price: $2,800

Source: Manufacturer Loan

Reviewer: Howard Ferstler

The last Yamaha receiver I reviewed for this magazine was the eight-channel RX-V3000. The report appeared in issue 87, and at that time I considered it to be one of the most competent and well thought out A/V receivers available. It was easily able to hold its own in terms of its basic DSP abilities with the DSP-A1 processor amp that I had been using for several years, and which I had reviewed in issue 72. It also had a few features, like a center-rear channel, that the A1 lacked, and it also had a better remote control.

The RX-V3000 was not Yamaha's top receiver model at that time--that honor was reserved for the $3200 RX-V1. However, although it was one step down from the top of the line it was probably all the receiver (and for that matter all the processor) most enthusiasts would ever need, unless they required the kind of detailed parameter tuning abilities that the more expensive model offered.

Yamaha has now brought out the RX-Z1 to replace the RX-V1. The new model is styled differently, is somewhat larger, and in terms of performance, it matches the previous receiver in every important way. It also has several additional characteristics that set it apart from all of the Yamaha processor amps and receivers that came before it. Happily, it can do this while carrying a list price that is $400 less than that of the V1. This is a serious device in every sense of the word, and one that should be able to do justice to nearly any high-fidelity software that even the most dedicated audio and home-theater enthusiast would be likely to own.

The Z1 is a monster of a machine. It weighs just shy of 62 pounds, and its 8.25-inch height will eat up significantly more vertical space on an equipment shelf than your typical $500 Circuit City or Best Buy showcase receiver. It has a 130-watt amp on each of its six main channels (left, center, right, left surround, center-rear surround, and right surround), as well as two 45-watt amps for the Yamaha trademark, front "effects" channels. Throw in two subwoofer-output options that allow one to drive an appropriately powerful mono sub or a pair of stereo subs, and you are talking about enough juice to deal with any rational audio situation that I can think of. If this device cannot fill your main listening room with a lot of clean sound you are one very wealthy owner of a huge listening room, indeed.

Basically, it can do everything the V1 could do, with several minor upgrades, including the following significant ones: Dolby Pro Logic II, DTS Neo:6, more amplifier power on all channels, and a more advanced remote control. The Dolby and DTS functions are each divided into two different versions, namely movie / cinema and music, with the two movie / cinema versions designed to work with two-channel matrixed program material and the two music versions designed to synthesize a realistic three-channel soundstage and hall ambiance from two-channel source material. In my opinion, the music versions are breakthrough technologies that have rated a special Skeptimania column all by themselves. That column will further compare them to a number of other music-enhancement technologies, including those found within the RX-Z1.

To protect its slightly higher power output abilities, the receiver has a low-speed cooling fan that will only come on if the unit is generating very high average power levels for a rather long length of time. Otherwise, the fan is simply is not needed. It never came on during all of my tests and listening sessions, and it is hard to conceive of a rational, playback-level situation where it would.

Needless to say, the RX-Z1 also has the now ubiquitous Dolby Digital decoding, as well as the Dolby ES (center-rear channel) feature, and of course also has DTS EX matrixed and discrete decoding for center-rear signals from the appropriate DTS soundtracks. Top this off with a spate of proprietary Yamaha DSP ambiance-synthesis modes for two-channel and 5.1 sources, and we are looking at a nice piece of work that can either simply reproduce sound or manipulate it so that it sounds strikingly realistic or theater like in a typical home-listening area.

Ironically, while it has a six-channel input for stuff such as DVD-A and SACD, it, like the RX-V1 that came right before it, lacks bass management with that input. Given that the DSP-A1 that came earlier still did have bass management, this seems odd. However, since even the DSP-A1 lacked the ability to adjust for different speaker distances to the listening position with those inputs, the lack of bass management is really no big deal. The almost ubiquitous lack of bass management and proper distance compensation in receivers and processors of all kinds has turned both DVD-A and SACD into a tragic joke, in my opinion. Fortunately, all such discs have DD and DTS tracks that work just fine, thank you. See my Skeptimania column in issue 91 for more on DVD-A vs. the competition.

Among many features that the Z1 shares with the earlier V1, we have a digitally regulated analog volume control, a processor-direct option (bypasses the tone-control circuits), advanced 44-bit cinema-mode decoding circuitry, 62 surround-simulation modes (many based upon the measurements of real concert halls, clubs, churches, and studios), a "silent cinema" mode that allows one to get the benefits of 5.1 sound front a pair of headphones, and HDTV-compatible component video outputs.

The back panel is loaded with a veritable armada of inputs and outputs, and it is hard to believe that anyone would run out of connections with this receiver. In addition to a large number of analog taps, the digital hookups include six optical inputs, two optical outputs, three coaxial inputs, and even an RF input for old-style laserdiscs that have Dolby Digital tracks. The front panel is easy to work with, although the digital volume-level indicator only stays on for a few seconds after you change levels. The steady-state indicator is a small, serrated, sloping-bar readout that is hard to evaluate, particularly from a distance.

Although RX-Z1 is an interesting and remarkable device, perhaps its most interesting feature is not the receiver section at all. Rather, it is the remote control, which is based upon the $499 RAV-2000 that Yamaha was marketing as a separate item a short while back.

This is easily the most comprehensive remote Yamaha has offered to date, and is probably a technological match for nearly any other universal remote available. It will not only fully exercise every feature the Z1 offers but will also operate all other Yamaha audio and video devices, as well as a large number of units manufactured by other companies. If it cannot operate them out of the box, it has a learning feature that will teach it to command any audio or video device I can think of.

I have mixed feelings about its uses and abilities. It can do nearly anything, but it takes a certain amount of practice to both physically interact with it and to learn and master all of the features it offers. For example, it is a touch-screen controller, and if you have stubby fingers you may find it difficult to hit the proper icon accurately enough to get the command to work. Yamaha suggests using a pencil eraser if fingers are awkward, but I discovered that if you have an index finger fingernail that is not chewed to a stub the menu-accessing work then becomes a snap.

Using a fingernail to tap the screen gets you to the required menus, but it still takes some patience to navigate them and get to the one that does what you want. In order to make proper use of this device, particularly if you want to use it to operate equipment other than the RX-Z1 itself, you need to carefully read through the manual a couple of times and then experiment enough to fill in the information gaps in the manual's explanations. Once this is done, the remote is very comprehensive and easy to use, although it is not as rapidly navigated as some other remotes, including the one that came with the RX-V3000. I believe that it does surpass the one that came with the DSP-A1, however.

Personally, I do not mind using several remotes to operate my gear, and find the operation of even the best universal version to be a bit tedious. However, the one that comes with the RX-Z1 does a very good job of operating just that device, and for me that is enough to be enthusiastic about it. I do need to warn you here that the owner's manual is sometimes cryptic about what you need to do to properly exercise some commands. After a bit of practice, you can go back and reread the instructions and they not only then make considerably more sense but also help to fix the operational techniques better into your mind. A complex and versatile machine like the RX-Z1 cannot be operated easy as pie right out of the box.

I set the Z1 up in my main system, replacing the DSP-A1 that had been there for a couple of years. Hookup was not complex since all the wiring, excepting the hookup for the center-rear speakers, was already in place. However, it still did take time, because I have a LOT of gear (one DVD player, one DVD-A player, one LD/DVD player, two equalizers, two signal processors, and two subwoofers) in that main-system's equipment rack. I also had to modify the shelf spacing to accommodate the greater height of the unit.

When previously using the DSP-A1 in that system I employed a vintage Carver M500 to power my main speakers and used the A1's own main amps to power the dual panels on my custom-made center speaker. I still ended up doing this with the new unit once I completed my series of evaluations. (I have the amp and like it, so why not make use of it.) However, I initially used just the RX-Z1 to drive the whole works. Once installed, it was easy to balance the channels, adjust for differing speaker distances to the favored listening position, and get the subwoofers blended with the satellites.

I discovered that the basic DD and DTS modes were pretty much a match for what I got with the DSP-A1 and RX-V3000. And the center-rear function was pretty much equal in performance to what I got with the V3000 when I set that unit up in the main room. All and all, the results were typically sensational, with absolutely no glitches that I could discover.

I took the time to do some stereophonic A/B comparisons between the Z1's main-channel amps and the M500, and I simply could not hear any differences, even at high output levels. Ditto with a pair of Sherbourn 1/300MB monoblock amps. During the initial test period I watched one killer-grade movie all the way through (U571) and watched excerpts from several others, including Gladiator, which has a DTS center-rear feed. In every case, the results were as spectacular as one could get in my room with my ancillary hardware.

So far, the center-rear (Dolby EX and DTS EX) features have been workable with virtually every modern movie I have watched that had stereo DD or DTS surround channels. Normally, the center-rear output only engages automatically with movies that have an EX or ES flag digitally embedded in the program. However, you can also activate the feature manually, and it pays to do this with the vast bulk of modern movies that make use of a seriously stereophonic surround-channel feed. Remember, the matrixed versions of these DD and DTS technologies (an alternate DTS version incorporates a discrete center-rear channel) basically work on the same principles as old-style Dolby Pro Logic does up front: the center-rear channel is "derived" from the mono component of the left/right mix.

Because so many modern movies have stereo surround channels, the center-rear feature can work with the mono part of those signals to help fill out the back area. While this is sometimes no big deal with a good sweet-spot listening position, at least if the left/ right surround speakers are located on the side walls and slightly toward the rear, it can improve things considerably when listening from less than optimal seating positions. This will be particularly true if the surround speakers are dipolar jobs placed directly out to the sides. Just as a steered center feed up front can help to stabilize the sound stage over a broad listening area, a center-rear channel can help keep special-effects sounds and ambiance effects properly stabilized throughout the room.

When doing surround-pan tests with Ovation Software's Avia test disc, I discovered that the center-rear feed tends to allow the signals to bunch at the left, center, and right locations during an otherwise smooth pan across the back. This characteristic also has occurred with every other processor or receiver I have reviewed that had a center-back channel, including the distinctly upscale Sunfire Theater Grand Processor III.

If you are in the sweet spot and your two surround speakers are well positioned, you actually get better smooth-panning results without the center-feed in operation. However, if you are anywhere but the sweet spot the pan is much better with the center channel involved, and with musical soundtracks the effect is often pretty dramatic. (See my review of the RX-V3000 to learn a bit more about what this feature can offer.)

Of course, this is primarily a music-oriented magazine, and so many of you are probably more interested in the RX-Z1's musical abilities than in its home-theater features. Let me say right now that the device performed in that area in an outstanding manner. One of the first discs I tried was a fine recording of Charpentier's Andromede (Gaudemus 303). This is a very cleanly recorded disc and it sounded sensational in stereo-only form. The vocals were beautifully handled, and I found that the Yamaha's Classical/Opera mode (something that the DSP-A1, RX-V3000, and DSP-A3090 units I previously reviewed also offer) worked wonders with this material, provided that the center level was backed off from the set-up calibration by about 3 dB.

However, I also discovered the joys of Dolby Pro Logic II (Music) and Neo:6 (Music) with this recording. Properly adjusted, those two circuits not only delivered a soundstage blend equal to that of Classical/Opera, but managed to do so without having to back off the center level from the set-up reference. I got similar results with Handel's Twelve Concerti Grossi (Denon 6305).

As a matter of fact, Pro Logic II and Neo:6 are terrific for some musical source material. Their ambiance-generating abilities are basically refined versions of traditional extraction techniques that admittedly lack the refinement of what Yamaha offers with many of its ambiance synthesizing modes. However, in the realm of the aforesaid soundstage balance, focus, and spread, the two new Dolby and DTS technologies have some remarkable abilities.

With two-channel program sources, Classical/ Opera uses signal-derived center steering that appears similar to standard Pro Logic. However, the processing that Yamaha uses enhances the illusion by making use of two front "effects" speakers, in addition to the other surround speakers. With the center-channel level backed off an appropriate amount (usually about 3 dB), the result is a full-width soundstage with a well-focused center image, even when listening from off axis. Thanks to those front-effects speakers, there is also a degree of bloom and ambiance from up front that opens up the soundstage and adds depth.

Pro Logic II and Neo:6 in their respective music versions do not offer the front-ambiance enhancement. However, they make up for that by combining a steered center with a phantom blend that results in a very smooth integration all the way across. The blend is fixed with Neo:6. However, DPL II allows the user to adjust its range from traditional DPL steering to a full phantom image, with several points in between those extremes as additional options.

Whether either of these new technologies matches my current favorite signal-processing mode, Classical/ Opera, depends upon the source material. With some large-hall presentations, the Yamaha version, as well as several of the RX-Z1's concert-hall modes (which do not employ a center channel feed), appear to deliver subtly better results than either the Dolby or DTS music hall-simulation technologies. The assorted Jazz Club modes were also notably effective, although DPL II (Music) is excellent with such smaller-room simulations. No doubt there are going to be situations where the Dolby and DTS music modes would work better--at least with some recordings. The addition of these processing options further expands the already huge number of options that the RX-Z1 offers.

The Yamaha hall, club, church, etc. modes are unusual, in that while they synthesize a degree of reverb from the center, hard-left, and hard-right components of a musical recording, they ignore the 180-out component. That is, rather than apply a reverberant overlay to all of the existing reverb on a recording, much of that recorded reverb is eliminated with the Yamaha processing and a completely new reverberation is substituted with the surround feed. Hence, while you get the recorded reverb up front, much of what you get from the surround channels will be surround ambiance that Yamaha has programmed into the receiver. Those programmed signals have been derived from a multitude of hall-space measurements that Yamaha engineers have been making over the years.

This approach is in contrast to certain ambiance-extraction systems (including Pro Logic II and Neo:6) that use only the existing reverb on the recording and try to manipulate it front and rear for the most realistic effect. In my book The Home Theater Companion (Schirmer, 1997), and also my record-review book, The Digital Audio Music List (A-R Editions, 1999), I spent a bit of time outlining the advantages and disadvantages of both ambiance-synthesis and ambiance-extraction systems. I concluded that neither could be judged a clear winner, although at that time I favored the synthesis approach, and for the most part I still do. However, DPL II and Neo:6 have redefined the standards for ambiance extraction, meaning that truly viable alternatives are now available.

Whether the Yamaha approach works better will depend upon a multitude of factors, including room size and shape, speaker positions, speaker types, the listening position, and needless to say, the recordings themselves. And of course one thing the Yamaha systems have that few others have (one exception is Sunfire, with its front "side-axis" channels) is that set of front "enhancement" channels. These help the system fill out the entire surround sound field, including the part that is generated by reflections at the front of the hall. The impact of those front surround speakers is subtle, but it is real, nonetheless, and those additional channels are one reason that Yamaha receivers and processors that employ them continue to have an ambiance-synthesis edge over what some other processors and receivers, including some genuinely expensive ones, offer.

I did discover that more directional speakers are in a position to benefit more from the front-effects channel enhancements than wider-dispersion models. My very wide dispersing Allison IC-20 systems generate a lot of side-wall-reflected energy on their own, and those reflections are in a position to sometimes interfere with what the front-effects speakers are supposed to do. Too much of a good thing, so to speak, that requires backing off the front-effects levels somewhat.

On the other hand, a trio of NHT M6 satellite speakers (with the left and right units by design intentionally limiting side-wall reflections) were very much at home working with the those effects channels. The same goes for trio of Triad InRoom Silver satellites I also auditioned, with the left and right units toed inward to minimize side-wall energy. A pair of toed-in, main-channel Dunlavy Cantatas had an equally symbiotic relationship with the Yamaha front-effects channels. The results with any of those speakers were uniformly spectacular.

I spent quite a bit of time with the RX-Z1 before getting started on this review, and after a while I decided that its abilities were significant enough to rate a purchase. I have had my DSP-A1 integrated amplifier for a number of years, and it now resides in my second system, with the DSP-A3090 integrated amplifier that had been in that system now doing duty in the living-room system. Although they remain highly competent performers, neither of those devices can quite match what the RX-Z1 can do, both in terms of movie soundtrack reproduction and the synthesizing of a realistic soundfield from two-channel program sources. And of course this unit has a tuner (which works fine), making it even more flexible.

The addition of the music-mode versions of Dolby Pro Logic II and DTS Neo:6 add two additional wild cards into a mix that allows the user to have a huge number of playback (and playback-adjustment) options with their existing music-recording collections. With the required number of quality speakers and a good listening room, I believe that the RX-Z1 will deliver a live-music simulation that is equal to anything else out there, and superior to most. And remember that it can do this for $400 less than the price of the receiver it replaces.

Needless to say, highly recommended.

--HF