Yamaha Pro Amps

[zman1974]

Well, the Behringer EP-Series does have a detachale power cord recptacle. But I get your point, and it is well taken.

I am about to pull the trigger on either the EP4000 or the PS3500S. Not sure what I want to do.

Are the EP's binding posts 5-way, like the Yamaha, or something else entirely? "Touch-Proof" isn't much of a description, and I can't tell from the pictures.

Thanks,

Jim

 

[WmAx]

Well, the Behringer EP-Series does have a detachale power cord recptacle. But I get your point, and it is well taken.

I am about to pull the trigger on either the EP4000 or the PS3500S. Not sure what I want to do.

Are the EP's binding posts 5-way, like the Yamaha, or something else entirely? "Touch-Proof" isn't much of a description, and I can't tell from the pictures.

Thanks,

Jim

The Yamahas have the same speaker connections as the Behringer.

-Chris

 

[zman1974]

After sleeping on it, I will go with the Yamaha as this amp will be in the main theater, and any fan noise will likely not be tolerated by my significant other; she didn't much care for the PS3 fan when I had one of those.

 

[lsiberian]

After sleeping on it, I will go with the Yamaha as this amp will be in the main theater, and any fan noise will likely not be tolerated by my significant other; she didn't much care for the PS3 fan when I had one of those.

Smart man.

 

[Hi Ho]

I just measured the cord on my P5000S and it is about 7.5 feet. I do wish it had a detatchable cord only because when moving it around, having a cord dangling is annoying. My big old Yamaha MC1604 sound board has the same permanently attatched power cord. I have considered modifiying both units and adding an IEC plug.

 

[zman1974]

Guys,

One other question:

What point should one set the gains? I noticed some set them at max, while others set them a little before 12:00. Are there any hard and fast rules that I should follow?

Jim

 

[JerryLove]

What point should one set the gains? I noticed some set them at max, while others set them a little before 12:00. Are there any hard and fast rules that I should follow?

I'm going to take a wild guess:

It depends on the effeciency of the speaker you are driving. You want to be able to use the bulk of your pre-amp volume control in your normal listening. Set them too high, and you'll go from nothing (or hiss) to blaring with a very small turn of your preamp. Set them too low, and you'll be pushing your preamp to clipping to hear anything.

Start low, and bring them up until your preamp gives you a good feel (normal listening about 1/3 to 1/2 pre-amp-max-volume).

Of course I could be talking out of my ***: but that seems logical.

 

[Hi Ho]

You're on the right track Jerry. I use the amps in a live sound setting but the same principles apply. If I'm set up in a smaller room then I generally only turn the gain on the amp up about 1/3 the way because otherwise I have to set the main output on the soundboard almost all the way down to to prevent headcrushing levels. That, in turn, doesn't feed the EQs with enough gain to even register on the level meters. Turning the gain down on the amp solves all of that. Out doors it's a different story. Wide open.

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

Guys,

One other question:

What point should one set the gains? I noticed some set them at max, while others set them a little before 12:00. Are there any hard and fast rules that I should follow?

Depends, are you using the amp for subs or for your main channels?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[zman1974]

I will be using it to drive the main channels. The speakers are Onix Reference 3's which have a 90db sensitivity and are 4 ohms nominal.

Jim

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

In that case I’d say start by gain-matching the Yamaha amp to your current receiver’s internal amp. Connect the amp between one channel of the receiver and the speaker; start with the amp’s gain control all the way down. Leave the other speaker connected directly to the receiver.

Pan your balance control to the speaker connected directly to the receiver, play something like a pink noise source or a 1 kHz sine wave tone, and take a reading with your SPL meter. Get the volume up to somewhere in the 75-80 dB range.

Then pan the balance control over to the channel connected to the new amp. Increase the amp’s gain until the test tone gets the same SPL reading as the other speaker. If you can’t get a gain match with the gains full open, then you have a problem...


This should give you a good starting place for the amp’s gain settings; hopefully they will be below max.

From here you might disconnect all speakers, and run up the receiver’s volume control to something near maximum. You should be able to drive the amp’s input signal LED’s into clipping. If not, increase the gains until you get the clip lights.

Anyway – this should get you started in the right direction.

​

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Yamaheart]

How is the Yamaha pro amps compare to the Yamaha MX-1000? I wondered why the MX-1000 is so popular, at least on ebay it is. If I would get the Yamaha pro amp, which one would be comparable or better to the MX-1000? Thanks...

 

[WmAx]

How is the Yamaha pro amps compare to the Yamaha MX-1000? I wondered why the MX-1000 is so popular, at least on ebay it is. If I would get the Yamaha pro amp, which one would be comparable or better to the MX-1000? Thanks...

The closest to the MX-1000(260x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/ 330x2, 4 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz) is the Yamaha P2500S(250x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/ 310 x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz). The Yamaha P3500S is more powerful, with 350x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/450x2, 4 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz.

Remember, the P**00S are professional amplifiers. These do not have RCA inputs like the MX-1000. As such, you usually need to use a device such as a Samson S-Convert between standard RCA pre-outs and the pro amp XLR inputs, as the pro amp expects higher voltage than the consumer RCA outputs provide. Failure to use a S-Convert or similar line voltage level converter is usually audible noise/hiss and/or not being able to use the amplifier's full power range.

-Chris

 

[Kitsum]

I use a QSC RMX4050HD connected to a Yamaha's DSP-A1 rca pre-outs and i made my own RCA to 1/4" and RCA to XLR cables. Pro audio stores sell them for cheap also. I don't have any noise - hiss or mismatch, at 3 o'clock the level matches exactly the DSP-A1's internal amps, so i think a converter box is usually not required.

 

[WmAx]

I use a QSC RMX4050HD connected to a Yamaha's DSP-A1 rca pre-outs and i made my own RCA to 1/4" and RCA to XLR cables. Pro audio stores sell them for cheap also. I don't have any noise - hiss or mismatch, at 3 o'clock the level matches exactly the DSP-A1's internal amps, so i think a converter box is usually not required.

But what is the output voltage from the DSP-A1? Was that not a flagship product years ago? I know that many of Yamaha's flagship products would have very high output voltage(4+ VRMS) capability from the pre-outs as compared to most pre-outs.

-Chris

 

[Yamaheart]

The closest to the MX-1000(260x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/ 330x2, 4 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz) is the Yamaha P2500S(250x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/ 310 x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz). The Yamaha P3500S is more powerful, with 350x2, 8 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz/450x2, 4 Ohms, 20Hz-20,000Hz.

Remember, the P**00S are professional amplifiers. These do not have RCA inputs like the MX-1000. As such, you usually need to use a device such as a Samson S-Convert between standard RCA pre-outs and the pro amp XLR inputs, as the pro amp expects higher voltage than the consumer RCA outputs provide. Failure to use a S-Convert or similar line voltage level converter is usually audible noise/hiss and/or not being able to use the amplifier's full power range.

-Chris

Thanks Chris,

Then I can just get the P3500S instead of the MX-1000. I wondered why the MX-1000 is so popular, it goes for $700-1200 price range.

 

[zman1974]

I found a P5000S on closeout at the Best buy Musicial Instrument section, and picked it up Friday. As Chris and others have reported the amplifier is built to a very high standard with quality connectors, and a hefty, solid feel throughout. Being able to remove the rack ears was a nice touch, and allowed the Yamaha to fit easily below my power conditioner in my main rack.

Initially, I set the gains around half-way, but after doing some SPL measurements I settled on about the 2:30 mark; fully open did produce some noise from the speakers (I am using XLR's).

I did my listening using the 9.8's Direct Mode which bypasses all processing. The source is my Emotiva ERC-1 CD player connected to the balanced inputs on the 9.8. I went straight for my rock music discs (Guns n' Roses, Elton John, Dream Theater, etc). I was most impressed with the bass control that the Yamaha has over my speakers; very tight, and strong; stronger than the Earthquake Cinenova. The mids were free from any grain, and seemed to have unlimited dynamic range. The highs may be a little closed down compared to the Earthquake, but if anything, I find that a blessing on poorly recorded music.

The feeling I am trying to convey is that the Yamaha has nothing to apologize for in direct comparison to a highly regarded boutique amplifier. I would say that the Yamaha does an excellent job of conveying what is on the source without adding anything objectionable; the desire of any well-built audio product.

Thumbs up, and it wil remain in my system until to dies.

Thanks to Chris and others who commented on this fine product.

Jim

 

[WmAx]

Initially, I set the gains around half-way, but after doing some SPL measurements I settled on about the 2:30 mark; fully open did produce some noise from the speakers (I am using XLR's).

The Integra, XLR outs or not, if you have to turn the Yamaha gains up to where some noise is audible, then the XLR outs on the Integra are not producing the voltage level typical of professional audio equipment. Check to see if you can set gains on the XLR outputs on the Integra through an internal menu setting. If not, you need to use a Samson S-Convert or comparable consumer to pro line level converter device.

-Chris

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

But what is the output voltage from the DSP-A1? Was that not a flagship product years ago? I know that many of Yamaha's flagship products would have very high output voltage(4+ VRMS) capability from the pre-outs as compared to most pre-outs.

The DSP-A1, if it’s like the other Yamaha flagships I’ve owned that are both older and newer than that one, has a 4-volt output for the sub, but only 1 volt for the main channels. But one volt is pretty close to +4 dBu, which explains why Kitsum had no problem running the QSC.

Actually, I’ve experimented with three different pro amps using a Yamaha flagship, and it had no problems driving any of them. So it looks like a 1-volt output is sufficient to drive a good number of pro amps, with perhaps the exception of the highest-powered ones (which often seem to have lower sensitivity). I would like to get a hold of few others to experiment with, though...

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[zman1974]

The Integra, XLR outs or not, if you have to turn the Yamaha gains up to where some noise is audible, then the XLR outs on the Integra are not producing the voltage level typical of professional audio equipment. Check to see if you can set gains on the XLR outputs on the Integra through an internal menu setting. If not, you need to use a Samson S-Convert or comparable consumer to pro line level converter device.

-Chris

Ordered one today, thanks.

Jim