Yamaha NS-800A
Yamaha’s NS-800A pairs expansive soundstage with natural vocal clarity, delivering rich tone, precise imaging and remarkably full 40Hz bass from a luxurious standmount cabinet. Audioholics praised its balanced, immersive presentation, while PMA Magazine found its spatial scale and organic musicality especially compelling. Premium piano-gloss finish and substantial hardware complete a sophisticated stereo statement.
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Nicely Roasted
Sound Quality
89/100
Build Quality
93/100
Value for Money
86/100
Pros
Wide, enveloping soundstage with precise image placement and strong instrument separation.
Natural, clean vocals and instruments, with clear dialogue and a balanced midrange.
Impressive bass extension and tonal weight for a compact standmount, reaching roughly 40Hz.
Exceptional luxury build, including a piano-style gloss cabinet and substantial binding posts.
Cons
Deep-bass output and impact are placement-dependent; a subwoofer is advisable for the lowest octave or high-output electronic and home-theater use.
Ultimate dynamic range is limited for a $4,800-per-pair speaker, making it better suited to small and medium rooms than large spaces or party-level playback.
The elevated upper treble adds air but may not suit listeners seeking strictly linear voicing.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 89/100
Reviews portray the NS-800A as a refined, full-bodied standmount with a warm-to-slightly-dark tonal balance, strong vocal realism, and unusually expansive spatial presentation. Its character is polished and engaging rather than strictly neutral: bass output and upper-treble balance depend notably on room placement and listener priorities.
Bass
87/100
PMA Magazine heard copious, clean bass with a thick yet articulate foundation, while Audioholics found 40Hz extension impressive for a speaker of this size and felt it could work without a subwoofer. Erin's Audio Corner found bass weak away from a wall, and newrecordday similarly notes that a subwoofer is needed for the lowest octave, making placement important.
Mid
91/100
Vocals and instruments are repeatedly described as natural, clean, tangible, and well focused. PMA Magazine praised intimate, genuine-sounding voices and full-bodied guitars, while Audioholics found the midrange notably flat and dialogue exceptionally clear; newrecordday only noted occasional lower-vocal heaviness.
Treble
86/100
The treble brings considerable air, presence, and fine detail, with reviewers generally finding it musical rather than fatiguing. However, Audioholics measured an upper-treble rise around 16kHz, Erin's Audio Corner characterizes the balance as bright, and PMA Magazine felt some rivals offered a little more upper-frequency air.
Soundstage Imaging
93/100
Spatial performance is a major strength. PMA Magazine heard a huge, three-dimensional stage with stable vocals, clear separation, and focused instruments, while Audioholics found the stage wide, enveloping, and precise enough to convincingly reproduce a church acoustic.
Dynamics
89/100
The NS-800A is described as rhythmically spry and snappy, with convincing energy on demanding musical climaxes. Audioholics also found that it maintained composure at unexpectedly high levels, though it notes that ultimate dynamic range remains limited relative to larger loudspeakers.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
93/100
Build and finish receive emphatic praise: reviewers describe a hefty, impeccably assembled cabinet, lustrous piano-style gloss, and substantial five-way binding posts. The robust construction and premium presentation look and feel appropriately luxurious for a high-end standmount.
Value for Money
86/100
At roughly $4,800 per pair, the NS-800A faces stiff high-end standmount competition and is plainly not inexpensive. Audioholics nevertheless considers it fairly priced for a genuinely high-end loudspeaker, while PMA Magazine argues that its combination of sound and construction could make it all the speaker many buyers need; limited ultimate dynamics temper the case.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
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Specifications
- Type
- 2 way Bass-Reflex Type
- Woofers
- 6-1/2" cone type
- Tweeter
- 1-1/4" dome type
- Frequency Response
- 40 Hz-65 kHz (-10 dB), -100 kHz (-30 dB)
- Nominal Input Power
- 40 W
- Maximum Input Power
- 120 W
- Sensitivity
- 86.5 dB
- Crossover Frequencies
- 2.6 kHz
- Impedance
- 6 ohms (minimum 3.8 ohms)
- Dimensions (W x H x D)
- 9-1/8" x 16-1/2" x 14-1/8"
- Weight
- 28.7 lbs
- Accessories
- Front Grille x 1, Cushion x 4
Manufacturer's Description — Yamaha
NS-800A Bookshelf Speaker (Each)
The NS-800A is an uncompromising 2-way speaker that provides faithful reproduction of all musical instruments and spacious sound.
- 2-way bookshelf speaker with 6 1/2" woofer
- A newly developed "Harmonious Diaphragm" made of a blend of materials, including Zylon and spruce, for true tonal balance
- Ideal cabinet construction, designed with vibration analysis technology cultivated in our crafting of musical instruments
- Yamaha-patented Acoustic Absorber optimized for the NS-800A
- Yamaha-patented R.S. (Resonance Suppression) Chamber for suppressing unwanted resonance
- Authentic piano finish adds to the luxurious joy of ownership
- High-quality parts for crossover circuitry, including audio capacitors made by Mundorf of Germany
- Solid brass speaker terminals for highly secure connection and luxurious feel
LUXURIOUS WITH SPACIOUS SOUND
Yamaha created the NS-800A bookshelf speaker by fusing rich aesthetics with the latest advanced technology. The unique diaphragm material produces exceptionally unified tone, while the spacious large-capacity cabinet delivers a vast and luxuriant sound field. It is all topped off with a beautiful grand piano-like finish that gives you an even more luxurious music listening experience.
Using our signature gloss finish, a technique traditionally reserved for our finest pianos, this speaker provides an aesthetic pleasure, whether you're immersed in its sound or simply admiring its presence.
TRUE SOUND
Yamaha is the only audio brand in the world that manages every facet of sound, from its creation to the moment it graces your ears. Simply close your eyes, and you won't just hear the music - you'll experience the unparalleled sensation of being genuinely closer to the artist.
TONAL BALANCE
Every ear hears the world differently. Yamaha expresses sound as the artist intended. Reproducing sonic elements such as vocals and instruments at the right pitch requires both passion and precision. Yamaha accomplishes this through tonal balance, enriching harmonies and recreating musicality to help you hear sounds you couldn't hear before.
PERFECTLY UNIFIED TONE
PERFECTLY UNIFIED TONE
As a world-renowned music brand, Yamaha is relentlessly committed to accurately reproducing the sounds of instruments. In order to make this quest a reality, we created flagship speakers under the design concept of having consistent tone color throughout the entire frequency spectrum and applied unique technology to achieve it. For each and every one of its speaker units, the NS-800A employs the newly developed Harmonious Diaphragm™—made from a blend of ZYLON®, which has excellent sound velocity and optimal internal dissipation — and spruce, which is used in the soundboard of Yamaha grand pianos.
DYNAMICS
We pursue a sense of dynamics that express the contrast between stillness and motion in the music - allowing you to immerse yourself in the deep emotions in the music.
TOTAL MUSIC REPRODUCTION
Our patented Resonance Suppression chambers are mounted on the back of the tweeter in order to faithfully express even the finest nuances of musical instruments and voices. Two specially shaped tubes cancel unwanted resonance generated behind the diaphragm, revitalizing and maintaining the original sound.
FAITHFUL MUSICAL PRESENCE
Conventional speakers use a large amount of sound-absorbing material to eliminate standing waves inside the cabinet. However, this also removes much of the music's character. In the NS-800A, we’ve employed our patented Absorber tube to eliminate standing waves, while minimizing the amount of absorbing material, so that the original realism of music is reproduced with full energy and dynamism.
SOUND IMAGE
The position of the artist and instruments, along with the delicate nuances and atmosphere of the performance space, are stunningly reproduced. The resulting sound is so lifelike, you'll feel as though you were in the same room as the performance.
HIGHLY MUSICAL VIBRATION CONTROL
The principles for creating superb sound — understanding enclosure acoustics and pinpointing where to suppress vibrations — are virtually identical, whether crafting musical instruments or speakers. The NS-800A's cabinet construction incorporates state-of-the-art design technology while making full use of laser vibrometers, a tool essential in musical instrument research and development, as well as sophisticated Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis. The cross piece of the cabinet has also been reinforced. Experience a rich spatial sound that fully immerses you, making you feel as though you're right in the center of the performance.
SEAMLESS SONIC PERFORMANCE
Representative of the flagship series, the NS-800A adopts the highest quality parts for the crossover circuit. The MCap® SUPREME Classic audio capacitor made by Mundorf of Germany, renowned as the pinnacle in audio-use capacitor, is used along with a huge woofer coil.
TWISTED FLARE PORT
The speaker is equipped with our original Twisted Flare Port. It adds a gentle twist to reduce air flow noise around the port, a common problem in conventional bass reflex speakers. This delivers an exceptionally accurate response with clear, tight bass reproduction.
HIGH-QUALITY FEEL
The speaker terminals feature an original design, with a shape that comfortably fits with human fingers for a luxurious feel, while simultaneously allowing for effortless tightening.
Verified Dealers
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Authorized dealers for Yamaha NS-800A
- Absoulute Audio plus Video — in-store — Aiken, South Carolina, United States (website)
- The Music Room — online and in-store — Erie, Colorado, United States (website)
- 138 Quaiduson — online and in-store — Lille, Hauts-de-France, France (website)
- A1 Futureshop — online and in-store — North Rocks, New South Wales, Australia (website)
- Abt Electronics — online and in-store — Glenview, Illinois, United States (website)
- Accessories 4 less — online and in-store — Apopka, Florida, United States (website)
- Acclaim Sound and Light — online and in-store — North Bay, Ontario, Canada (website)
- Acoustic Sound Design — online and in-store — Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (website)
- Acoustic Sounds — online and in-store — Salina, Kansas, United States (website)
- Acton Gate Audio — online and in-store — Cymru, United Kingdom (website)
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