Yamaha NS-2000A Floor-Standing Loudspeaker Review

Yamaha NS-2000A Introduction

Most of the attention that Yamaha gets as a home audio brand these days seems to be in their electronics products such as receivers and soundbars where they are always a part of the conversation, but I don’t hear as much about their hi-fi loudspeakers. However, I have always liked what I have heard from their speakers at audio trade shows, so in order to get more exposure, I asked if they would send me something. They accepted my invitation, and so in for review today is the Yamaha NS-2000A tower speaker. The NS-2000A stands second only to the mighty NS-5000 (Audioholics YouTube coverage of the NS-5000A) among the high-end of Yamaha’s loudspeakers. These beauties retail for $8k/pair, so they aren’t exactly inexpensive as tower speakers go, but what does Yamaha deliver for this not-insignificant sum? How do the NS-2000A speakers compare to others in their class, and what does Yamaha do to leverage their vast resources to produce a high-quality floor-standing loudspeaker? These are some of the questions we will attempt to answer in today’s review.

Yamaha NS-2000A Appearance

The NS-2000A speakers play it safe as far as a luxury appearance goes, and that is not at all a bad thing. They haven’t taken any aesthetic risks, and I would guess the reason is because these get a much more worldwide distribution than most speakers in this segment, so they have to be able to appeal to as many buyers in the world as possible. Piano black does that, especially in a finish so fine that it matches Yamaha’s pianos. The NS-2000A speakers only come in a black gloss finish, the same application as is performed on Yamaha’s grand pianos. Indeed, this has to be among the finest gloss finishes I have seen, with no hint of orange peeling or cloudiness in the slightest. The sides of the cabinets are like black mirrors on account of their pristine reflectivity. The application of such a fine finish has to constitute a very significant fraction of the manufacturing budget of these speakers. Outside of the gorgeous piano black finish, the drivers also present a clean, uncluttered appearance. The domes and cones of the drivers share nearly the same dark gray color and luster, and the trim rings are also simple pieces mounted into the front baffle. The NS-2000A speakers don’t have many other visual features outside of the drivers except for the rounded top edge of the front baffle and a small Yamaha badge in the lower edge. The outriggers do a great job of carrying the simplicity to the floor, and they almost look like an extension of the cabinet itself. Something else worth noting are the binding posts and the plates they are mounted on; these are some of the nicer binding posts I have seen with thick polished brass pieces on a powdered aluminum plate.

 

Users who want an even cleaner appearance can hide the drivers with a magnetic grille which is just some black fabric stretched over a frame, but these speakers are already so minimalist that the grille doesn’t do a lot more to uncomplicate their looks. These speakers look better without the grille, so I would only use the grille where the drivers might need protection from children or pets (or dumb adults). The NS-2000As look great. Some shoppers in this segment might want something a bit more wild, but no one will complain about their looks in having a set of these in their living room.

Yamaha NS-2000A Design Analysis

Let’s begin our design analysis of the NS-2000A at the top with the tweeter. The tweeter is a 1” dome made from a blend of materials that Yamaha calls ‘Harmonious Diaphragm’ which has the key ingredient of Zylon. Zylon is a synthetic polymer developed in the 1980s and sees use in a wide number of applications due to its high tensile strength, stiffness, low weight, and thermal stability; all qualities that make it perfect for loudspeaker diaphragms. Zylon’s elasticity properties rival that of Beryllium, so the ‘break-up’ modes that occur in driver cones will be similarly pushed into higher frequencies than typical cone materials. This allows the drivers to play over a much wider frequency band without cone resonances creeping into the reproduction thereby distorting the intended sound. Indeed, the NS-2000A’s specs boast a frequency response spec out to 65kHz with a -10dB window.

  

All of the drivers in the NS-2000A use the ‘Harmonious Diaphragm’ material. The 3 ¼” mid-range dome in the three-way NS-2000A is also composed of this material and is given a very wide 750 Hz to 3.5 kHz bandwidth. If the ‘Harmonious Diaphragm’ material behaves in the way that Yamaha claims, they could get away with a 3.5kHz crossover frequency without resorting to a steep filter on the midrange. A relatively high crossover frequency should give the tweeter a break and allow it to play at a higher loudness level than if it had used a more typical crossover frequency. Likewise, the 750Hz bass woofer to midrange transition gives the midrange a break from driving the lower frequencies which should lead to less distortion and higher output. A 750Hz crossover frequency is about an octave higher than most three-way speakers use, but the two 6 1/2” bass drivers will have a much easier time playing that upper octave than a single 3 ¼” driver. These high crossover frequencies should allow a wider dynamic range, although they may make for a tighter listening axis over vertical window, or, to put it another way, listeners won’t want to listen too far above or below the tweeter’s height otherwise phase conflicts will start to deform the response and degrade the sound.

  

The tweeter and midrange driver are enclosed by an attachment that Yamaha calls the ‘resonance suppression chamber.’ This redirects the backwave pressure of the domes in a manner that reduces modal resonances on the domes of the midrange and tweeter. This is similar to what transmission lines can do but uses a smaller but more complex arrangement instead of the long tapered tubes of transmission lines. Instead of simply absorbing backwave pressure from the diaphragm by damping the pressure waves through lots of soft acoustic absorption material, the Resonance Suppression Chamber redirects the back waves through different paths that rejoin and ends up canceling out resonances. This is a clever way to deal with backwave radiation but must have involved some enormously sophisticated computational modeling.

The lowest frequencies are produced by a rear-mounted port that has a swirl effect in the flaring that Yamaha calls the ‘twisted flare port.’ They claim it reduces port noise, presumably by increasing laminar flow of air from a vortex-like effect.

  

The enclosure is carefully modeled using finite element analysis so that internal bracing is used intelligently instead of just going all out on sheer mass to reduce panel resonances. Laser vibrometers are then used to verify that the resonances are reduced. It's a heavy and solid cabinet and has a luxury-class feel. One interesting thing used in the enclosure is something that Yamaha calls the “Acoustic Absorbers’ which are a pair of pipes that produce resonant frequencies that cancel out internal cabinet modes. Normally, loudspeakers will use a lot of internal stuffing to eliminate standing waves, but Yamaha has come up with a more elegant and sophisticated solution that targets specific significant modes. The cabinet is planted on a metal base with outriggers that give users the option of using either spiked feet or rubber feet. The outriggers and feet do give the cabinet some good stability, and it wouldn’t easily be tipped over. The speakers connect to wire by a pair of brawny-looking five-way binding posts. With a single set of binding posts, there is no option to bi-amp or bi-wire, and that is probably for the best. The grille is acoustically transparent black fabric  stretched over a sturdy plastic frame, and it attaches to the speaker by magnets. The plastic frame probably does create some diffracting surfaces, so for the best audio performance, the speaker should be used without the grille. However, the effect the grille has on the sound is not likely detrimental enough to have a major impact on the sound.

 

The NS-2000A speakers have clearly received a lot of investment in design work and manufacturing. They look and feel pretty stunning in person too, but how does it fare as a loudspeaker when the rubber hits the road and it actually has to be listened to? Let’s now give them a spin to see how all of this effort pays off in the real world…

Yamaha NS-2000A Listening Sessions

In my 24’ by 13’ (approximately) listening room, I set up the speakers a few feet off the back and side walls and with an equal distance between the speakers and the listening position. I angled the speakers with only a slight toe-in towards the listening position per Yamaha’s instructions. The listening distance from the speakers was about 9 feet. No room correction equalization was used. Processing was done by a Marantz 7705 and the amplification was a Monoprice Monolith 5x200 amplifier. No subwoofers were used unless noted otherwise.

Music Listening

To see what the speakers could do for classical music, I found a new release on the Qobuz music streaming service called “Voices of Thunder” by The Choir of Magdalen, Oxford. This celebrated choir, a group established in 1480, is backed by the new Eule Organ in the Magdalen College Chapel. The album is a selection of pieces written by a variety of different composers for choir and organ, and I think the intention is to show off what their new organ is capable of. Whatever the motivation for producing this album, the music is gorgeous as is the production as a whole, and it serves as a perfect vehicle for demonstrating the the abilities of a high-fidelity sound system. I streamed this release in a hi-res 192kHz/24-bit resolution.

What first stood out to me was the soundstage. It sounded diffused, much like one would expect from a recording in a chapel, although the acoustics did not overwhelm the choir. The NS-2000A speaker reproduced the acoustic environment beautifully, and they transported me to the chapel hall with a lifelike recreation of the performers within their reverberant surroundings. The imaging didn’t have precision, but that was due to the recording rather than the speakers. I had the sense of listening from a middle-row pew rather than a front-row seat, so while the positions of choral groupings were clear, no single performer was. The performers’ voices were rendered with utmost clarity, and they were almost tangible through the sound of the system in this recording. In some passages, the organ took prominence, and it was allowed to exhibit some real pyrotechnics. In these moments of high organ drama, the NS-2000As could convey a larger-than-life force of this mighty instrument. The organ as well as the choir sounded terrific, and I had no complaints about the NS-2000A for this recording. I think that fans of choral music have a great choice in these speakers.

 

For a closer look at a solitary vocal, I queued up the album “Uncanny Valley” by Sofie Letitre. This 2015 release would be categorized under pop music, but it does not at all follow mainstream pop music conventions. Letitre’s emotional singing and piano playing is in stark contrast against the electronic instrumentals. The tone and subject matter of her compositions are rather melancholy, and the recording of her voice is very clean and unprocessed despite this largely electronic studio production. The sound engineers knew enough to stay out of the way of her superb vocals, and that makes this album a good examination of a single voice. I streamed this underappreciated release from Qobuz.

Sofie’s voice was very well-defined by the NS-2000A speakers, and they delivered a crystal clear account of her singing. She was anchored in the center of the soundstage, and there was no ambiguity in the imaging presented by these speakers. Electronics panned from left to right around her, and her voice was the center of gravity holding everything together. The bass could go hard at moments, as in track 3, “Home,” but the NS-2000A speakers did not flinch. They could give the bass some real muscle without overwhelming other elements of these tracks, so it was well-balanced with the rest of the frequencies. The speakers were highly resolving; I could hear Sofie pushing the pedals on the piano which is not something I noticed in other times I have listened to this album. The synths could have neat but subtle textures such as clicks and ticking noises in the track “I Need” that was easy to hear on the NS-2000As that might be lost on other systems. The album picks up some energy in the last bunch of tracks which are remixes of Sofie’s original songs by some popular electronic bass music artists. The NS-2000As were definitely up for these rowdier versions. In particular, the ‘Think Twice’ remix of “Home” is a wild one and only bares a scant resemblance to the original, but it was a fun listen on the speakers thanks to their surprising deep bass capabilities. In my listen to “Uncanny Valley” on the NS-2000As, Sophie Letitre sounded as good as if not better than I have heard in other listens on this album, and anyone looking for speakers for vocals or electronics ought to give these Yamahas a listen.

For something with a focus on traditional acoustic instruments, I found a terrific new jazz release titled “The Complex Emotions” by The Bad Plus. The Bad Plus is a jazz quartet from Minneapolis formed in 2000 with some members coming and going in the years since. The music is fairly conventional as jazz goes but does have an atmospheric edge due to tenor saxophonist Chris Speed’s playing which sounds like it’s sailing over the waves of rhythm created by the bassist, percussionist, and guitarist, and is reminiscent of Miles Davis. It’s not too busy nor is it slow and the harmony of these players shows a real artistic chemistry at work. I streamed this release from Qobuz in a 96kHz/24-bit resolution.

The first track, “Grid/Oceans,” is such a melodic, soothing track that it is like an aspirin in music form. What a fantastic stress reliever, and it sounded wonderful on the NS-2000As. The saxophone was joined by a mellow electric guitar on a downtempo beat, and all these instruments flowed into each other smoothly, partly as a result of the sound engineering which sounded like it added some processing to soften the sound a bit. The saxophone for many of these tracks sounded soft, which, again, I would attribute to the mix since everything I had heard from the speakers thus far isn’t what I would characterize as soft. In fact, I would say that the NS-2000As are a tad forward if anything. Nonetheless, they jive well with the sound of “The Complex Emotions.” The instruments were all nicely balanced against each other with nothing recessed or overly-emphasized. Another stand-out track is “Carrier,” where Speed’s creamy saxophone floated over a gently bobbing percussion and bass with the guitar adding rich sunset atmosphere to the performance. While each instrument was nicely delineated, the tune as a whole was cohesively presented by the NS-2000As for a unified sound. There is almost something old-fashioned about this sound mix that I wouldn’t call low-fi but rather how the performers were blended together by the recording engineer for a more singular performance. The speakers delivered this unique, fluid sound without the sense that it was adding or subtracting anything. Jazz enthusiasts would certainly find a lot to like about the NS-2000As.

 

To see how the NS-2000A behaves when being stressed, I queued up another new release titled “The Awakening of SIBU” by Jleon. This music comes from the deeper end of dubstep from the Deep, Dark, and Dangerous label. Massive, twisted bass lines are much of the body of this music, but dark atmospheres and an unnerving spirit lie at the heart of it all. At high enough drive levels, the big bass and heavy-duty percussion would surely tax any loudspeaker, so this type of music is great for show-casing the dynamic range of any sound system.

For such elegant-looking speakers, the NS-2000As can rock pretty hard. The two 6.5” bass drivers must have been putting in overtime to shore up the low end in this album, but if they were straining to do so, I wasn’t hearing it. The NS-2000As could get louder than I could tolerate without breaking a sweat. Some of the bass on this album digs pretty deep, such as track 5, “No Way Out.” In-room sweeps showed I was getting strong bass down to 25Hz, which is more than good enough for music recordings except for maybe some very particular niche genres. It was definitely sufficient for this album which again, doesn’t go easy on deep bass. I didn’t miss having a subwoofer playing at all. Track 3, “Dark String Entanglement” had a killer swooping bassline that was great for exhibiting the low-frequency extension as well as low-frequency dynamic range. It sounded great on the NS-2000As. The bass was given some serious muscle, and the kick drums had a palpable punch. Another standout track that made these speakers shine was “Access Denied” with its massive guttural bassline.. I did not expect the Yamahas to be so proficient in bass, but the NS-2000As proved my expectations wrong. However, there are limits to what dual 6.5” bass drivers can do in low-frequencies, so major bassheads will still want to add a subwoofer, but I think that the NS-2000As are more than sufficient for the purposes of typical use. “The Awakening of SIBU” was a blast to hear on these speakers, and it showed they can be used for grimy electronic bass music as well as more delicate and flowery types of music.

Movie Watching

A movie I had been interested in seeing since its announcement was “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Martin Scorsese’s 2023 epic about the murders of Osage tribe members in Oklahoma in the 1920s after extensive oil deposits were found underneath their land. Scorsese’s worst movies are still good ones, and his best movies are masterpieces of the art form. I expected the “Killers of the Flower Moon” movie to fall somewhere in between which meant top-notch film making at the very least. A high profile production like this should have the best sound engineering that money can buy.

“Killers of the Flower Moon” was a rewarding and captivating movie to watch, and that really helped to soften the blow of its three and a half hour runtime. The NS-2000A’s superb reproduction of its sound mix also helped to make such a long movie a pleasure to sit through rather than a chore. The sound mix wasn’t extraordinarily dense or complex, but it did have some interesting artistic decisions, most notably the music score by the late Robbie Robertson. The original score featured Native American music, bluesy jazz, orchestral, and often a mixture of all of the above. It was a riveting score that gave the movie some forward drive, and it sounded full and lively on the NS-2000A speakers. The movie was suffused with music in typical Scorsese fashion, whether it be from the original score or period music from the era of its setting, and it really benefits from a great sound system. Dialogue intelligibility was uniformly excellent even amidst the thick accents and old timey lingo. The occasional effects sounds such as gunshots or an auto race were reproduced with vivacity. Even though I watched this movie with a mere two-channel system, the NS-2000As still managed to give the viewing experience a big screen sound. “Killers of the Flower Moon” deserves to be experienced with a good audio/video system, and I can heartily recommend the NS-2000As as a part of that.

 

For something with a more rambunctious sound mix, I watched “Triple 9,” an action movie about a team of dirty cops who are compelled to do a heist by the mafia that carries an enormous risk. I hadn’t yet seen it, but it’s a major Hollywood movie with an all-star cast which looked to have a lot of shooting and car crashes, material which should be able to show off the dynamic range of the NS-2000A, not to mention a score by Atticus Ross whose distinctive sound design makes him a highly sought after music producer for film and TV scores. I wasn’t expecting greatness, but heist movies tend to be reliably good so long as the story doesn’t become overcomplicated.

“Triple 9” did have a fairly complicated plot that was much more like a murky noir than an action movie, but it never let down on tension, and I enjoyed it. The NS-2000As did what they were supposed to do: disappear. The movie sounded realistic, and I was absorbed by the story and never distracted by any perceived limitation by the loudspeakers. They just did not have any shortcomings that could be exposed by a movie like this, and it wasn’t because the movie had an easy sound mix to reproduce. The speakers were given plenty to do with lots of action and music in the sound mix. The movie starts out with an armed bank robbery in broad daylight, and Atticus Ross’ pulsating score underlined the scene with anxious momentum that made for a gripping scene. The NS-2000As’ full-range and dynamics helped to realize the suspense and made the movie immersive from the opening moments. Later on, a shoot-out between the police and some gang members was made all the more immersive by the sharp pops of gunfire exchange that was intensely depicted by the sound system. Much of the music was diegetic in-scene tunes that gave life to the movie’s setting, Atlanta’s seedy underbelly. It was largely rap music with fat basslines, and the NS-2000As had no trouble giving these tracks a club-like thump. Those who like edgier crime dramas with an ensemble cast will really enjoy “Triple 9,” but it’s a movie best watched with a potent sound system like the Yamaha NS-2000As.

Yamaha NS-2000A Measurements and Analysis

 

The Yamaha NS-2000A Tower was measured in free-air at a height of 4 feet at a 2-meter distance from the microphone, with the microphone raised to an 8’ elevation that was level with and aimed at the tweeter center. The measurements were gated at 8 milliseconds. In this time window, some resolution is lost below 400 Hz, and accuracy is completely lost below 200 Hz. Measurements have been smoothed at a 1/24 octave resolution.

The above graphs depict the Yamaha NS-2000A’s direct-axis and horizontal dispersion out to a 90-degree angle in five-degree increments. Information on how to interpret these graphs can be read in this article: Understanding Loudspeaker Review Measurements Part II.

The first feature about these graphs that leap out is a spike in upper treble centered around 16.5kHz. To those who think this is a serious audible problem, I can assure you that it is not. That is just too high in frequency to have a significant audible penalty. There is not much content that high, and most peoples’ hearing in that range is very insensitive. If anything, it might add a bit more ‘air’ to some recordings for those people who still retain some hearing in that range. What is of much more consequence is how recessed the midrange is. Around the on-axis response, it looks like the midrange is down nearly 5dB from the tweeter. That should be pretty audible. As we move off-axis, the tweeter’s level goes down considerably relative to the off-axis angle. In my own listening, I didn’t notice an especially hot tweeter, but I did not have the speakers angled to face the listening position. I did feel the treble was crisp but not quite sibilant. Having such a recessed midrange seems to be a strange decision, because the Xylon midrange is what makes the NS-2000A special in Yamaha’s NS line-up outside of the NS-5000A. It’s almost like the midrange is slightly padded down in the crossover circuit. I have to think Yamaha deliberately voiced these speakers this way because it would be very easy to level-match the midrange driver in the crossover circuit; so why didn’t they do it? I can’t blame Yamaha too much for that since I thought the speakers sounded good, but again, I didn’t have them angled on-axis to face the listening position. At an on-axis angle, that tweeter has to be pretty spicy. The tweeter itself is pretty well-behaved throughout its bandwidth until we get to that upper-treble spike. I am not sure what is causing that spike, and I don’t think it’s a break-up mode since it’s not retained off-axis.

 

The above polar map shows the same information as the preceding graphs but depicts it in a way that can offer new insight regarding these speakers’ behavior. Instead of using individual raised lines to illustrate amplitude, polar maps use color to portray amplitude, and this allows the use of a purely angle/frequency axis perspective. The advantage of these graphs is they can let us see broader trends of the speaker’s dispersion behavior more easily. More information about interpreting this graph can be read in this article: Understanding Loudspeaker Measurements Part II.

The polar map of the NS-2000A looks like a rook chess piece turned over on its side. One interesting aspect on this graph to note is how the tweeter holds a fairly constant level of off-axis energy out to nearly 20Khz. If I had to guess, I would say that this is the reason for the tweeter’s boosted on-axis level; Yamaha was more concerned about the tweeter’s dispersion than its on-axis response. Most dome tweeters start to narrow their dispersion in higher frequencies, very often around 10kHz. The narrowing of dispersion is called beaming, and this tweeter doesn’t do that at all. However, were the on-axis response linear all the way to the top, the off-axis would definitely constrict and have a narrower angle of acoustic output to the top. So the trade-off that must be decided for the designer is to have a hot on-axis upper treble with smooth off-axis upper treble or to have a smooth on-axis upper treble with recessed off-axis treble. What makes all the difference here is how the speakers are going to be set up; will they be facing the listener or will they be facing ahead in parallel lines? Since most people angle the speakers to simply face straight ahead, I think that Yamaha might have made the right call here, although all of this happens in such a high frequency band that this is nearly an academic matter rather than anything of real-world consequence.

In the graph, we also get a look at the recessed midrange. If Yamaha had only boosted the midrange output by about 3dB, they would have very good directivity matching with the tweeter as well as a flatter response over all angles. I don’t understand why they didn’t do this; it would have been a more textbook perfect speaker. Given the midrange’s dispersion, I wouldn’t listen to these speakers past a 40-degree angle, not that many people would listen at such a far off-axis angle.

 

In this graph, we get a closer look at a few of the responses of the NS-2000A over some horizontal angles. Here we can see how the treble starts to calm down at off-axis angles. At the on-axis response (0 degrees), the treble is quite hot relative to the midrange, but at a 30-degree angle, it is only slightly elevated. A 30-degree angle would be around where many listeners would be seated relative to the speakers if they are facing straight forward in parallel aim. Yamaha suggests only a slight toe-in for the NS-2000As, but I would say just face them for a perpendicular angle off the back wall unless you like spicy treble.

 

In the above graph, we get a look at the NS-2000A’s frequency responses per vertical angle. This speaker is best listened at tweeter height or maybe just above tweeter height, because it doesn’t take long before phase cancellation starts having effects on the vertical axis responses. This is the penalty of having high crossover frequencies between the drivers without having very close center-to-center spacing between them. There is a relatively narrow window of vertical angles that the tweeter will play nice with the midrange driver. With a 39” height, the tweeter isn’t mounted especially high, so this shouldn’t be a problem for most listeners, but those with low-slung seating might want to pass on these speakers.

 

The above graph shows the NS-2000A’s low-frequency response captured using ground plane measurements (where the speaker and microphone are on the ground at a 2-meter distance in a wide-open area). In this graph, we see a fairly well-controlled bass response with a slight tapering of output as frequencies go down to port tuning which is around 30Hz. Below port tuning, the response dives at the expected fourth-order rolloff. In my room, I had a pretty strong response down to a bit below 30Hz, and I do not benefit from a whole lot of room gain. These speakers have a relatively powerful bass response, and most users will not feel the need for subwoofers to compliment them.

 

The above graph shows the electrical behavior of the NS-2000As. Yamaha specifies these speakers to be a 6-ohm speaker with a 3.5-ohm minima. I would just consider them to be a 4-ohm speaker. This is not an excruciating electrical load for amps nor is it totally undemanding. A competent amplifier will be needed, but users won’t need a super-amp. Yamaha’s own R-N2000A would be pretty sweet to pair with these speakers, but the R-N1000A would work just fine as well.

I measured the NS-2000A’s sensitivity to be 87.5dB for 1 meter at 2.83v, and this is pretty close to Yamaha’s own spec of 88dB for 1 meter at 2.83v. This is pretty typical for a loudspeaker of this design. The NS-2000A’s dig deep but they aren’t huge, and that naturally takes a toll on sensitivity. This isn’t particularly a sensitive speaker nor is it unusually insensitive. Users won’t need a monster amp for the NS-2000As to get loud, not that they could handle monster levels of wattage with a 200 watt maximum input power spec.

Yamaha NS-2000A Conclusion

Before bringing this review to an end, I will briefly go over the strengths and weaknesses of the product under evaluation, and, as always, I will start with the weaknesses. While I quite enjoyed the Yamaha NS-2000A speakers, they are not perfect. I only have one gripe, and I should stress that my main gripe is not something that I felt was a major detriment in listening but is rather something that crops up in acoustic measurements, and it is the recessed midrange. For the way I had the speakers set up, I would say that resulted in a slightly crisp treble, but if you toe the speakers to face the listening position directly, the recessed midrange/elevated treble stands out a lot more. I would advise listeners to position the speakers to face outward in a parallel orientation so that they have a perpendicular angle to the back wall. Once that is done, the sound coheres very nicely, and that brings us to one of the NS-2000A’s many strengths, namely, its sound quality.

When correctly situated, the NS-2000A gave a great presentation to everything I listened to. Orchestral music, pop music, jazz, electronic, metal: as with all great speakers, it is indifferent to genre. The treble was crisp without becoming sibilant, the bass was strong, and the midrange was smooth. Those who want a warm speaker will probably want to look elsewhere, although I would not characterize the treble as ‘hot’ but rather a tad forward. I think the vast majority of buyers will be greatly pleased with the sound it produces. The soundstage was wide and expansive yet the imaging was precise. The bass extension digs down to below 30Hz which negates the need for a subwoofer unless you are looking at them for heavy-duty home theater or the rare music genres that dig into super deep bass. They could get loud without breaking a sweat, so users looking for something that can do wide dynamics have a great choice in the NS-2000As.

Outside of the NS-2000A’s superb sound quality, there is its gorgeous appearance and rock-solid build quality. These speakers have an unimpeachable styling that would easily fit in any interior decors, even very high-end interiors. They have a luxury look and feel, and I don’t at all question their $8k/pair price tag; you unquestionably get your money’s worth. Though they are not huge floor-standing speakers, picking them up is not a breezy task because they have some real mass. A knock test reveals a fairly inert enclosure. Even the binding posts are impressive. They are luxury products but not overpriced ones. They are built to last and could easily be heirloom items if cared for in long-term ownership.

Yamaha vs the Competition

At their pricing, the NS-2000As have a lot of competition for worthwhile floor-standing speakers, so let’s mention a few of them. There is the PSB Synchrony T600, which, if the Synchrony B600 is anything to go by, is sure to be a good speaker. Arendal has their new 1528 Tower 8. It sounds terrific in our experience, however it is enormous and weighs a ton, even compared to the NS-2000As. They will surely have a wider dynamic range and more powerful bass, but their sheer size and weight will make them a no-go for many shoppers in this segment. The Perlisten R5t has an $8k/pair pricing, and while we didn’t review those, we did cover their bigger brothers, the R7t which we found to be an excellent loudspeaker. We recommend watching our friend Shane Lee's comparison review Youtube video between the Yamaha NS-2000A and Perlisten R5t on this channel for further insights.

Perlisten’s build quality would be on the level of the Yamahas, and it probably would not be as particular about placement for a smooth sound. Revel has the PerformaBe F226Be speakers which are the typically solid offering from them. We gave them high marks in our review. The Yamaha has a better build quality, but the Revels have a more consistent response coverage, so they also shouldn’t be as particular about placement in order to get a great sound. RBH Sound has the 8300 SF/R which is sure to be a great speaker, especially for when you really want a wide dynamic range and very powerful bass. There are other reliably good options in the same class from the usual array of established brands such as Bowers & Wilkins, KEF, Sonus Faber, Dali, and Paradigm that have all their own individual strengths, and shoppers in this segment will have to do their homework to see what fits their criteria best.

 

Yamaha has their devotees who will surely be interested in the NS-2000As, but I am not sure how many audiophiles will be considering them along with the usual slew of high-end speaker brands. It would be a shame to dismiss them simply because Yamaha isn’t as known as a high-end loudspeaker manufacturer as they are an audio high-end electronics manufacturer. Yamaha has produced a terrific loudspeaker that sounds great and may be the nicest-looking speakers in their segment. These speakers belong by the sides of Yamaha’s exquisite musical instruments for which they are so renowned. I urge audio enthusiasts to give them an audition; the NS-2000As are sure to end up in more audio enthusiast’s homes as more people give them a listen.

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

• — Excellent
• — Very Good
• — Good
• — Fair
• — Poor

Metric	Rating
Build Quality
Appearance
Treble Extension
Treble Smoothness
Midrange Accuracy
Bass Extension
Bass Accuracy
Imaging
Dynamic Range
Fit and Finish
Performance
Value