After a surround sound system that is spouse-friendly as well? Yamaha may have the solution for you!

When I heard about the release of the Yamaha YSP-1 a few months back, I wasn’t too sure what to think. A ‘Digital Sound Projector’? What exactly is meant by that? The concept of the YSP-1 is certainly a unique and intriguing one, and I was curious to see and hear what this little one-box wonder had to offer.

So what is a ‘Digital Sound Projector’ and how does it work? Well, in the words of Yamaha:

‘The YSP-1 applies sophisticated Digital Sound Projection Technology to precisely control the direction and delay of sound. By focusing sounds into ‘beams’ and controlling the speaker delay times, the YSP-1 creates direct and reflected sound waves, simulating the effect of additional speakers throughout the room.’

In other words, this cool-looking device will deliver surround sound without the need for extra speakers.

This pseudo surround sound effect created by the YSP-1 is achieved with the help of 42 digital amplifiers which drive forty 4cm drivers, and two 11cm mid-bass drivers, all of which are contained in this one unit. And while this array of drivers certainly looks impressive when the front grill is removed, the YSP-1 looks considerably more sleek and unobtrusive when the grill is screwed back on

The YSP-1 is a little larger in the flesh than I originally imagined, which is not a bad thing. It measures 1030mm wide, 194mm high and 118mm deep. If you compare this against the dimensions of Yamaha’s 106cm PDM-4210 plasma monitor, you’ll see that their respective widths are exactly the same. Is that to say that the YSP-1 will look good if it is only bundled with Yamaha’s own plasma? No, not at all, because the silver and black colour scheme of the YSP-1 allows it to blend with any plasma screen, whether it is black or silver or a combination of both.

The YSP-1 can be mounted on a wall directly above or below a wall-mounted plasma or LCD, sit by itself atop a robust TV, or be placed on a TV/entertainment stand. The necessary bracket to mount the YSP-1 is $149. When in place the YSP-1 looks like a rather large centre speaker, and weighs in at a substantial 13kg - not surprising considering the technology that is packed into it.

Basic control buttons – power on/off, input selection, and volume up and down - are located on the front right of the unit, and in the lower centre of the YSP-1 is an LCD readout that provides information such as input selected and volume level. The connections on the back of the unit are basic and also a bit unusual. The unit has the standard digital decoders on board (Dolby Digital, DTS , Pro Logic II and DTS Neo:6), so you can connect a digital source (DVD, Digital Set Top Box etc) without having to run through an A/V Receiver. Two optical digital and one coaxial digital inputs are provided, as well as two analogue inputs and subwoofer pre-out.

If you happen to run out of audio inputs on the YSP-1, you can run all your audio inputs into your A/V receiver, and then output these audio signals from your A/V receiver into the YSP-1 (provided you have audio output connections on your A/V receiver.) A composite video output is also provided to connect a TV or display device, so the on-screen menu of the YSP-1 can be viewed. The on-screen menu is basic in appearance but well set out and intuitive. The remote control that comes packaged with the unit is logical in its button placement and is quick to master. It can be programmed to control major brands of DVD and VCR players, as well as TVs.

For this review the YSP-1 was simply connected up to a DVD player (Yamaha DVD-S1500) via optical digital. The YSP-1 does without any video inputs, so video connections have to be made directly to your TV/display device or through your A/V receiver. The YSP-1 does not come packaged with a subwoofer, so a Yamaha YST-SW515 (RRP $899) stepped in to perform bass duties.

Setting up the YSP-1 can be as simple or as complicated as you like. Using the supplied remote control to access the on-screen menu, you can choose between ‘Easy Setup’ and ‘Manual Setup.’ The ‘Easy Setup’ takes only a couple of minutes and requires you to set three basic parameters – room type, room size and speaker position. ‘Manual Setup’ allows for extensive sound customization including room EQ, Beam Tone and Beam Adjust.

Starting my listening session using the ‘Easy Setup’ route, stereo listening was first on the menu. Selecting the ‘Stereo Beam Mode’ on the YSP-1’s remote control, I settled down to listen to my usual array of test CDs. What struck me first was the wide sound stage that was being produced – voices and instruments came through clearly, with acoustics tracks including piano and violin sounding surprisingly clean. Musical timing was also spot on, with the complex, multilayered beat of Arrested Development’s ‘Fishin’ for Religion’ sounding natural and forward, as it would through a decent set of stereo loudspeakers.

Upper and lower middle frequencies are also convincingly reproduced, with the 2 mid-bass drivers on either side of the YSP-1 combining with the smaller multiple drivers to reproduce the voices of Keith Urban and Martina McBride in a very natural manner. One thing that the YSP-1 can’t do is reproduce lower bass convincingly. Granted, it is a tall order to expect the YSP-1 to produce decent bass considering the size and lack of decent size drivers. It is interesting to note, however, that Yamaha describes the drivers of the YSP-1 as ‘full-range’. Um…..me no think so… But not to worry – the YSP-1 has a subwoofer output so a decent subwoofer can be added to fill that bass void.

CD listening soon gave way to some DVDs, and lets face it, that’s what most people will probably use the YSP-1 for. A DVD that I have used for demonstration purposes for some time now is Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. I don’t think I have heard a more complex surround sound mix that contains such brute force one minute, and yet understated detail with uncanny effects placement in the next moment. If you want to know how good a surround soundtrack can be, rent or buy this movie! Placing the YSP-1 in ‘5 Beam Mode’ for surround sound, the intricacies of this soundtrack was reproduced surprisingly well. The ultimate test in Master and Commander comes about 8 minutes into the movie, where a 19^th century warship comes under cannon ball fire from another vessel. The sound of the cannons being fired and their subsequent impact sounds and feels both thrilling and terrifying.

Initially I was a little disappointed with the amount of surround ambience that the YSP-1 created in this scene, but after spending ten to fifteen minutes tweaking various parameters in the ‘Manual Setup’, surround activity and effects placement proved to be more convincing. Pulling back the curtains in the room to expose the hard surface of glass windows seemingly allowed better sound reflection, improving the sound experience. Another DVD taken for a spin was Daredevil – this DVD takes a very unique approach to surround sound, and the YSP-1 was once again up to task of delivering a convincing front sound stage that blended seamlessly with rear effects.

In the past few months several people have come into the store asking if we have anything in the way of wireless surround sound speakers, and up until recently my answer has been a flat-out ‘nope’. But with the YSP-1 now available, my answer to that question will now go something like ‘no we don’t, but let me show you something that will give you surround sound with no rear speakers at all!’

I was originally a little skeptical about how the YSP-1 would perform before I heard it. I have listened to similar systems that use reflection technology to replace traditional rear speakers and have not been overly impressed. But the YSP-1 is different. Its performance with both CDs and DVDs was greater than expected, and although you do have to spend some time adjusting parameters to optimize performance, the payoff in improved sound makes the process worthwhile. How worthwhile? Well, you have to admit it’s pretty cool when you swear you heard a bullet fly past you from behind, but you turn around to see that there is no speaker actually making that sound. Just add a subwoofer, or use your existing one, and the music and movie experience will be even greater.

The YSP-1 is a large step forward in the way we listen to music and movies. It will not quite match the sonic abilities of a $2,500 discrete five speaker surround sound package, but will outperform those small home-theatre-in-a-box systems. Many of you may not have the space or like the clutter associated with having multiple speakers, so where a traditional 5.1 speaker system is impractical or aesthetically unappealing, the YSP-1 provides an ideal solution. It looks good, sounds good, and gives you convincing surround sound from a single unit.

Product: Yamaha YSP-1 Digital Sound Projector

Website: www.yamaha.com.au