Yamaha to deliver AirPlay 2 support to 14 home audio products in April

AppleInsider

The audio arm of Japanese conglomerate Yamaha on Monday announced upcoming integration with Apple's AirPlay 2, saying 14 products will support the streaming protocol as part of a software update later this month.

In a press release, Yamaha says a range of wireless speakers, AV receivers and a sound bar will gain AirPlay 2 compatibility with a firmware update due for release in late April.

The company's MusicCast 20 and MusicCast 50 wireless speakers, MusicCast BAR 400 sound bar, RX-A 80 Series AV receivers, RX-V 85 Series AV receivers, RX-S602 slimline AV receiver, ATS-4080 sound bar, TSR-7850 AV receiver, CX-A5200 AV preamp/processor and XDA-QS5400 MusicCast Multi-Room Streaming Amplifier are set to receive the upgrade. Yamaha's MusicCast VINYL 500 turntable will net AirPlay 2 capabilities in the second half of 2019, according to the release.

Yamaha on AirPlay 2 support:

Support for Apple AirPlay 2, adding the ability to stream Apple Music and other streaming services from your iPhone, iPad, HomePod and Mac to multiple Yamaha devices and other AirPlay 2-enabled speakers - simultaneously, perfectly in sync and throughout your home. And, with Siri on your iPhone, iPad, HomePod and AirPods, you can control what's playing in every part of your home with just your voice.

In addition to AirPlay 2, Yamaha's pending firmware update will bring Qobuz high-res streaming services and Spotify Connect for free accounts to the hardware listed above.

Yamaha also said an April 16 update to its MusicCast app will deliver Actions on Google support to all MusicCast models released since 2015. The new integration allows users to issue voice commands to MusicCast hardware via Google Home, Android or iOS devices.

ihatescreennames

I’m happy to see more manufacturers getting on board. Hopefully this pushes Integra to give us an update for AirPlay 2. 

cgwerks

Based on my experience with my last (and probably my last one ever) AV receiver (an HTR-5890)... I'd say avoid them, and Yamaha. It was a piece of junk, though not quite to the extent that the Kenwood prior to it was (but at least the Yamaha didn't spend most of its life in the repair shop... guess I should be grateful?).

bestkeptsecret

Why would a turntable need Airplay support? Does it stream to connected speakers that do not support speakers?

fatman

Yes! Yamaha tends to be quiet about these updates and then surprises you with an announcement like this. The 1080 is a great receiver - works well with Apple TV, Dolby Vision, Atmos and now eArc and AirPlay2 (AirPlay currently works fine on its own, but with some latency issues when used with multiple devices). Built like a tank with great components - detailed & clean sound and uses new artificial intelligence to auto manage the multitude of audio formats out there. Unfortunately physics doesn’t allow them to make a high quality multi-channel amp that is compact - this thing weighs over 30lbs! Yamaha is a great brand - I own a fantastic Yamaha bass guitar and a 10yr old mixer - dependable and great sounding!

edited April 2019

gregoriusm

bestkeptsecret said:

Why would a turntable need Airplay support? Does it stream to connected speakers that do not support speakers?

Yes. Stream directly from the turntable to powered wireless Yamaha MusicCast speakers without needing an amplifier. 

edited April 2019

jcs2305

cgWerks said:

Based on my experience with my last (and probably my last one ever) AV receiver (an HTR-5890)... I'd say avoid them, and Yamaha. It was a piece of junk, though not quite to the extent that the Kenwood prior to it was (but at least the Yamaha didn't spend most of its life in the repair shop... guess I should be grateful?).

I have had the opposite experience with Yamaha.  Last receiver lasted me 8 years and now is powering  a 5.1 system I put in my father's house. Got a new model of Yamaha for Christmas and it works very well for my home system. It is also is my first airplay receiver.. Airplay works very well from our phones or ipads.  Only issue I have ever had was the HDMI handshake occasionally not working correctly, and giving a purple screen instead of what the input should properly show. Realized that as long as I power the receiver on before the TV this issue didn't occur. 

hmurchison

Airplay ALL the things! 

I wonder if any enhancements to Airplay are coming at WWDC for instance multichannel support. 

strangedays

Kewl, but I too have retired my 7.1 channel receiver. I spent some coin on the receiver and Anthony Gallo speakers and sub, but it's just too much stuff now. Wiring, positioning, a hutch to keep it in, etc... I've got two HomePods now, which blend right in the room, no cabinets of hardware, wiring, etc.. I'm sure receivers will be loved by audiophiles for years to come, but for me as a normal guy, wireless HPs hooked up to an Apple TV hit the sweet spot. Movies and music, plus AirPlay. I'm set.

mustseeuhdtv

I'd like Airplay 2 on receivers to do video, but that would probably hurt Apple TV....

applezulu

So is this a two-way proposition? I have one of the AV receivers scheduled for the upgrade from Airplay to Airplay 2. I get that this means I can cause what's playing on the HomePod in another room to also play on the AV receiver. Does it also mean that if I'm playing a vinyl LP on a turntable that's attached to the AV receiver that I will be able to send that audio out to the HomePod in the other room?

edited April 2019

mistergsf

cgWerks said:

Based on my experience with my last (and probably my last one ever) AV receiver (an HTR-5890)... I'd say avoid them, and Yamaha. It was a piece of junk, though not quite to the extent that the Kenwood prior to it was (but at least the Yamaha didn't spend most of its life in the repair shop... guess I should be grateful?).

As with anything you buy these days, you're bound to get a lemon out of the bunch. I've owned Onkyo, Yamaha, and Marantz AVRs of the higher end of their lines and have had only one bad experience with a Yamaha that had a faulty HDMI port. I returned it and got a replacement and never had an issue again. Also, Yamaha and Marantz have 3-years warrantees. I've been lucky, knock wood. Now, can we talk about my pain in the ass awful LG washer and dryer?

hmurchison

AppleZulu said:

So is this a two-way proposition? I have one of the AV receivers scheduled for the upgrade from Airplay to Airplay 2. I get that this means I can cause what's playing on the HomePod in another room to also play on the AV receiver. Does it also mean that if I'm playing a vinyl LP on a turntable that's attached to the AV receiver that I will be able to send that audio out to the HomePod in the other room?

Yes you should be able to send audio to the Yamaha from another Siri/HomeKit device ...I'm not sure about rebroadcasting as that's a sticking point with some multi-room system. 

cgwerks

jcs2305 said:
I have had the opposite experience with Yamaha.  Last receiver lasted me 8 years and now is powering  a 5.1 system I put in my father's house. Got a new model of Yamaha for Christmas and it works very well for my home system. It is also is my first airplay receiver.. Airplay works very well from our phones or ipads.  Only issue I have ever had was the HDMI handshake occasionally not working correctly, and giving a purple screen instead of what the input should properly show. Realized that as long as I power the receiver on before the TV this issue didn't occur.  

Well, it didn't break, I'll give it that. Part of it is, I think, that I just don't like multi-channel AV type units. Too many bells and whistles competing against quality for the dollar. The features also seem to get out of date quite quickly, as AV tech changes so quickly.

But, my main issues with the unit specifically, is that a number of things were just poorly thought out or implemented. Like when the unit was powered on, it would turn on all the channels, whether they were in use or not (which made it run hot and used a lot of electricity). There was no way to save the state/setup. The menu systems for setting it all up were horrific.

I also just didn't think the sound was that great. I primarily bought it (or went Yamaha over competitors) because I had a friend who seemed to know audio stuff who swore by the brand. He was more into component stuff, though, so maybe it is more an AV receiver thing in general. It listed a lot of power and good specs, but just didn't seem to have much umphf.

What is interesting, is that years ago, I inherited a HK with something like 13 or 17 watts per channel (which I should have repaired when all the knobs went bad)... and I think I still compare everything against that thing. I've had several amps that claim 100+ watts per channel that simply don't compare.

re: handshaking - I think you can actually get programmable power strips that turn components on in a certain order for just that kind of thing. Not sure if that would be worth it to you, but might be worth looking into.

StrangeDays said:

Kewl, but I too have retired my 7.1 channel receiver. I spent some coin on the receiver and Anthony Gallo speakers and sub, but it's just too much stuff now. Wiring, positioning, a hutch to keep it in, etc... I've got two HomePods now, which blend right in the room, no cabinets of hardware, wiring, etc.. I'm sure receivers will be loved by audiophiles for years to come, but for me as a normal guy, wireless HPs hooked up to an Apple TV hit the sweet spot. Movies and music, plus AirPlay. I'm set.

Heh, maybe I'm just getting old, but I'm kind of there too. I've been debating between something like a HomePod or two, and some kind of sound-bar or modest speaker setup at the TV (if the HomePod had audio-in, it would probably win the contest). I'm kind of done with the surround-sound stuff, as either I just never spent enough (ie: $1k+), or just don't care for it all that much.

Maybe someday if build a house with a dedicated area (unlikely), I'd look into it again. But, I think if I ever do get another good 'stereo' system, it will be just that. A good amp, with a couple good speakers. It's sad that as advanced as technology has gotten, I don't think all the money I've spent over the years has ever matched the mostly hand-me-down setup I had as a teenager.

mistergsf said:
As with anything you buy these days, you're bound to get a lemon out of the bunch. I've owned Onkyo, Yamaha, and Marantz AVRs of the higher end of their lines and have had only one bad experience with a Yamaha that had a faulty HDMI port. I returned it and got a replacement and never had an issue again. Also, Yamaha and Marantz have 3-years warrantees. I've been lucky, knock wood. Now, can we talk about my pain in the ass awful LG washer and dryer?

Yeah, aside from actual problem-problems (like breaking), I'm also talking about the overall quality, especially sound quality. I've now had a few $500+ AVRs and not been happy with any of them. I'm currently without much of anything (after we sold our house and moved), aside from computer speakers and those in the TV. I'm not sure I can stand this much longer either... but I doubt I'm going back to any kind of AVR. Probably just an amp and speakers, and probably some studio-monitors (like I used to have but smaller) or something kind of like that for my computer setup. I tend to use headphones mostly anymore anyway, as the family members seem to want to listen to their own content.

What's sad, is that I'm not sure my wife or son have ever even heard a good (as in not even audiophile, but just reasonably good) stereo system, and they don't seem to really care to have one. I kind of miss those room-filling days of good sound from speakers with 12"+ speakers. (That said, I once had some Infinity bookshelf speakers that people who came to visit would never believe were the source of the sound... they always thought I had some bigger speakers hidden somewhere  ).

And yeah, overall product quality is just sad in many cases. You get even pricy appliances or furniture and it's just crap-built. There are some exceptions, but that seems to be the norm. Or, if you've done any building or remodeling... the quality of building supplies. Yikes!

fatman

cgWerks said:

Based on my experience with my last (and probably my last one ever) AV receiver (an HTR-5890)... I'd say avoid them, and Yamaha. It was a piece of junk, though not quite to the extent that the Kenwood prior to it was (but at least the Yamaha didn't spend most of its life in the repair shop... guess I should be grateful?).

The HTR model you mention is a 14 year old pre-HDMI receiver -- I don't think I need to say more than that. The modern Yamaha Aventage series is a good, mid-level, 'prosumer' choice. The chassis is solid and the components (capacitors, transformers, ICs) are higher quality grade. Buy the ~$1,000 model. The cheaper stuff is often junk/omits key features, and uses lower spec'd DACs.

cgwerks

Fatman said:
The HTR model you mention is a 14 year old pre-HDMI receiver -- I don't think I need to say more than that. The modern Yamaha Aventage series is a good, mid-level, 'prosumer' choice. The chassis is solid and the components (capacitors, transformers, ICs) are higher quality grade. Buy the ~$1,000 model. The cheaper stuff is often junk/omits key features, and uses lower spec'd DACs.

Yeah, though I bought it when it was new. And, the Kenwood before that. I'm not sure how HDMI will fix things (aside from being more useful). I don't think the DACs were the issue. And, if I were going to spend $1000+, I'd just go separate components.

Ultimately, I guess I've just decided to ditch the AVR fad, as I just don't have need for any of that stuff anymore. I just wish I'd saved the money over the years trying.

hmurchison

cgWerks said:

Fatman said:
The HTR model you mention is a 14 year old pre-HDMI receiver -- I don't think I need to say more than that. The modern Yamaha Aventage series is a good, mid-level, 'prosumer' choice. The chassis is solid and the components (capacitors, transformers, ICs) are higher quality grade. Buy the ~$1,000 model. The cheaper stuff is often junk/omits key features, and uses lower spec'd DACs.

Yeah, though I bought it when it was new. And, the Kenwood before that. I'm not sure how HDMI will fix things (aside from being more useful). I don't think the DACs were the issue. And, if I were going to spend $1000+, I'd just go separate components.

Ultimately, I guess I've just decided to ditch the AVR fad, as I just don't have need for any of that stuff anymore. I just wish I'd saved the money over the years trying.

The industry realizes this as well.  The AVR market is shrinking rapidly in favor of Active Speakers.  We're just waiting for a Dolby Atmos capable Wireless system.  Wifi networks are almost ready 

cgwerks

hmurchison said:
The industry realizes this as well.  The AVR market is shrinking rapidly in favor of Active Speakers.  We're just waiting for a Dolby Atmos capable Wireless system.  Wifi networks are almost ready 

Thanks, yeah, that would certainly help in terms of the reality for most people. It's too much work/expense unless you're setting up a full-fledged theatre room.

But, for me, we'll probably just go with a sound-bar at some point (assuming that can fix the dialog issue in movies and TV shows) to improve the TV sound, and then I'll just get a good amp and pair of speakers again. I just have little want for surround sound, especially if it isn't all that great (and especially compromises the 'stereo system' in terms of music).

edited May 2019