Yamaha DSP Z7 or RXV3900 Is it worth the EXTRA money

[Anonymous]

After reading this forum, I just could not help, but register and participate in the disscussion. Firstly Yamaha should not make such comments about a unit being expensive (so there won't be any problems) If they are cheap ! (then you will expect problems) Lame escuse for a respectable company. Secondly the RXV 3900 and the RX Z 7 are not that cheap either, They cost between S$3000-S$3500 between them. Transformerbc was spot on !! because I purchased the same model the RXV 3900, and had the same problem. It's not a soft pop sound mind you " It's loud when the volume is cranked up. Do these engineers want something big to happen ? and then get on to it ?? Too late isn't it. What logic is this ? cheaper sets will give minor problems, and expesive ones ( no problem ) because they are flagship models ? Dealers in the far east had encountered this problem, and Yamaha Japan has acknowledged it when a report was sent to them, and they are working on it at this moment to solve the matter. Thirdly I have been a subscriber to WHAT HI - FI magazine since the mid nineties, mainly because of the publishing editor whose comments were without prejudice and diplomatic ( Rahiel nasir and Andy Clough ) respectively. They never slammed down a consumer accusing him or her of being speculative. They always gave the consumer the benifit of the doubt, until thourough investigations were carried out by the respective manufacturers. [EDITED BY MODS - PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK OTHER FORUM MEMBERS]

Finally the DSP Z11 is of a higher quality in sound as far as the Audio is concerned, which to some may be a little tamer than the aggressive RXV 3900. Bigger transformer, better chips, more speaker terminals, bigger capacitors etc. But the DSP modes should work on the same principal isn't it ??????? After all it is Yamaha's patent.....no 5,261,005.

 

[Anonymous]

Ashkelon,

Can you please explain how to replicate the "pop" sound so that we can try and replicate the "problem"? Do I need to crank up the volume to very loud levels to hear the "pop" sound?

How did you get the "pop" sound fixed in your unit?

 

[Clare Newsome]

I'm sure Yamaha would want to extend the same offer to Ashkelon as to Transformer BC - ie let us know where you bought the product so they can isolate any potential issues; as mentioned above, they're also willing to send a technician directly.

At present they remain unaware - despite contacting Japanese engineers - of any reported problems.

 

[Gerrardasnails]

ashkelon:
After reading this forum, I just could not help, but register and participate in the disscussion. Firstly Yamaha should not make such comments about a unit being expensive (so there won't be any problems) If they are cheap ! (then you will expect problems) Lame escuse for a respectable company. Secondly the RXV 3900 and the RX Z 7 are not that cheap either, They cost between S$3000-S$3500 between them. Transformerbc was spot on !! because I purchased the same model the RXV 3900, and had the same problem. It's not a soft pop sound mind you " It's loud when the volume is cranked up. Do these engineers want something big to happen ? and then get on to it ?? Too late isn't it. What logic is this ? cheaper sets will give minor problems, and expesive ones ( no problem ) because they are flagship models ? Dealers in the far east had encountered this problem, and Yamaha Japan has acknowledged it when a report was sent to them, and they are working on it at this moment to solve the matter. Thirdly I have been a subscriber to WHAT HI - FI magazine since the mid nineties, mainly because of the publishing editor whose comments were without prejudice and diplomatic ( Rahiel nasir and Andy Clough ) respectively. They never slammed down a consumer accusing him or her of being speculative. They always gave the consumer the benifit of the doubt, until thourough investigations were carried out by the respective manufacturers. [EDITED BY MODS - PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK OTHER FORUM MEMBERS]

Finally the DSP Z11 is of a higher quality in sound as far as the Audio is concerned, which to some may be a little tamer than the aggressive RXV 3900. Bigger transformer, better chips, more speaker terminals, bigger capacitors etc. But the DSP modes should work on the same principal isn't it ??????? After all it is Yamaha's patent.....no 5,261,005.

ashkelon are you Transformerbc in (bad) disguise? Or are you just one of the "unlucky" ones/two?!

 

[Andrew Everard]

ashkelon:
After reading this forum, I just could not help, but register and participate in the disscussion. Firstly Yamaha should not make such comments about a unit being expensive (so there won't be any problems) If they are cheap ! (then you will expect problems) Lame escuse for a respectable company. Secondly the RXV 3900 and the RX Z 7 are not that cheap either, They cost between S$3000-S$3500 between them. Transformerbc was spot on !! because I purchased the same model the RXV 3900, and had the same problem. It's not a soft pop sound mind you " It's loud when the volume is cranked up. Do these engineers want something big to happen ? and then get on to it ?? Too late isn't it. What logic is this ? cheaper sets will give minor problems, and expesive ones ( no problem ) because they are flagship models ? Dealers in the far east had encountered this problem, and Yamaha Japan has acknowledged it when a report was sent to them, and they are working on it at this moment to solve the matter. Thirdly I have been a subscriber to WHAT HI - FI magazine since the mid nineties, mainly because of the publishing editor whose comments were without prejudice and diplomatic ( Rahiel nasir and Andy Clough ) respectively. They never slammed down a consumer accusing him or her of being speculative. They always gave the consumer the benifit of the doubt, until thourough investigations were carried out by the respective manufacturers. [EDITED BY MODS - PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK OTHER FORUM MEMBERS]

Finally the DSP Z11 is of a higher quality in sound as far as the Audio is concerned, which to some may be a little tamer than the aggressive RXV 3900. Bigger transformer, better chips, more speaker terminals, bigger capacitors etc. But the DSP modes should work on the same principal isn't it ??????? After all it is Yamaha's patent.....no 5,261,005.

First time posters who come in with all guns blazing and quoting manufacturer's patents- don't you love 'em...?

 

[Anonymous]

EDITED BY MODS - please do not discuss moderation

The other thing is: just because I brought this matter up, you think I must be transformer in disguise. How shallow can one be !! by accusing another person being the same. ( very very shallow indeed ) Anyone who is intelligent enough would know that I am not going to get anything out of this. Secondly my amp has not been fixed yet ? Also There may be others in this part of the world who may have faced the same problem. Think globally, and not being narrow minded in a world of your own and insensitive to others. An education in geography is the key word. Probably not many consumers in UK and Europe are that sophisticated in their application in using the AV Amp, unlike the excellant designers these countries have produced in HI-Fidelity.

EDITED BY MODS for racist language are ahead in the AV field (especially Yamaha ) so they know better than anyone else. I call a spade spade and thats it.

As a matter of fact I am getting a refund for my machine.

I am just wondering why ?? you are so protective ?? and not facing the facts, when it's a genuine complain. No one in his right frame of mind would bring up this glitch if it did not exist.!!!!!! Dealers themselves are finding difficulty in explaining to consumers. A wise man faces facts, only a fool will deny it. Good journalism doesn't exist anymore, but only for personal gains.

 

[Andrew Everard]

In tomorrow's How to win friends and influence people...

 

[Anonymous]

EDITED BY MODS - please do not discuss moderation

 

[Anonymous]

Well ! we will leave it at that !!!!! many thanks for your time.

Appreciatively

Ashkelon

 

[Clare Newsome]

As with any reported problems with products, we seek to find answers and hopefully solutions - it's good consumer journalism.

In this case, Yamaha has provided both an opinion and a direct offer of help, yet neither yourself nor Transformer BC has chosen to respond - instead you've continued to attack us and other members of this site.

Please could you let me know whether you'd like to respond to Yamaha's offer?

In that way you could get answers to both your own problem and potentially help other users find a solution to any similar issues they're having (by making Yamaha aware of them).

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks ! but no ! thanks, as I will be getting a refund in due course. But for the others it's to each his own. Once again let me stress, it's not an attack on members as you may call it, but merely trying to drive home the point, otherwise we were getting no where. At least now commonsense has prevailed. This unpleasant episode is not going to make me stop reading WHAT-HI-FI magazine. I will still continue to subscribe from my local newsagent.

One last appeal : Please listen to consumers carefully, before slaming them down calling it speculation like in the case of Transformerbc ! which is not fair...What happens if it was a genuine matter, it might just backfire. This is the reason why I came into the discussion, as I was encountering the same problem. Thanks again Clare for your help.

 

[Anonymous]

Hello Yamaha 3900 owners who have this "pop issue",

Can you please help by listing down the steps to replicate this problem here so that those of us here who own the Yamaha 3900 can test this for ourselves to try and replicate the problem?

For example, there was the on/off issue that was reported here and after some investigation and confirmation that there was indeed a problem, Yamaha issued a new firmware that has since fixed the problem.

Thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

dear "seekingadvice " unfortunately my unit has not been fixed yet ! and I am returning it to the dealer for a refund. But I have got good news for you from very reliable sources that " A new " firmware is being tested to replicate this problem " in which the manufacturers are aware off "

good luck

 

[professorhat]

Indeed - good luck, seakingadvice, in fixing that problem that you're not currently having but are for some reason trying to replicate.

I'm confused...

 

[Anonymous]

Hi prof,

I'm trying to help investigate this issue to see whether there is a need to raise this to Yamaha.

I haven't noticed the problem but then again maybe I'm not doing the exact same thing that causes the problem to surface in the first place. Hence, I would like to perform the exact same steps as the people who have reported the problem to see for myself what the issue is about.

For example, I didn't notice the on/off issue when I first got my amp and only managed to experience the issue much later. Thankfully, that issue has now been fixed with the firmware upgrade.

 

[professorhat]

Fair enough, but I'm still confused as to why you're willingly trying to introduce a fault into something which gives you no issues in your day to day to usage.

Sounds like a recipe for a disaster filled life to me!

 

[Anonymous]

You are doing the right thing " seeking advice " It's goes to show that you have a very good foresight in tackling the problem before it happens, and not finding out much later before the warranty runs out. The RXV 3900 is a very advanced set as far as tecnology is concerned. It works in unison with other soft wares, so the whole circuitary is rather complicating. Problems will arise time and again on different matters with the same machine OR it may not at all. So it's good to experiment the different modes and what have you.... to get a feel of the Amp. It's a win win situation for the consumer and the manufacturer and ofcourse with proper feedback Yamaha would know exactly where the problem lies and ractify it. I must say it's a great AV Amplifier. You won't regret it !!!!!

All the best

 

[Anonymous]

I've run through the different modes with my RX-V3900, but have to admit I haven't experienced any problems. I don't really use them too much, although I think some of the hall sounds which create an echo can make some live recorded music sound even like being in the venue itself. No popping noises though.

 

[Anonymous]

" Acciesboy " Like I said " It may or may not happen. I spoke to the QC department in Malaysia where the RXV 3900 is manufactured and asked them why ? such problems are encountered in todays line of Yamaha's AV amps, as apposed to the earlier ones ? The answer was : Amps that were manufactured 10-15 years ago were less complicated and were easier to repair, either by replacing a whole PC board, a chip or a transistor. But with todays advanced technology, it's more of a " firmware upgrade " and they got to keep up with the times, so glitches can occur, like in an automobile, aircraft or on most things that are computerised. Sometimes in the news you might have heard of some resposible manufacturers recalling back their products to ractify certain defects. Electronics gadgets are not perfect, thats why thery are given warrantys for a certain period. Not too long ago I had the good fortune to own an expesive automobile ! and you know what !! 70% of that make or model had to be recalled. Unfortunately mine was one of them (jinx) Sometimes things can happen to the best of them.

Cheers, Good on you ! enjoy your amp.