Hands on: Yamaha True X Surround 90A review

Yamaha is taking another stab at the Dolby Atmos soundbar system – and this time its going high end.

The True X Surround 90A system is an enticing beast that hopes to go toe-to-toe with big name soundbars and systems, including the five-star Samsung HW-Q990F and Sonos Arc Ultra.

Can it carve out a space in this crowded market?

It's too early to say. But, having had an opening listen to it during a visit to Yamaha's headquarters in Hamamatsu, Japan, we can confirm it left a positive opening impression and we're very keen to get it into our test rooms for the full What Hi-Fi? review treatment.

Price

It seems as though Yamaha is still mulling over pricing for the True X Surround 90A system, but it did mention that it was aiming for the £2500 mark.

For those in the know about Dolby Atmos soundbars, that's quite pricey; but if it can truly deliver the sonic goods, then we'll accept that sizeable price tag.

If Yamaha sticks to that, then it will be pricing its system way above the likes of the Samsung HW-Q990F (£1699 / $1999 / AU$1999), instead putting it up against the likes of the five star KEF XIO (£1999 / $2500 / AU$3600) or even the Sonos Arc Ultra Immersive set, which includes two Era 300 speakers and the Sub 4 subwoofer.

Yamaha says that it will release the system in September, though we're awaiting a finalised launch date.

Build

The True X Surround 90A is a stark departure from the grey cloth-clad True X Soundbar System that we reviewed in 2023.

The older system had a slender soundbar and small cubic surround speakers were fairly compact as soundbar-based surround sound systems go. The True X Surround 90A is quite the opposite.

The new soundbar features a metal chassis with large feet and "acoustically optimised speaker grilles" aimed at reducing distortion and enhancing durability.

Its blend of high-quality materials and smoothed corners makes it look sleek while remaining tough, while the functional front-facing screen should make operating the system a bit easier.

The subwoofer is also redesigned, with an integrated stand that houses an internal plate that controls airflow through the unique symmetrical port design; we'll dig more into that in a moment.

Finally, the wireless surround speakers look similar to the existing versions found on the current True X system; however, they're much taller.

Features

Yamaha has implemented new oval-shaped midrange drivers into the main soundbar unit, which it says will deliver a wide range of benefits.

They have been optimised to feature fewer components across the speaker structure and magnetic circuitry, which Yamaha says has resolved issues regarding cone rigidity and high-frequency response. As a result, these full-range drivers will reportedly deliver a "powerful, balanced sound" with "rich midrange tones".

There are four midrange speakers in total, with three tweeters to support higher frequencies. However, it's the upward-firing speaker arrays that are the most interesting of the new bunch.

Yamaha has taken inspiration from its very first soundbar, the YSP-1 from 2005, by integrating two arrays of upward-firing beam speakers at each end of the soundbar. Each cluster includes six drivers, which are modernised versions of the drive units found in the YSP-1.

That early soundbar used clever processing to bounce sound around your room for a convincing surround effect, and Yamaha has reintroduced them with Dolby Atmos height effects in mind. Here, they fire sound towards your ceiling in order to bounce it back towards the listening position.

It's a clever move from Yamaha, as it looks back at what made its previous soundbars successful in order to find a unique feature in what is an already crowded market.

While the internal components of the soundbar are known, Yamaha hasn't shared much about what is inside the surround speakers. We do know, however, that they don't feature upward-firing speakers, which seems like an odd omission at this price point.

Regardless, they can still be used as individual Bluetooth speakers if required, which makes them more versatile than the Samsung HW-Q990F's surrounds, which can only be used when plugged into a wall and with the main soundbar system.

Speaking of the HW-Q990F, we learned that the subwoofer made all the difference with that system, and the Yamaha True X Surround 90A could be the same story. It features a unique new sub with a symmetrical flare port design that reportedly reduces the air turbulence and therefore unwanted vibrations greatly.

As for connectivity, the soundbar supports HDMI eARC and optical outputs, as well as an HDMI passthrough socket. Wireless connectivity is also well catered for, with Bluetooth, Apple AirPlay and Yamaha's MusicCast streaming system all on board.

As for audio format support, the system supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, as well as Auro-3D, which Yamaha claims is a world first, as no other soundbar has previously supported this format.

Finally, Yamaha has imbued this system with its Surround:AI technology, which, as the name suggests, uses AI to adapt the sound. However, it does so in real time by analysing the content to determine which aspects of the sound should be focused on for maximum immersion.

Sound

Here's where we'll remind you that, once again, this is not our final verdict on the True X Surround 90A's performance. There were various factors, such as an oddly shaped room and our lack of usual reference content, which means we can't conduct a final review quite yet. However, we did hear the system in action and do have a few thoughts to share.

Yamaha has made some bold claims about the system's capabilities when it comes to how it presents Dolby Atmos height channels, and after a quick demonstration of Top Gun: Maverick, we deduce that Yamaha's claims could well be substantiated.

There seems to be a genuinely impressive scale to the sound, as sound effects reached high towards the ceiling in Yamaha's demonstration room. More often than not, we find that scale comes at the sacrifice of accuracy, however, the True X Surround 90A's height effects sounded accurate and well-controlled to our ears.

Generally speaking, the system sounded crisp and punchy, with an exciting and cinematic flair that captured our attention during our preview.

Switching to Hans Zimmer Live in Prague to test the system's musical capabilities, we're equally impressed by how energetic and powerful the system sounds here. There seems to be a solid sense of rhythm, underpinned by snappy bass that didn't come across as muddy or distorted during our early look.

The system seemed to gel well, with a good-sounding balance between the components, and as the name suggests, it handles the surround aspect well with a 360-degree sound that seemed to pass between the soundbar and surrounds naturally.

Early verdict

Yamaha's new flagship soundbar system could well be the Japanese audio brand's most ambitious yet. It's an unapologetically bold and pricey package that builds upon the previous True X system, incorporating some of what made its first soundbar so appealing.

Blending old and new is no mean feat, but Yamaha has dived in headfirst, so we're eager to see if its gamble has paid off. Stay tuned, as our full review of the Yamaha True X Surround 90A is coming soon.

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Read our full Yamaha True X Soundbar System review

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