Yamaha A-S300 review

The Yamaha A-S300 stereo amplifier is a budget star, but you can buy better Tested at £230

What Hi-Fi? Verdict

Fine if money’s tight, but we’d save for its bigger, more robust-sounding brother

Pros

  • +

    Decent build quality

  • +

    even tonal balance

  • +

    good timing

Cons

  • -

    Sounds too polite

  • -

    lacks the drive of the top amps

Why you can trust What Hi-Fi? Our expert team reviews products in dedicated test rooms, to help you make the best choice for your budget. Find out more about how we test.

We’ve got high hopes for the A-S300. After all, it’s closely related to Yamaha’s A-S500, an Award-winning stereo amp and current best in class under £500.

On the front you’ll find input and volume dials, together with treble, bass, balance and loudness for the sonic tweakers among you. Alternatively, hit the Pure Direct button to bypass all the tone controls.

The remote isn’t too shabby for a budget offering. Button presses are acknowledged instantaneously and it’ll also control a Yamaha CD player if you’re going to venture down the one-make route.

Unlike its bigger brother, you don’t get the gold-plated input sockets and speaker terminals. There’s no sign of a Recording out control either, but these absentees won’t necessarily be missed at this money.

Too mild-mannered for us
The biggest difference is that power is down from 85W per channel on the A-S500 to 60W on the A-S300. And you can tell. The S300 doesn’t have the grunt or of its bigger brother, so music sounds a little weak and too mild-mannered for our tastes.

Rihanna’s What’s My Name times well, but never really grabs your attention. Bass notes don’t kick with as much intent as they should and high notes don’t have the same snap and venom as they do when heard through the A-S500.

Otherwise, timing is good and the Yamaha exhibits a clean tone that works with a variety of genres. There’s no harsh treble or overblown bass, either.

The A-S300 is a solid enough performer, but £70 extra will get you the better-sounding S500. We’d forgo a night on the tiles and put the cash towards that instead.

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What Hi-Fi?

What Hi-Fi?, founded in 1976, is the world's leading independent guide to buying and owning hi-fi and home entertainment products. Our comprehensive tests help you buy the very best for your money, with our advice sections giving you step-by-step information on how to get even more from your music and movies. Everything is tested by our dedicated team of in-house reviewers in our custom-built test rooms in London, Reading and Bath. Our coveted five-star rating and Awards are recognised all over the world as the ultimate seal of approval, so you can buy with absolute confidence.

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