Yamaha YSP-5100

Sound Bar Reviews

Yamaha is a big promoter of the sound bar concept. It was one of the first manufacturers to develop this type of product and their brand products have a good reputation in this domain. Designed for 50-inch televisions and over, the YSP-5100 is massive, truly a big mother. Nevertheless, the design is sobre and discreet and it doesn't dominate too much visually. You can easily tuck it away in a stand (see inset) or on top. Note however that it is quite tall and may well mask part of the TV image if it's on top of the stand. It has an extremely simple automatic calibration system. You just plug in the microphone that comes with it, position it where you usually listen from and quickly get out of the room so you don't get too much of an earful! At the end of the procedure, the system is automatically calibrated. Nevertheless, you may want to go back to the settings menus and trust in your ears to reset certain settings. We also like the fact that the device can memorise several sound configurations that can be calibrated for different positions round the room (couch, dining table, kitchen and so on). One reproach however: the menu of this Yamaha sound bar is very "hi-fi".