Amplifiers | Subwoofers | power Drivers | LED

Occasionally Im hit by the fact I’ve never gotten around to trying out certain units that have been receiving universally positive reviews and no end of plaudits from the hifi community, the Yamaha RX-V667 Receiver is one of those pieces. Its been hovering in the back of my mind since its release but Ive never managed to get my hands on it until now. So with no further ado let me proceed to my feelings on the Yamaha RX-V667



On pulling the Yamaha rxv667 from its box one is not greeted with anything too amazing in terms of styling or visual flair, the build quality of the Yamaha rxv667 is decent but not exactly anything to write home about, stylistically the front panel design is pretty standard with a fairly simple and modern layout including zone control, scene tuning and program buttons and a single HDMI in, along with a largish and pretty solid volume knob. The front panel display is done in the quite common pseudo digital style which is one of the fairly standard choices a lot of manufacturers are making these days. The supplied remote is as you would expect on a unit with this specification quite cluttered and probably the least appealing part of the package, if I were to keep the rxv667 for a long time I’d probably replace this.
The back panel is very well appointed sporting amongst other things 5 HDMI 1.4 ins and a single out, a large number of component av outputs (See image below for full details) an antenna in section, iPod dock connector and adequate speaker outputs for both available zones. The back panel is well laid out and I found it easy to attach my devices and speakers without it becoming too spaghetti like. Initial setup is easy enough using the built in mic assisted system and streight out of the box didnt need much in the way of manual adjustment, the menuing system is easy to use and well thought out with a nicely modern and sharp look.
o how does the Yamaha rxv667 actually sound? In a word “excellent”, the rxv667 manages to provide power (90W x 7) and subtlety at the same time while always keeping a very good soundstage. The imaging produced by the Yamaha rxv667 is extremely good, with instrument and sound effects placement being handled with finesse. The bass is well controlled and rounded without any sense of boominess you can sometime hear in more budget receivers. In fact during testing it became apparent that the louder we played back heavy and action packed passages the more in control the Yamaha rxv667 seemed to be of the low ends if you like a defined sound that keeps subtleties very evident even at high volumes you will find the Yamaha rxv667 to be extremely satisfying to listen to. Overall the characteristics I would use to describe the Yamaha rxv667s sound are crisp, controlled and subtle.
The nice thing about the rxv667 is that it is one of those units that seems to keep on giving, it sports some great extra features that not everyone will use but are still nice to have. For example the phono input may not be on everyones “must have” list these days but it is quite nice that Yamaha have not only thought of it but it actually sounds very decent. In fact stereo music in general on the Yamaha rxv667 has not been given short shrift, Yamahas engineers have obviously worked long and hard to assure very solid stereo performance. Another nice aspect is the fact that the video upscaling is amongst the best I’ve seen on a unit in this price range, DVDs look sharper than they have any right to, this unit definitely keeps things crisp and bright when it comes to making your legacy media look good.
So overall I have to say Im glad I (eventually) got around to testing the Yamaha rx-v667 out, I have been extremely happy with it the results I’ve experienced it is an extremely well specified machine with an amazing sonic profile for a unit at this kind of price. If you are in the market for a sub $500 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver you should definitely put the Yamaha rx-v667 on your “Must listen” list. You will not be disappointed.
Manufacturers Specifications
Output Power: 630W (90W x 7)
Dynamic Power/Channel (Front L/R, 8/6/4/2 ohms): 125/160/190/230 W
Frequency Response (AV5, Front L/R, Sp Out): 10Hz – 100kHz +0,-3dB
Total Harmonic Distortion (AV5, Pure Direct, Front Sp Out): 0.06% (20Hz – 20kHz, 5W/ 8 ohms)
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (AV5, Pure Direct, Input Shorted, Sp Out): 100dB (250mV)
HDMI (Audio Input Assignable/ Output): 6/ 1
SIRIUS: 1
Analog Audio (Input/ Output): 5/ 2
Component Video (Audio Input Assignable): 2
Zone 2 Audio Out: 1
+12V/0.1A Trigger Out: 1
Dimensions (WxHxD): 17-1/8″ x 6″ x 14-3/8″
Weight: 23.1 lbs
RRP: $599.95