RX-Z11 Conclusion and Score Card
The
Yamaha RX-Z11 represents the pinnacle of technology in a flagship receiver. It’s ability to transform your listening
space into a concert venue or mega Cineplex is unrivaled thanks to the powerful
arsenal of DSP processing and multi speaker configuration capabilities and
robust well designed amplifier section.
With its very clever power amp assignability and music mode
distribution, it proved to be the ultimate multi channel / multi zone receiver
capable of whole house entertainment.
I found the DSP mode sound quality to vary depending on source material so don’t expect any particular mode to excel all of the time. It’s important to take the time and experiment with your music and movie collection to determine what sounds best to you. To really take full advantage of the RX-Z11’s 11.2 surround sound capability, I highly recommend this product to be installed into a large listening space (at least 500 ft^2 or larger) with a minimum of 10ft ceilings. Unfortunately my theater room is limited to 8 foot ceilings, so I was unable to get the height channels up high enough to reach their full potential. While 11.2 was certainly impressive in my room, the experience wasn’t quite as dramatic as I have heard it in prior demos at Yamaha’s 2007 CEDIA booth which incidentally had higher ceilings.
There
seems to be an almost endless array of configurability and usability of this
product to the buyer willing to spend the time to learn how to properly use and
configure it. The RX-Z11 is a very complex sophisticated piece of A/V hardware
and is NOT a product for someone looking for simplicity and ease of setup but
instead looking for state of the art performance that does all of the latest in
HD audio and video decoding and treats music, multi-channel music and movies
with equal measure. The RX-Z11 has
earned the crown of flagship status and is a worthy successor to the venerable
RX-Z9.
6660 Orangethorpe
Avenue
Buena Park, CA
90620
(714) 522-9105
Yamaha RX-Z11 MSRP: $5,499
The Score Card
The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:
Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating
Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.
Audioholics Rating Scale
— Excellent
- — Very Good
- — Good
- — Fair
- — Poor
| Metric | Rating |
|---|---|
| Frequency Response Linearity | |
| SNR | |
| Output Impedance | |
| Measured Power (8-ohms) | |
| Measured Power (4-ohms) | |
| Multi-channel Audio Performance | |
| Two-channel Audio Performance | |
| Video Processing | |
| Build Quality | |
| Fit and Finish | |
| Ergonomics & Usability | |
| Features | |
| Remote Control | |
| Performance | |
| Value | |
See also:
ggunnell;452784
As others on AVS have posted, I have had no luck getting the Z11 to recognize any HDMI video signals from my Oppo 983 except 480p.
Upgrading to the latest Oppo firmware has no effect.
Using the Z11's "Signal Info", 480p is recognized as such, and the Z11 will up-convert it to 1080p. Both 720p and 1080i are unrecognized (type = "???") and the Z11 will not process them further, they are simply passed through.
1080p doesn't get through at all (blank screen).
This is unacceptable performance. My 3800 has no problem passing 1080p from the 983.
What display are you using? Is it possible to send 480i unaltered and let the yama or the display scale?
Upgrading to the latest Oppo firmware has no effect.
Using the Z11's "Signal Info", 480p is recognized as such, and the Z11 will up-convert it to 1080p. Both 720p and 1080i are unrecognized (type = "???") and the Z11 will not process them further, they are simply passed through.
1080p doesn't get through at all (blank screen).
This is unacceptable performance. My 3800 has no problem passing 1080p from the 983.
3db;385227
is it possible to ake out a 20yr mortage on this? I want one!!
That would be very unwise, judging from the way receivers have aged in the past. Very probably, in 5 years, something better will come out, and then you will not be happy with a long loan for the old, outdated thing. If you doubt this, just take a look at the market value of the flagship receiver from Yamaha (or anyone else) from 5 years ago; you can check such things by looking at sales made on eBay.
For most people, buying a much less expensive model, such as the RX-V3800, would be a much wiser choice. Or, even more realistically, the RX-V663. The RX-V663 can do things that the 5 year old flagship receiver cannot do. Just check for yourself if you have any doubts about this. And, realistically, the near perfect performance of the flagship isn't likely to result in a performance advantage that you will actually hear. I went from a Yamaha RX-V730 to a Yamaha RX-V2700. Although a difference can be measured, they sound the same, unless one is using a processing mode not available on the other, or one requires the additional power. This is comparing an old $600 receiver with a fairly new $1700 one. I bought the newer one for features, and in that way, it is vastly better. But, even with my good speakers with quality ribbon tweeters, they sound the same.
Basically, a flagship receiver is only a good choice for people for whom the purchase price is not a big deal. Otherwise, it is almost certainly a mistake to buy one. If you need great video processing, a separate processor, or, if one only needs it for DVDs, an Oppo DV-983H DVD player is a much more sensible option. That way, one can replace the receiver in a couple of years, and keep the processor, when new sound formats or capabilities come out. And with the money saved just from stepping down to the RX-V3800 (as opposed to the RX-Z11), one can get an incredible video processor. Or, amplification for low impedances, if one needs more power than the RX-V3800.
