YAMAHA DSP-A590 SURROUND AMP

Few would argue that Yamaha have fought hard for the position of king of the home cinema scene for a number of years. With a long line of integrated A/V amps stretching back to the classic Pro Logic DSP-A590, Yamaha have wooed home cinemaphiles with affordable, quality sound processing and amplification. The style of Yamaha's components has also stood the test of time, with the classic black chassis and uncomplicated front panels remaining largely unchanged while other brands' fads have been and gone. Yamaha has also managed to hit the target spot on with their pricing policy, with this line of amps usually retailing for £350, and streeting at between £250 and £300. This complements perfectly the larger DSP-A2 and venerable giant of the home cinema world the DSP-A1.

For the year 2000, Yamaha decided to give the already award-winning DSP-595A a thorough sprucing, tweaking the processing and operational parts of the amp. Indicating their higher-end aspirations for the new product, Yamaha chose to reclassify the naming to bring it into the same family as the A1 and the A2, and the DSP-A5 was born. However, Yamaha have produced the package at a price which must confound their competitors - remaining at £350 RRP, the A5 is placed in the running against not only the strongest budget amps, but even the Sherwoods of this world.