This unassuming little black box packs as much streaming technology and features as the biggest players in the audio biz - plus support for Google/Alexa voice control...
Every once in a while, the hi-fi industry encounters a disrupter - a brand or a product able to create waves and challenge established ways of doing things. Think the original NAD 3020 integrated amplifier , which entered an arena full of feature-heavy products, and became a best-seller thanks to its combination of price, simplicity and sheer performance.
Marrying old-school Yamaha looks with new-fangled digital functions, the R-N2000A streaming amplifier offers convenience in a package to delight vintage devotees
Few audio brands have escaped the component shortages and wonky logistics of the last few years, including Yamaha, but the company is putting all that behind it with a slew of new products. The £2895 R-N2000A is in the vanguard of a new series from this venerable Japanese manufacturer, one or two sneak-previewed at High End Munich 2022. The 2023 show then saw the launch of its lower-tier R-N1000A and R-N800A network-attached amplifiers, sharing many features with the flagship model reviewed here. Yamaha is also offering a range of speakers to match, so if you want to go full Yammy then matching high-gloss piano black NS-2000A floorstanders are available to pair with the R-N2000A. This fits with the brand's efforts to re-establish its once-familiar position in the two-channel hi-fi scene.