Surround sound without the speakers
Companies that come along and claim to offer surround sound without the speakers are nothing new. There have been a number of contenders to the throne who have created pseudo surround sound effects from one or two speakers – but most just made you think your ears were bleeding.
None are as good as this. We first saw the technology demonstrated by 1 Limited at a dusty old hi-fi show about five years ago and were absolutely blown away. The only problem was that the single speaker – which looked like a left over Doctor Who special effect – was about the same price as a terraced house in Middlesbrough.
However now Yamaha has come along and introduced the very same technology to the mass market with a product that costs a mere £799 (not much of a price to pay for the peaceful life you’ll have without the missus nagging you about cables trailing across the floor).
Called the Yamaha YSP1, the Digital Sound Projector keeps the same strange styling of the original product with 42 digital amplifiers driving 40 4cm full range drivers and two 11cm woofers.
Don’t ask us how it works. From memory, it’s all to do with refraction of sound waves or something. The point is it does work and at last it’s affordable.
Home cinema buffs will also be pleased to learn that the YSP1 features Dolby Digital and DTS decoding including Dolby Pro-Logic II and DTS Neo 6.
Yamaha
