HawkeyeKane
871 posts
Apr 12, 2012
12:53 PM
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In the last year or so, my affinity for Yamaha has taken quite a hit. For whatever reason, one of the most respected high-quality manufacturers of musical instruments and audio gear has reduced their amplifier and effects product line to virtual nonexistence. Maybe it was a decision based on the economy...maybe they decided to reallocate resources to their motor vehicles production...I dunno.
But it's come down to no pedals whatsoever, and TWO amplifiers.
Yamaha THR5
Yamaha THR10
Now, although these seem to be VERY cool solid state amplifiers, I'm still amazed that Yamaha has scaled back to this extent. You look at their site and think to yourself "WTF happened?!" The Yamaha GW10 effects pedal was quite honestly a masterpiece in digital effects technology. And almost all of Yamaha's amplifiers were killing machines, even though almost all of them were solid state!
The other thing that kills me about Yamaha is that they haven't produced harps in years now. Despite the fact that they make other exceptionally good wind instruments, they haven't added harmonicas to that list. A crying shame in my book. I realize they'd have their work cut out for them considering the competition they'd face on the domestic front alone with Suzuki and Tombo out there, but with as many resources as Yamaha has to have, I'd have thought by now they would've made SOME kind of venture into this market.
The odd thing is that no one I've talked to about this can remember exactly when this huge scale-back took place, or why it even occured. It's just baffling to me. Is it just me?
At any rate, a spot of good news...Yamaha is conducting a small sweepstakes to give away a few of the new THR series amps. As I said, they ARE very cool looking and scream vintage. Here's the link for enrty if anyone's interested.
Enter Today and Win a Yamaha THR Amplifier
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Hawkeye Kane
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clyde
253 posts
Apr 12, 2012
1:52 PM
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i have found a ga-15 and ga-10 on a yamaha web page and they say they are new.
for what it's worth a yamaha official told me years ago that the company was founded on making the highest quality instruments and they could not produce a harmonia that met their demands at an affordable price on a consistant basis.
Last Edited by on Apr 12, 2012 1:53 PM
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LIP RIPPER
580 posts
Apr 12, 2012
2:07 PM
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I PLAYED AROUND WITH A NEW LITTLE yAMAHA BATTERY, these effin cap locks; battery powered amp today with a couple of 3 inch or so speakers that was fun.
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FreeWilly
166 posts
Apr 12, 2012
4:01 PM
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That amp looks amazing. Bit pricey perhaps though? 200 Euro's.. Will it beat a micro cube RX? Or a Vox mini 3 for that matter?
@LP: Can you elaborate on how loud it was please? Did you play the 5 or the 10?
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harmonicanick
1535 posts
Apr 13, 2012
1:32 AM
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You could ask the same question about Sony, Hawkeye, they have lost a shed load of money this year due to poor forward planning and their products have been overtaken by competitors.
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barbequebob
1859 posts
Apr 13, 2012
8:09 AM
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Yamaha mainly made pretty decent quality stuff that was basically budget line oriented and basically something for getting the biggest bang for the buck. I happened to try out one of their solid state amps in the 70's and was unimpressed (ALL solid state amps made back then weren't much good for anything unless you were gonna be playing low volume and clean, and SS distortion until the late 90's were a horrible thing to listen to because the distortion on those amps emphasized the odd numbered harmonic overtones, which are the one hardest on the human ear and the most unpleasant and tube amps distortion is the opposite.)
They actually made harmonicas in the 70's and they were really horrible products in terms of wuality and playability and in the US, they just died a grim death in every store that had them until they stopped in 1978.
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Sincerely,
Barbeque Bob Maglinte
Boston, MA
http://www.barbequebob.com
CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
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barbequebob
1860 posts
Apr 13, 2012
8:13 AM
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Yamaha mainly made pretty decent quality stuff that was basically budget line oriented and basically something for getting the biggest bang for the buck. I happened to try out one of their solid state amps in the 70's and was unimpressed (ALL solid state amps made back then weren't much good for anything unless you were gonna be playing low volume and clean, and SS distortion until the late 90's were a horrible thing to listen to because the distortion on those amps emphasized the odd numbered harmonic overtones, which are the one hardest on the human ear and the most unpleasant and tube amps distortion is the opposite.)
They actually made harmonicas in the 70's and they were really horrible products in terms of wuality and playability and in the US, they just died a grim death in every store that had them until they stopped in 1978.
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Sincerely,
Barbeque Bob Maglinte
Boston, MA
http://www.barbequebob.com
CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
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LIP RIPPER
582 posts
Apr 13, 2012
8:25 AM
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Willy I don't know which model it was. It looked like it had two 3 inch speakers. It was $200. As far as being loud, with the tone all the way down I got decent volume but it was hard to do without getting feedback. It's been a long time since I played with the microcube but my instincts tell me the yahmy is a bit louder.
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HawkeyeKane
873 posts
Apr 13, 2012
8:31 AM
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@clyde
Where exactly did you find these? I've been all through the site and found nothing. Are you on Yamaha USA page?
@JInx
I won't argue with that. IMHO, Yamaha keyboards are neck and neck with Roland.
@harmonicanick
I suppose so...but then again, one could make the argument that Yamaha and Sony are really different animals. Yamaha is based mainly in sound equipment, musical instruments, and small motor vehicles. Whereas Sony is primarily based in small electronics, computers, and car & home entertainment products. I get what you're saying Nick. But looking at the respective markets between these two, in my eyes Sony has a LOT more quality-build competititors for the products they make than Yamaha does for theirs.
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Hawkeye Kane
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FreeWilly
168 posts
Apr 13, 2012
8:41 AM
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Thanks Lip ripper.
That should have been the THR 5 then (based on the price, they both have 2 3"'s). Its 2x5 watts should be louder than the 2x2.5 watts of the RX. Don't know how feedbacky that is though.
Still, the RX seems like the better harp amp to me on paper? 4x4 inch vs 2x3 inch? And the better effects perhaps? Plus extra line-out, longer battery life and more elaborate tone-controls (compared to the THR 5, not the 10, which has full EQ also). RX doesn't connect to USB though.
What I'm saying: THR might be a bit pricey if you're just using it to practice/busk?
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HawkeyeKane
874 posts
Apr 13, 2012
9:08 AM
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@FreeWilly
In my eyes, the THR could be made to use for more than practice or busking. Yamaha should pick up on this...but then, I guess that's another point to add to my rant now isn't it? :-)
It needs to have two things. An external speaker jack, and a line out. You put that thing on top of an extension cabinet with the right ohmage, and it'll look absolutely divine with it's virtual tube glow shining through. 5 or 10 watts won't get you all that far onstage in most cases, but just run it through the PA with the line out. If Yamaha would install one or both of these in the THR's, betcha the sales would start picking up pretty quick.
One probably could make these modifications on their own...just depending on how much time and money you're willing to spend.
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Hawkeye Kane
Last Edited by on Apr 13, 2012 9:11 AM
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HawkeyeKane
875 posts
Apr 13, 2012
9:52 AM
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Okay...so it's looking like maybe it's just a deficiency with Yamaha USA. These two look to be an equivalent of Marshall's MG10 and MG15.
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Hawkeye Kane
Last Edited by on Apr 13, 2012 9:55 AM
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