The Reward of Eight Years of Flagship Engineering: Yamaha NS-5000 Bookshelf Speakers Features Zylon Diaphragms, Resonance Suppression Chambers, Exquisite Cabinetry, More

Nobody has ever seen or heard a bookshelf loudspeaker quite like the Yamaha NS-5000. Having taken a dedicated team of three engineers eight years to complete, and paired with matching SPS-5000 stands, it is the first three-way design in which all diaphragms are entirely comprised of Zylon, an ultra-strong synthetic fiber with tremendously high acoustic velocity similar to that of berrylium. Further equipped with patented Resonance Suppression chambers, a patented Acoustic Absorber, and exquisite cabinetry, NS-5000 plays with a profoundly natural musicality, astoundingly wide frequency range, completely balanced tonal responsiveness, faithful-to-the-source realism, and coloration-free purity. Nothing less than a world-class instrument from a company with more than a century of expertise in making them, NS-5000 is the definition of reference audiophile sound, looks, construction, technology, and luxury.

An 11.8-inch three-way monitor with a bass-reflect enclosure with a 65-liter volume, the minimum-possible size for its configuration, NS-5000 arrives built to minimize lag time and render "box ringing" undetectable to any human ear. Based on FEM analysis, all six enclosure sides benefit from reinforcing bars and relentless analysis that has resulted in ideal timing synchronization. As for the enclosures themselves? Comprised of knot-free laminated plywood made from hand-selected Japanese white birch from Hokkaido, all save the 1.16-inch front baffle measures 0.80-inches thick for supreme durability. As for the ravishingly gorgeous glossy black exterior, the same dedicated primer, paint, and polishing process used on Yamaha grand pianos affords the speaker extra rigidity, suppresses finite vibrations, and contributes to the off-the-charts signal-to-noise ratios.

While it's nearly unthinkable that something could actually top the aesthetics of these beauties, the bigger story of NS-5000 owes to its driver complement. For starters, it harbors the world's largest-caliber 3.15-inch soft-dome JA-08B5 midrange – an asset crucial to the expansive, quick, and natural sonic characteristics of NS-5000. Able to be driven without loss, it features Zylon seamlessly molded from the diaphragm to the edge all the while retaining superior acoustic density. The same molding techniques apply to the 1.12-inch Zylon JA-05K6 soft-dome tweeter. Here, since the yoke of the magnetic circuit has fully cutting-processed parts (avoiding stress deformities caused by machine pressing) and achieves higher magnetic performance, the system delivers smooth response up to through the upper frequencies as well as high-resolution clarity. The voice coil consists of a square copper wire with sectional shape identical to that of the midrange and woofer, ensuring maximum efficiency of electro-acoustic conversion and surgical accuracy via high driver power – not to mention reduced transmission loss and lighter weight by directly linking the voice coil to the terminal board.

Outfitted with a 100% Zylon cone without a center cap, NS-5000's 11.8-inch JA-3132 concave cone woofer generates extensive, taut, focused low-end responsiveness in concert with a special aluminum die-cast frame that ensures rigidity and minimizes air resistance at the rear. It also delivers flawless continuity from the woofer to the midrange and to the tweeter, offering optimum performance at the low-pass frequency of 750Hz. The crossover network is equally impressive, with all drivers connected in positive phase with single wiring. A double-sided circuit board with thick copper traces of 140μ maintains the shortest-possible signal path. An MCap Supreme Evo capacitor, regarded as the pinnacle type and crafted by Mundorf of Germany, a Mundorf MResist Supreme attenuator, and a massive woofer coil round out the architecture.

Not to be outdone, Yamaha's Resonance Suppression chambers cancel unwanted resonance in the center of the speaker's main chamber with two different-length tubes installed on back surfaces of the midrange and tweeter – an approach that restores the original flat frequency characteristics of both the tweeter, reproduces delicate nuances, and, perhaps most importantly, avoids the traditional sound-degrading absorption methods employed in most speakers. What's more, NS-5000 even utilizes a patented Acoustic Absorber that removes standing waves of the target frequency with a special J-shaped resonance tube. Using a simple rectangular parallel-pipe shaped enclosure, it unifies standing waves at specific frequencies, targeting them for cancellation with pinpoint accuracy – and, again, eliminating any need for most of the sound-absorbing material all the while preserving musical presence and enhancing overall continuity between the woofer and midrange.

Measuring 15.55 x 27.16 x 15 inches (WHD) and weighing 77.2 pounds a piece, NS-5000 continues Yamaha's 122-year-and-counting legacy of crafting some of the finest musical components on the planet. A flagship speaker in every regard, it represents a thrillingly new audio pinnacle – and one backed by our 100% Music Direct Satisfaction Guarantee

"The uncolored nature of the NS-5000's midrange and tweeter are highlights of dynamic speaker design, and uniquely available from Yamaha. Any piano, vocal, or acoustic guitar is off-the-charts good."
– Allan Moulton, The Absolute Sound, Golden Ear Award

"I can describe the sound of Yamaha's NS-5000 speakers in a single word: Effortless. Indeed the sound from the Yamahas was so effortless that for almost all my listening sessions, I had the uncanny sense that the speakers weren't ‘there' at all, and that I was listening to live music. I have experienced this with only a handful of loudspeakers in my lifetime, all of which cost far more than the NS-5000s."
– Greg Borrowman, Australian Hi-Fi

"My best guess is that as well as behaving like a musical instrument, the NS-5000 is also an ideal reviewing tool. One whose self-effacing, neutral and transparent sound will never leave you wondering about the real sound of the components played via these speakers. It's like the man said in the 70s, these are likely to be the best speakers you've never heard."
– Peter Familari, Stereo.net, Applause Award

"The NS-5000 loudspeaker will be viewed as [5000 Series'] star component, and it rightly takes a place as an underpriced overachiever in the high-performance loudspeaker marketplace."
– The Absolute Sound, 2020 Product of the Year Award

SPS-5000: Not Your Traditional Speaker Stands

In designing the SPS-5000 speaker stands for the NS-5000 bookshelf speakers, Yamaha performed hundreds of hours of simulation analysis to ensure each 17.6-pound support contributed no undesired sounds to the musical playback. Featuring smooth curved surfaces, the solid aluminum legs are installed at a 42-degree angle to the baffle surface to minimize the effect of sonic reflection coming from the speaker. And to match the height of a seated listener's ears to the NS-5000 tweeter, each stand comes set to a 12-inch height (including spikes) – higher than that of a normal bookshelf speaker itself, to further minimize any floor reflections. In addition, each vibration-resistant leg allows for height adjustment. Depending on your installation location, the spikes can be removed. The stand is also equipped with height-adjustment spacers to prevent any unsteadiness from the NS-5000. Specialized screws to fix the speaker to the stand are also included. Measuring 12 x 14.75 x 15.5 inches with spikes, SPS-5000 helps elevate NS-5000 to its optimal performance level.