Yamaha CR-1020 Receiver.
This page is dedicated to the wonderful Yamaha
CR-1020, examples of which can often be found
on Ebay for around £100. I remember going to my local hi-fi dealer way back in
1978 and spotting
one of these in their display window. I stood there and drooled over it
for ages, returning to it on
many occasions until I finally came to my senses, realising that there was no
way on God's earth
that I could ever afford to buy one!
And here we are, 28 years later. I spotted this one on
Ebay in Mar05 and because of the stunning
condition, I just had to have it. I paid a little over the top for it,
but if you want the absolute best example
then you have to be willing to dig a little bit deeper into your pocket. Not
much point in saving a few
pounds and owning one with chipped woodwork or scratched facia.
When mine arrived, I attached it to a Bose Acoustimass
Speaker System
and connected a
simple dipole antenna (fixed on the roof). Throwing the tuning dial around,
resulted in lots of FM stations being picked up
with a fabulous hiss-free reception and a strong stereo signal. Of course there
were some stations which didn't come
through too well, but that's because of the antenna. Ideally, I need to install
a multi-element, high-gain antenna and mount it
on a rotator. That would really do this fine tuner-section justice.
Also connected to my Yam is a TEAC "DAB" radio
. I've had a few portable DABs and this is without any doubt the
best of the bunch (although it did cost £180). Connecting it to the CR1020
results in an incredibly big sound!!!
The marriage of digital and analogue seems to work very well indeed, subject to
the limitations of the Bose speakers/sub.
Connecting the Yamaha to a decent pair of speakers such as
the tremendous B&W P5's
results in
a step-up in
performance (as you would expect). The CR-1020 really comes alive and starts to
kick some ass! Using the built-in
tuner as the source, strong local signals are transferred to the B&W's with an
amazing level of control. There's a great
"musicality" that shines through and no matter what material might be playing,
you'll quickly find your foot tapping and
your head rockin'.
Switching to DAB results in a bit too much bass with the
P5's. The TEAC seems to be a little bass-heavy and although it
sounds fine through the small Bose, the P5's reveal this over indulgence to a
degree that has you running for the tone
controls. Having said all that, the sound is very satisfying indeed, once you
get the tonal balance right. People who don't
have large speakers probably won't even notice this anyway.
Apart from the tuner, I use the Yamaha to amplify my
iPod
music.
All the songs on this 40Gb model are recorded at a
high bit-rate and overall it sounds pretty damned good as far as MP3 players go.
Sure, MP3's have BIG limitations, but
they're one helluva jukebox, and that's what I treat it as. If I want to do some
"serious" listening, then I go to my main hi-fi.
The CR-1020 has two headphone-outputs which drive my
Sennheiser HD-600's with absolute ease. Now these can be quite
tricky phones to drive, but there's no problem as far as the Yamaha is
concerned. One final note is that the receiver has
outputs for 3 pairs of speakers, so if you fancy having extra pairs in
another room or even outdoors for your bbq parties,
then the Yammy will be happy to oblige!
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Clicking on the above image will start a
15Mb download |
Click the above image to enlarge |
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| Inside the CR-1020 (Left hand side) Click to enlarge | Inside the CR-1020 (Right hand side) Click to enlarge |
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| 4-Gang Variable Capacitor. Click to enlarge. | Tuning knob not working?? Often because the thread
has slipped off this pulley. Open up and put back on. Isolate from mains!! |
| Tom McQuiggan
NW UK |
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