Surviving the predictions of many, the once left-for-dead vinyl, analog audio format is one of the few physical media formats to be growing. But this isn’t your father’s turntable market any more. Today’s home owners also crave more technically and digitally advanced features to fit into their smart home environments.
Bridging the gap between analog audio technologies and today’s consumer digital audio market, Yamaha has introduced the MusicCast VINYL 500. It’s a turntable that is engineered to serve as an analog or digital source in a traditional audio system or as a part of a whole-house audio system.
Through the versatility of the MusicCast VINYL 500, homeowners can spin their favorite records and experience the warmth and dynamics of analog audio just like people used to do before the Internet age. And they can access that same content that’s spinning on the platter in any room of their home, just as if they were streaming their favorite audio service, which they can do from the MusicCast VINYL 500 as well.
Yamaha MusicCast Covers all the Bases
Combining the capabilities of the MusicCast VINYL 500 turntable with the MusicCast ecosystem, integrators can now overcome just about any audio objective required by their clients and present opportunities they may not have considered.
MusicCast provides integrators with a vast selection of products that range from soundbars and audio/video receivers, to powered speakers and whole-house multizone streaming solutions.
Related: Here’s How to Use Yamaha MusicCast to Build the Backbone of A/V System Interoperability
Through this selection of products, integrators can configure wired or wireless whole-house audio systems that feature zones such as bedrooms, kitchens, home theaters and outdoor spaces.
Further supporting the turntable’s dealer and homeowner friendliness, along with the rest of the MusicCast family of products, is the product line’s integration capabilities.
Yamaha works with the integration market’s top control and automation manufacturers, including Control4, Josh.ai and URC, to provide integrators with system drivers that facilitate the products’ integration into today’s generation of smart-home control systems.
VINYL 500 Turntable Spans Generations
Emerging as an audio format that meets the needs of long-time Baby Boomer users, as well as Millennial hipsters and now Generation Z, vinyl’s year-to-year growth transcends any labels experts try to place on the format.
The MusicCast VINYL 500 supports the wide range of usage scenarios these demographics present, including dedicated listening rooms with stereo amplifiers, preamplifiers and loudspeakers without adding additional components because the turntable also comes equipped with a built-in phono preamplifier.
Using the MusicCast VINYL 500 as a source within a MusicCast whole-house audio system, homeowners can play their favorite albums in any room with full control of volume and equalization through an app.
Additionally, the turntable can be used for systems that serve local zone needs where the homeowner wants to employ wireless Bluetooth or Apple AirPlay to their preferred playback device.
With the option of hardwired Ethernet or wireless network connectivity, a feature that few, if any, other turntables on the market offer, integrators can set up the turntable in a myriad of ways without compromising sound quality or usability.
In these single-room systems, integrators also have the option of implementing a minimalist approach through the use of just a pair of powered speakers and the MusicCast VINYL 500.
The MusicCast VINYL 500 capabilities are comprehensive, including built-in Spotify streaming, but its footprint is minimal. This is especially important for those that reside in condos or apartments and require a space-conscious solution that delivers state-of-the-art audio.
Tapping into its legacy, Yamaha also took some design elements from its turntables of the past by incorporating a belt-drive motor system, along with a high-inertia platter that is designed to eliminate vibration, and a straight tonearm to promote accurate phono cartridge tracking.
Regardless of how it’s setup and what measure of control is instituted with the turntable, another convenient feature that Yamaha also offers with the MusicCast VINYL 500 is voice control for volume and streaming services.
This can be controlled through devices from Google, Amazon and Apple. These technologies can be used to complement the control options available through whole-house control systems, apps and remote controls.
Adding the entire package up, with its wealth of system setup options, control system drivers and voice control capabilities, the Yamaha MusicCast VINYL 500 is a unique turntable that bridges the analog and digital audio worlds, while crossing the demographic boundaries that are increasingly apparent in the home audio market.
