How to listen to Hi Res Audio on Yamaha A-S801, R-N602 & WXC-50

Some toslink devices can reach 24-bit 96 kHz sample rate but the A-S801, R-N602 and/or WXC-50 are limited to 48 kHz based on this testing. This means you won't be able to receive OR output some flac files without downsampling over toslink and DSD won't be supported. If you are using a WXC-50 you are going to be forced to use the Internal dac and output analogue to your amp.

If you want to listen to DSD files with the R-N602 or WXC-50 buy a USB 3.0 stick so that you can transfer files to quickly. The playback speed only requires a USB 2.0 stick. The stick needs to be formatted to FAT32 which limites file size to 4 GB.

The A-S801 can receive DSD via USB using Foobar2000 and some plug-ins following Yamaha's instructions. You can get the instructions from the Download page on Yamaha's website for the A-S801. Don't bother with the YBA-11 Bluetooth player. It is obsolete, limited to 48 kHz, and costs as much as a WXC-50.

The MusicCast app is somewhat helpful for the R-N602 and pretty much necessary for the WXC-50 to know what is going on. You can use the remote on the MusicCast app but note the limitations shown in the video.

Hi-Res Sample Files:

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WXA-50, R-N803, NP-S303 FLAC mhz khz 5.6 2.8 x1 x2 dsf stream

[enkerl]

I connected the Yamaha R-N602 in the house to the Heco Metas 700 and Heco Metas 300. And in the party cellar I also connected the good old Yamaha A-S500. In terms of performance, the Yamaha A-S500 has a little more power and is connected to 4 Magnat Bar speakers It's just a pure integrated amplifier. Great video😳

[lurkersmith]

I bought the Yamaha R-N602 on eBay, and found the left channel cutting out. It turns out because of the way the speaker posts are designed. pushing banana plugs into the posts causes flexing of the connector on the board, and either the previous owner, or I (with my brand new and tight banana plugs) caused the trace to break / lift off the board. I ended up having to rip the thing apart to fix the trace, because I didn't want to go through the hassle of returning it and finding another one. I'm glad I did, because I'm very happy with it. I still use the FM radio (something about analog FM), and every other input, and thanks to you, I just discovered I can play music from my phone without having to Bluetooth it from MediaMonkey! As for the WiFi, a lot of people complain that they only use 2.4G, but I always used wired anyway. My condo is surrounded by RF, so the only things on WiFi are those that MUST be, like my phone. Phone on 5G -> wired LAN -> R-N602 Ethernet port = goodness!

[cuchsluch]

I have the a-s801 connected to a grace digital Link with a DBX equalizer in between. Going to bic america 1530's, it's a good system

[bazemk]

Hey Stephen it looks on paper that the A-S lineup should have a better sound than the R-N lineup but people that had both could sworn they couldn't notice any difference between them in sound quality. What was your experience, do they sound about the same or the A-S is bettering the R-N in sound quality?

[PurpleDreki]

Keep it simple, just run your PC via USB into the A-S801. Viola, instant music server.

[erikgiralt]

Hi Stephen! Good video. I have a question, It's possible le to use the rn602 like DAC or preamplifier and connect it to analogue amplifier...?

[harrychristo]

Hi there, nice video. I was just wondering, do you know if you can use the WXC-50 strictly as a streamer/pre amp and bypass the DAC, so you can connect to another external DAC? I have a WXC-50 and am using it in pre-amp/streamer mode so I basically have the pre-amp out RCA’s going straight into a 2 channel power amp. I can use the volume knob or remote or the app to control volume and tone. But as it is now, it basically converts the music I’m streaming to it, and then outputs it to the speakers. Therefore it’s obviously using the internal DAC of the WXC-50 to convert the digital signal to analogue - but I want to bypass the DAC in the Yamaha as I’m planning on buying a Geshelli Labs L2 as my DAC (it has XLR balanced outs and my power amp has XLR balanced ins). Will it bypass the DAC in the Yamaha and if so, do you know what settings I need to set the switches on the back of the WXC-50 to?

[robertvujcic]

I'm in the process of removing my turbo to get to the oil cooler in the valley. Have you gone that far? I'm just looking for more help to make it less pain full. Its buried in there pretty good.

[teemuhokkanen]

Hi Stephen, does WXC-50 play dsd through an optical output?