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Yamaha announces entry-level 2016 receiver has full 4K support

Yamaha has announced its first 2016 receiver, the RX-V381, which offers four HDMI inputs with 4K support and Bluetooth streaming.

Ty Pendlebury Editor
Ty Pendlebury is a journalism graduate of RMIT Melbourne, and has worked at CNET since 2006. He lives in New York City where he writes about streaming and home audio.
Expertise Ty has worked for radio, print, and online publications, and has been writing about home entertainment since 2004. He majored in Cinema Studies when studying at RMIT. He is an avid record collector and streaming music enthusiast. Credentials
  • Ty was nominated for Best New Journalist at the Australian IT Journalism awards, but he has only ever won one thing. As a youth, he was awarded a free session for the photography studio at a local supermarket.
Ty Pendlebury
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Yamaha

The snow may have melted, but 'tis the season for receiver announcements. Tralalalala lalalala. Yamaha is the latest company with good tidings for its upcoming refresh: the RX-Vx81 series.

To push the metaphor to its breaking point, the RX-V381 is the first sled in the sky and also happens to be the company's entry-level model. It takes over from last year's very respectable RX-V379. OK, so they skipped some numbers...

Like the existing model the RX-V381 is a 5x70W (20-20kHz 8ohm) receiver which offers niceties like Bluetooth support and 4K compatibility.

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Yamaha

One of the "biggest" differences between new model and the RX-V379 is that the RX-V381 includes support for HDCP 2.2 on all of four of the HDMI inputs. While not many people will have four 4K sources requiring HDCP handshakes, it does mean the receiver has a small degree of future-proofing for upcoming devices. In conjunction Yamaha has also spelled out that it will pass-through wide color gamuts in the form of BT.2020.

Though details are yet to be announced, including UK and Australian pricing and availability, the RX-V481 may be the one to wait for because -- if it's a straight upgrade from the x79 -- it will include a host of extra streaming features, more power and more HDMI inputs.

But, like the RX-V379 before it, if your needs are modest then the RX-V381 will likely drive most domestic speakers and offer the sound quality most people are looking for.