Yamaha squeezes multichannel sound into a single box
Yamaha YSP-1
The product: Instead of positioning ever more satellite speakers around your home theater, Yamaha is offering a virtual solution to surround sound: a single unit housing 42 drivers that can deliver five-channel sound in Dolby Digital, DTS, and Dolby Pro Logic II flavors. The company claims the YSP-1's "holographic" multichannel sound beam can emulate a multispeaker setup as it's reflected off different walls in a room.

• One coaxial digital, two optical, and two analog inputs
• Subwoofer out
• Included remote control that also works with TVs and DVD players

The price: As with other technological novelties, innovation doesn't come cheap. The YSP-1 will be priced at $1,499.95 when it becomes available in March 2005.

The prospects: Home-theater enthusiasts looking for surround sound without all the extra hardware and wiring of traditional multichannel speaker setups will appreciate the YSP-1's minimalist aesthetic, especially as a sleek companion to a flat-panel TV. Whether it can provide a similar sonic experience that will make it worth the hefty price remains to be seen, however.

By Sean Portnoy, senior associate editor, CNET Reviews