A little puzzled by my newly acquired Yamaha A-S801

Just from my experiences with Yamaha and Rotel. That sounds about right. Rotel tends to have a more full bodied sound... it is generally an extremely good value for the money. Yamaha... especially in the very budget consumer category tends to sound low end light. I even had a 75lbs 200 watt Yamaha amp many years ago that was surprisingly poor performing on the low end. I got rid of it in a few weeks. I would look to Rotel or NAD to give more full bodied, higher end sound. Especially if you could reach into the $2k range. The sound quality improves greatly moving out of the price range you are in. Also, Schiit produces very good sounding products for the money.

I agree with @ghdprentice , that is the sound I expect from a Yamaha integrated. NAD is a good choice if you want more body and low end torque. 

Also of note the volume possition can not be compaired from one peice of gear to another, thats a function of the various gain stages, volume pot taper, etc

Buy an SVS sub on sale right now.

On brand for Yamaha.

Glenewdick, yes you are quite correct about the volume gain. So hard to trust reviews, and not always able to audition in person, the preferred way. This amp has a degree of clarity that is inviting, but if I had to describe the sound in one word, I'd use the word 'shallow'. I see offerings from Marantz, Arcam, or if I can find perhaps a used Primare 130 they seem to be well regarded as well.

I've read these comments before on the 801, then people moving up the stack to 2200, or even the venerable AS3200 for the newer designs.  A friend is trying the new R-N2000A with tone controls and room correction, and he's a diehard tube amp guy. He has it now, burning it in, and i'm wondering if he will keep or return it. We both confirmed it does take about 100hrs on the new Yamaha upper end units to settle in and smooth out more for a little more warmth. Many comment it takes several weeks for this change to occur on the 2200, 3200 etc. Not sure about the 801 though, worth checking maybe, report back after more time. Best of Luck.

Its too expensive,  but the extension and smoothness of a Luxman integrated is hard to beat.  Arcam is another integrated line I really like

Not a surprise regarding Yamaha sound. Their products, like some other more mass-market Japanese products, tend to reflect general Japanese-specific listening preferences, lesser bass with somewhat tipped up top end compared to others. That makes them somewhat unique and like most things will appeal to some more than others for their particular application.

I tried the A-S801 from Crutchfield a while back and it sounded lifeless, no musicality. Detailed? - yes, involving - no. I mentioned it on this forum and to @ghdprentice and there was a lot of pushback from Yamaha fans, so it could have been synergy/speakers as well? I had better luck with Denon in that price range. But the best I heard was a Quad Vena. 

I am very interested also in the Quad Vena (II?) I want to audition, but I understand there might be some concerns about reliability/quality? In any event, likely need a bit more power, especially for the JRs.

Yes I meant the II. There was one from Music Direct for $800. I found it in the class of $2-3000 amps in quality.

It had enough power, but I have sensitive speakers - relatively

This is what I’ve found with my 701, which is in the same family: the sound is VASTLY dependent on the components/speakers that you use with it. Using several speakers and CD/DAC combinations, I can get sound that goes anywhere from garbage to mediocre to outstanding.  Having said this, it did take a very long time to break in or burn in or whatever.  So, it’s a good amp, but the key word here is synergy.

May I ask, out of curiosity, what speakers you found them to be synergistic with?  

@sifter I got the best sound out of the Dali Spektor 2s and the PSB Alphas (I forget which model, either the 1 or the 2).

The Belles Aria is an outstanding SS integrated amp. I have owned one and I doubt that you would go wrong with it. You can buy a used one at a big savings if the $2200 price is above your budget!

https://powermodules.com/aria-integrated-1

Any reliability issues, or am I confusing that with something I read about Bel Canto? don't remember exactly which.

It sure was not Belles. BTW, the price is $2495 new. I have seen them used for about $1500. You should read the many positive reviews. It is a high current amp (16 amps) 75watts 8 ohms 130 watts 4 ohms and a 2000 damping factor!

Pick up a used NAD 375Bee fot $650-750 on ebay.  I have one driving my 4ohm Aperion Towers with ease and it will blow the Yamaha out of the water. 

That’s my experience with both Yamaha and Rotel.  I have had several Yamaha integrated amps and they work well and last but they don’t have the power of some others.  I upgraded to separate Rotel components a couple of years ago.  I have the RB 1582 MKII power amp that’s conservatively rated at 200 WPC into 8 ohms.  I have Arendal 1723 towers that dip down to 4 ohms and it drives them much better.  I don’t listen higher than 45% power, less than noon on the dial.  Any louder and it’s too much.  Much better value in my experience with better build quality and power for the price.  Rotel isn’t as well known but you know it from experience and Yamaha makes everything.  I love my Yamaha 150 HP ShoMax outboard motor on my boat.  Their high end stuff has more power but you’re going to pay more.  

Your Yamaha A-S801 has both tone controls and a variable loudness function. If the sound you hear is too “light”,  experimenting with those controls - using a “light” touch - will most certainly remedy your problem. A 1-2 dB increase in bass is all you probably need. That’s what they’re there for. And it’s totally free. 

Yes experiment with the tone controls.Everything ,isn't build perfect.

[...] Rotel that is now defunct and irreparable

Few amps are ever irreparable! Better fix them than throw them away 🙂

Under $1000 it's tough to find solid low end bass. I would try an NAD 368 if you are OK with a Class D amp or Marantz PM 7000N for a more traditional Class AB. It has a very nice large toroidal power supply and the overall build is a step up. 

Both are streaming amps with decent DACs and decent phono stages. The Marantz also offers great bass management when if and when you want to add a subwoofer, the NAD does not. 

From there, it's a pretty big step up to get over 100W/ch - you'd be looking at 2X the price.

Yamaha a-2000 with Klipsch La Scala, SVS sub, heavenly…

The best integrated powerful amps I have had are Musical Fidelity M6500i and the Rogue Atlas magnum III. The Rogue is a tube amp, but it’s a brute at both ends of the spectrum.

Some places were closing out the Musical Fidelity MS3i for $1100-$1200. It's a dual mono design that is often well reviewed. If you can find any, the BEE series from NAD hit well above their weight with generous power reserved. Good Luck

If you're happy with the sonics of the amp overall, but it is a little "light" on the bass, you might consider (if you haven't already) paying very close attention to power delivery. You can improve low bass energy and control by upgrading everything from the wall outlet(s) -> power distribution -> power cord . No it won't get you the wham of 100lb monoblocks, but you should hear noticeable improvements.  

A few years ago when I picked up the Epos Elan's the seller was kind enough to include a MAC Sound Pipe, which I felt offered a subtle but noticeable improvement in what I was playing at the time, as far as power cord is concerned. I was using either NAC A5 wire, good but difficult due to its rigidity, or more recently some SIGNAL cable, where I have not noticed any downgrade at all, and possibly an upgrade. I tend to keep things minimalist if possible. Yes, my budget isn't ideal, I realize that. I like some of the ideas posted above I 'll check them out.