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There are few loudspeakers that encapsulate the standards of the time quite as well as Yamaha's NS-1000M monitors. Launched in 1974, the then flagship model was easily ahead of anything else of the day, and used incredibly light, ultra-advanced beryllium drivers to produce a fast and agile sound that still manages to impress speaker enthusiasts more than 40 years on. 

An innovation at the time, Yamaha is keen to continue the legacy with its new NS-5000 flagship, planned for launch in 2017. In keeping with the almost legendary NS-1000M, the NS-5000 is a 30cm three-way design with newly developed tweeter, midrange and bass driver diaphragms made from a futuristic-sounding synthetic fibre created in Japan called Zylon, said to boast acoustic velocity properties comparable to beryllium. 

The bass-reflex enclosure has an internal volume of 65 litres and is solidly assembled using mitred joints and other traditional cabinet crafting methods. Reinforcing crosspieces inside the enclosure suppress box ringing, and a twisted flare port is said to prevent port noise and improve resolution in the low frequencies. A newly developed resonance tube claims to unify internal standing waves, reducing the need for absorption material inside the enclosure. 

Available in a glossy black piano finish that's created using the same dedicated paint, primer and polishing processes used for Yamaha’s grand pianos, the NS-5000 is due to arrive in March next year while UK pricing is still to be confirmed.