Should I upgrade to Rotel separates?

[hockey_101]

Currently I'm running an older (2006 era) Rotel-1057 powering B&W 683's, 684's, HTM61 and Velodyne DLS-4000R sub. I have been looking into getting separates simply for better sound quality. I use the setup 99% for music. I have been looking on my local craigslist and it looks like I can grab a Rotel-1098 (the 2004 model with the TFT screen) and a Rotel 8 channel amp, both for relatively cheap compared to buying new equipment. I am not able to test the gear with my own system before my potential 'Upgrade'. Does anyone here have any insight as to if I will be getting noticeably better sound quality with these separates? If these won't do the trick, what would you recommend?

Thanks in advance!

[Audio_ElF]

The Rotel RSP1098 should be a step up from your RSX1057 however you won't get much in the way of improved functionality if that was your aim. It depends on the cost if it's worth it...

The 8 channel power amp however I would probably give a miss - the 8 channel amplifiers designed for whole home audio distribution. Ideally you want a RMB1075 (or even RMB1095) 5 channel power amp as a good match for your speakers.

Personally I would look for a power amp and mate that with your current RSX1057 as an initial step.

[BWLover]

My first upgrade was an RB-1080 with my RSX-1058, it worked well. Now I'm running what you see below, same speakers you. It's wicked, I love it.


Bowers & Wilkins 683S1 Speakers
Rotel RB-1090 2 Channel Amp
Rotel RC-1082 Stereo Pre Amp
Rotel RCD-1072 CD Player
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon w/ Ortofon 2M Red (sitting on a piece of slate supported by 3 "solid tech feet of silence" isolation feet)
Rotel RLC-1040 Power Conditioner
Shynyata Research SR-Z1 Power Outlet & Venom 3 Power Cords x 4
Tara Labs RSC Vector 1 Speaker Cables & Interconnects
Primacoustic Room Treatments

[hockey_101]

The 8 channel power amp however I would probably give a miss - the 8 channel amplifiers designed for whole home audio distribution. Ideally you want a RMB1075 (or even RMB1095) 5 channel power amp as a good match for your speakers.

Personally I would look for a power amp and mate that with your current RSX1057 as an initial step.

Thank you for your input!
Why do you say the 8 channel would be a miss? Is it a less quality amp than the 5 channel? My reason for buying the 8 channel is because I might like to expand in the future.

[BWLover]

I believe the 8 channel Rotel's are class D amplifiers, whereas the RB-1095 is good old fashioned class A/B.


Bowers & Wilkins 683S1 Speakers
Rotel RB-1090 2 Channel Amp
Rotel RC-1082 Stereo Pre Amp
Rotel RCD-1072 CD Player
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon w/ Ortofon 2M Red (sitting on a piece of slate supported by 3 "solid tech feet of silence" isolation feet)
Rotel RLC-1040 Power Conditioner
Shynyata Research SR-Z1 Power Outlet & Venom 3 Power Cords x 4
Tara Labs RSC Vector 1 Speaker Cables & Interconnects
Primacoustic Room Treatments

[hockey_101]

I believe the 8 channel Rotel's are class D amplifiers, whereas the RB-1095 is good old fashioned class A/B.

Does that mean it will sound worse being a class D amp?

[BWLover]

The 10 series Rotel class D amps generally dont have as good of reviews compared to the class A/B amps. Hopefully someone else chimes in and can explain it in better detail than me.


Bowers & Wilkins 683S1 Speakers
Rotel RB-1090 2 Channel Amp
Rotel RC-1082 Stereo Pre Amp
Rotel RCD-1072 CD Player
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon w/ Ortofon 2M Red (sitting on a piece of slate supported by 3 "solid tech feet of silence" isolation feet)
Rotel RLC-1040 Power Conditioner
Shynyata Research SR-Z1 Power Outlet & Venom 3 Power Cords x 4
Tara Labs RSC Vector 1 Speaker Cables & Interconnects
Primacoustic Room Treatments

[wkhanna]

as i remember reading a while ago (i was not able to quickly locate the post using the 'search') Rotel had advised their digital amps are fine for home theater while producing far less heat & taking up less space
however for music only, the A/B amps perform slightly better, most notably in the higher frequencies.

[Audio_ElF]

Thank you for your input!
Why do you say the 8 channel would be a miss? Is it a less quality amp than the 5 channel? My reason for buying the 8 channel is because I might like to expand in the future.

Yes generally speaking it's a lesser quality...

The 8 channel was part of Rotel's distribution line and designed to provide more background music through ceiling or wall speakers. This is compared to their "full fat" amplifiers designed for high quality reproduction.

I would doubt the 8 channel would offer an improvement over your existing setup.