Rotel and 804S

[marano]

I'm in the market for a amp to power my B&W DM602 S3's, DM601 S3's, and LCR60 S3 center which are currently powered by Rotel's RSX-1057 which outputs 75 WPC. I'm leaning towards a Rotel RMB-1075 which is 120 WPC to power my 600 series right now which should be more than enough power for them but I am planning to upgrade my speakers over the next few years to the 800 series (804S's for the fronts, 805S's for the rears, and HTM3S for the center), will the RMB-1075 be able to sufficiently power the 805S and more importantly the 804S? Is there any other amps that I should be looking at besides the Rotel in the $1,000 to $1,500 price range that will sufficiently power the 804S? I will eventually upgrade the electronics (maybe a Classe Pre-Amp and Amp) but that's a long way off (maybe 7 years or more) so the 804's would be running off the amp I purchase today for my 600 series for quite some time.

[scanido]

If your considering the RMB-1075 for your 800 series, I would see this as the bear minimum. That future setup at least deserves the bigger, RMB-1095. I believe they are going on Audiogon within your price range.

Having said that, I am powering my setup with a ROtel RSX-1057 until i can afford a proper setup - either Mac or Classe. Go big or go home right!

[Ron526]

Hi marano, I have the exact speaker setup driven by a H/K520 (with a bum remote). I also am investigating amp upgrade, will use the H/K as pre/pro for a while.
My current looks are rmb1077, rmb1075, rmb1095, and for laughs mc205.
If money were no object I would choose the mac or a krell. For now I am in the rotel arena. I probably will keep my speakers for a while, 5-10 years...unless....
Am looking forward to your progress. Will keep you advised of any invetigations or listening that I do.
Enjoy the music, Ron526.

[trz06]

I wil tell you in the next few days. All my stuff (see sig.) is being installed over the next 2 days by Century Stereo in San Jose, CA

[marano]

If your considering the RMB-1075 for your 800 series, I would see this as the bear minimum. That future setup at least deserves the bigger, RMB-1095. I believe they are going on Audiogon within your price range.

Having said that, I am powering my setup with a ROtel RSX-1057 until i can afford a proper setup - either Mac or Classe. Go big or go home right!

I'm not too crazy about buying used and new the RMB-1095 is double the price of the RMB-1075

How do your 804S's sound with the RSX-1057? What did you have before the 800 series? I will eventually go with a Mac or Classe for the new setup but the 804S's will be running on my current electronics for quite some time until I can afford them.

[marano]

Hi marano, I have the exact speaker setup driven by a H/K520 (with a bum remote). I also am investigating amp upgrade, will use the H/K as pre/pro for a while.
My current looks are rmb1077, rmb1075, rmb1095, and for laughs mc205.
If money were no object I would choose the mac or a krell. For now I am in the rotel arena. I probably will keep my speakers for a while, 5-10 years...unless....
Am looking forward to your progress. Will keep you advised of any invetigations or listening that I do.
Enjoy the music, Ron526.

I would be very interested to hear how you like the RMB-1075 with the 600 series

[scanido]

I'm not too crazy about buying used and new the RMB-1095 is double the price of the RMB-1075

How do your 804S's sound with the RSX-1057? What did you have before the 800 series? I will eventually go with a Mac or Classe for the new setup but the 804S's will be running on my current electronics for quite some time until I can afford them.

They sound great with the RSX-1057!! Prior to this i was using a HTIB Yamaha receiver and the Rotel blows it away - as expected.

This may be because my room currently is fairly small - 17 x 10. Dont want to push them speakers to hard to find the upper limit, but i can tell you that at reference levels they are perfectly fine (75db calibrated)!

Prior to the 804S I had DM603 S3. The upgrade was night and day for me, even on the lonely Yamaha!

[rick c]

They sound great with the RSX-1057!! Prior to this i was using a HTIB Yamaha receiver and the Rotel blows it away - as expected.

This may be because my room currently is fairly small - 17 x 10. Dont want to push them speakers to hard to find the upper limit, but i can tell you that at reference levels they are perfectly fine (75db calibrated)!

Prior to the 804S I had DM603 S3. The upgrade was night and day for me, even on the lonely Yamaha!

I'm also looking to in the future hopefully 4-6 mos to upgrade my 603s3's to 804's but used.I'm using a rotel rsx1056 and hoping (fingers crossed)that when i get the speakers the 1056 would be fine.

[scanido]

I'm also looking to in the future hopefully 4-6 mos to upgrade my 603s3's to 804's but used.I'm using a rotel rsx1056 and hoping (fingers crossed)that when i get the speakers the 1056 would be fine.

It will be fine, but not ideal. Big difference. Look at it as an interim solution as i do, and as such, it works fine.

[chinets]

I had the 804s as surround and 803s as front L&R ,and I use to run it with a 1095 ,and that was bliss for me!! I upgraded, but i'll never forget those wonderful days with the 1095 ,because for the money ,they are awsome frankly!! Go for it!! For the money I bet you will never look back!!
Trust me there will always be better out there for more $$$$$, but at the end of the day, for the money you are getting $$$$ You would have to spend 3 times as much to reach a better level, and that in itself says a lot about Rotel!! They sound like top end Amps for the money ,and the 1095 will get you there!!
I hope that my past experience would bring you lots of Music joy ,my friend!
God Bless!
Cheers

[marano]

They sound great with the RSX-1057!! Prior to this i was using a HTIB Yamaha receiver and the Rotel blows it away - as expected.

This may be because my room currently is fairly small - 17 x 10. Dont want to push them speakers to hard to find the upper limit, but i can tell you that at reference levels they are perfectly fine (75db calibrated)!

Prior to the 804S I had DM603 S3. The upgrade was night and day for me, even on the lonely Yamaha!

Too my ear the 602's seem under powered with 75WPC from the RSX-1057, which is why I'm looking for a amp, so I can only imagine them running 804S's - Are you using the 804's for movies or music or both? I found that the 1057 is adequate for movies but for music I think it needs a bit more power.

[marano]

I had the 804s as surround and 803s as front L&R ,and I use to run it with a 1095 ,and that was bliss for me!! I upgraded, but i'll never forget those wonderful days with the 1095 ,because for the money ,they are awsome frankly!! Go for it!! For the money I bet you will never look back!!
Trust me there will always be better out there for more $$$$$, but at the end of the day, for the money you are getting $$$$ You would have to spend 3 times as much to reach a better level, and that in itself says a lot about Rotel!! They sound like top end Amps for the money ,and the 1095 will get you there!!
I hope that my past experience would bring you lots of Music joy ,my friend!
God Bless!
Cheers

I would love to go with the 1095 but it is pricey and I rather put the cash towards a Classe or McIntosh amp when the time comes.

[scanido]

Too my ear the 602's seem under powered with 75WPC from the RSX-1057, which is why I'm looking for a amp, so I can only imagine them running 804S's - Are you using the 804's for movies or music or both? I found that the 1057 is adequate for movies but for music I think it needs a bit more power.

Both and am happy with the results for now.

When i move into my new house i'll unleash the beasts with a more capable amp.

Eyeing either the RMB-1092, CLASSE CA-3200 or McIntosh MC-205 to do any sort of justice to these speakers.

Going back to your original question - "will the RMB-1075 be able to sufficiently power the 805S and more importantly the 804S?"

Yes it will be sufficient.

[trz06]

Ok, system is installed. All I can say is WOW!!!!!!!

Now I have not listened to $8K - $10K Krell, Mac, or Classe amps, but the Rotel 1095 with the 804S sounds fricken awesome. Of course it helps to have the DD-10 for the lower mid and bass frequencies, but the 804S sound very dynamic with great accuracy and awesome imaging right out of the box.

Now I am new to high end speakers and HT, and don't know if the break-in thing for speakers is real or not, but I can't imagine them sounding better then they do already.

The Rotel 1095 does the 804S justice, and really makes them scream. I can go up to +6db on the Anthem/Rotel with no problems at all and with perfect clarity, and that is the beginning of hear splitting levels. I am not sure how far it will go past that, but really I feel no need to unless I want some hearing loss.

I am very impressed.

[marano]

Anyone using the RMB-1075 with the 600 series or 804S's? If so what do you think? I'm mainly leaning towards the 1075 because of it's thousand dollar price tag, I'm pretty sure that the 1075 will be great for the 600 series and sufficient for the 700 series but I'm worried that it just wont have enough power to drive the 804S's properly. I would set my sights a bit lower perhaps the 703 or 704 (aren't these due for a redesign soon?) but I'm a little worried about the HTM7 which may not be up to the task in a Home Theater environment.

[wb2fcr]

I'm running my 804s with a Rotel RMB-1075. I think it's a good amp for the speakers.

That being said, I would suggest the RMB-1095 if you can afford it.

[marano]

I'm running my 804s with a Rotel RMB-1075. I think it's a good amp for the speakers.

That being said, I would suggest the RMB-1095 if you can afford it.

I would rather put the extra thousand dollars the RMB-1095 will cost me towards the 800 series speaker setup, In time I would like to go for a Classe or McIntosh amp but that wouldn't come for a considerable time after I purchase the speakers. Maybe I'll see if I can head to the dealer in the coming weeks and see if he can hook up a RMB-1075 to a set of 804s's for me to audition.

[hifiguymi]

Have you considered getting an RB-1080 for the front speakers and using the redirect feature in the receiver to either do a 7.1 system or powering speakers in a second zone? It would be a great stepping stone to expand your system and keep you in the price range you want for now.

Eric

[marano]

Have you considered getting an RB-1080 for the front speakers and using the redirect feature in the receiver to either do a 7.1 system or powering speakers in a second zone? It would be a great stepping stone to expand your system and keep you in the price range you want for now.

Eric

That may be a possibility. Right now I'm thinking about getting the RMB-1075 and using it to power all of my 600 series speakers, if I upgrade to the 804s's I was thinking about using four of the 1075's channels to bi-amp the 804s's which will hopefully provide enough power for them, I'll take the remaining 120w from the 1075 to power the center and use my RSX-1057's amps to power the rears (which should give me about 100 wpc for them), hopefully this setup will keep me going until I can save up for some Mcintosh or Classe gear

[wb2fcr]

That may be a possibility. Right now I'm thinking about getting the RMB-1075 and using it to power all of my 600 series speakers, if I upgrade to the 804s's I was thinking about using four of the 1075's channels to bi-amp the 804s's which will hopefully provide enough power for them, I'll take the remaining 120w from the 1075 to power the center and use my RSX-1057's amps to power the rears (which should give me about 100 wpc for them), hopefully this setup will keep me going until I can save up for some Mcintosh or Classe gear

Sounds like the way to go marano, until you upgrade to Classe.

Lik e I said, I'm happy running my 804s from a 1075, but I think you'll be happier with a Classe amp.

[marano]

Is anyone on here bi-amping their 804S's with the RMB-1075? If so what do you think of it and have you compared it to running the speakers off of a RB-1080 or a RMB-1095?

[scanido]

The general consensus is - bi-amping will not offer better sound than having more watts. Having more watts is always better.

If the RMB-1095 is out of range, i would get myself a RB-1080 and use the remaining channels on the receiver to power the center and surrounds. Your main speakers often need the most power.

[hifiguymi]

That may be a possibility. Right now I'm thinking about getting the RMB-1075 and using it to power all of my 600 series speakers, if I upgrade to the 804s's I was thinking about using four of the 1075's channels to bi-amp the 804s's which will hopefully provide enough power for them, I'll take the remaining 120w from the 1075 to power the center and use my RSX-1057's amps to power the rears (which should give me about 100 wpc for them), hopefully this setup will keep me going until I can save up for some Mcintosh or Classe gear

I guess it would depend on what you wanted to upgrade first. If you wanted to upgrade to a Classe, etc preamp first, then get the RMB-1075. If you want a better amp first then get the RB-1080 and sell it or use it for a second system or surround backs, etc it the future.

[marano]

The general consensus is - bi-amping will not offer better sound than having more watts. Having more watts is always better.

If the RMB-1095 is out of range, i would get myself a RB-1080 and use the remaining channels on the receiver to power the center and surrounds. Your main speakers often need the most power.

Wouldn't you technically have more watts going to the speaker with 120 watts dedicated to the HF and 120 watts dedicated to the LF than 200 watts shared between them both?

[marano]

I guess it would depend on what you wanted to upgrade first. If you wanted to upgrade to a Classe, etc preamp first, then get the RMB-1075. If you want a better amp first then get the RB-1080 and sell it or use it for a second system or surround backs, etc it the future.

Right now the tentative plan is to upgrade to the 804S's first (year 1), HTM3S next (year 2), 805S (year 3 or 4), ASW825 (year 4 or 5), Classe Amp (year 7 or 8 ), Classe Processor (year 9 or 10)

[hifiguymi]

I would still recomend getting the RB-1080 instead of bi-amping with the RMB-1075. By the time you add the extra cables and "Y" adaptors to feed two amp channels from one output your affecting the sound quality of the system. Beyond that I think the RB-1080 is a better sounding amp anyway. Will your dealer loan you one or both of them so you can listen for yourself? I know not all dealers will do that but it's worth asking.

Eric

[marano]

I would still recomend getting the RB-1080 instead of bi-amping with the RMB-1075. By the time you add the extra cables and "Y" adaptors to feed two amp channels from one output your affecting the sound quality of the system. Beyond that I think the RB-1080 is a better sounding amp anyway. Will your dealer loan you one or both of them so you can listen for yourself? I know not all dealers will do that but it's worth asking.

Eric

My main concern with getting the RB-1080 is that I would be stuck powering the HTM3S center and 805S surrounds with the 75WPC RSX-1057 for 4 or 5 years.

[hifiguymi]

I don't feel personally that there would be a significant upgrade from using the RSX-1075 to run the center without the load of the front speakers on it compared to the RMB-1075 with the load of the fronts bi-amped. It's just a personal opinion and I would encourage you to try and listen for yourself. I have 804S's right now in a stereo system and plan on getting an RSX-1058 to start my surround system. I have had an RSX-1057 at home to evaluate it and thought the receiver was quite good as an interim step. I'm sure it will run the HTM3S quite well. Again, try it for yourself.

[scanido]

I agree with hifiguymi, the RSX-1056/7/8 are pretty powerful receivers and like i said, I use it now to power 803S and the HTM3S in a medium sized room and find it adequate at reference levels. And this is not with classical or jazz, but with R&B, Hip Hop which are more abusive to the speakers IMHO.

Looking at your upgrade plan, it would take 4-5yrs to complete your 5.1 speaker setup. I would take the funds from your amp and put in your speakers to get the speaker setup earlier. The sensitivity of the 800 series is similar to the 600 series so you should be fine for the next 4-5yrs until you can really do them justice with more powerful electronics. Get the speakers first then focus on electronics.

[marano]

What does everyone think about the McIntosh Labs MA6300 Stereo Integrated Amplifier (100 WPC)? Would it provide enough power for the 804S or even 803S? Would a Rotel RB-1092 (500 WPC!) and a Rotel RC-1070 be a better option? I've been contemplating lately about foregoing a surround system next time around and just concentrating on a quality 2 channel system, I'll be able to accomplish this much quicker and cheaper than a full blown B&W 800 series surround system plus I can move up to the 803S's and I can always go for something like AV123's X-LS as a secondary system down the road if I feel a real need for surround.

[B&W 700 Guy]

Go and listen to a sunfire amp with the 800 series. I think you will find it a step up from Rotel for around the same coin. Nice migration path to Classe.