Rotel ... made in ?

[Glenn]

I know that Rotel is a British company, but are all their products (amps, receivers, processors etc) actually made in Britain, or are they made elsewhere (Asia, Japan, USA?)

Just curious.

[ZX 6R]

Rotel is actually a Japanese company. Alot of the design and the parts however come from the UK. The products themselves are manufactured in Rotel's factory in China. Builing in Asia is basically how they can afford to give the products they do at that prices they do.

[Andrew Pratt]

I should add that even thoug they're built in asia they're not out sourced at all meaning they're all built at the Rotel plant in asia.

[Scarp]

Its Asian stuff with a British sound. If you compare it to other asian brands (onkyo, yamaha, etc), then you notice that it doesnt have the annoying sound that those brands have. To me Rotel is quite nice and warm, while other asian equipment usually sounds harsh and high.

[zeppelin]

Hack most the Branded electronic goods are now made in China, Taiwan or Korea.
This is to cut cost and labour in asian country is much cheaper.

[Glenn]

A final bit of summary info that I recently found:

"A family whose passionate interest in music led them to manufacture audio components of uncompromising quality founded Rotel in Japan in 1961.

Rotel soon gained a reputation for its ability to offer audiophile performance and components – slit foil capacitors, torodial transformers, overscan CD mechanisms – at affordable price levels. A long and enviable history of industry awards, most recently from What Hi-Fi? Sound & Vision for the RA02 amplifier (£349), is testament to this.

The uniqueness of Rotel’s products is attained through a huge international effort. Design teams work in parallel in both the UK and Japan; parts are selected from all over the world – capacitors from the UK and Germany, semi-conductors from Japan; transformers are manufactured in-house. To quote Rotel: "More important than where something is made is how well it is made."

[Danbry39]

Glenn and the rest who posted here,

Thanks for the information all. I know all companies like to put out press concerning the quality of their products and sound, but many (not all) of the mass market companies have really disappointed me in this regard of late. That includes companies that I formerly liked a lot. And, this doesn't even begin to explore how I feel about their customer service. That's why I'm glad I bought my first Rotel product and why my future selections are going to be so carefully chosen. I'm not nearly as technically savvy as some, but I've been around stereo equipment for nearly 40 years. I'd like to think that I recognize sonic characteristics pretty well. All I can say is thank the powers that be for some mid level equipment that I can really be happy with. Rotel is just one of those companies that has really brought the mojo back into my audio system.

Thanks for starting the thread that gives me a perspective on their history and philosophy. And, for gosh sake, keep on posting.




Keith

[dave]

yeh::: I have to say that before I shifted to rotel I owned yamaha (2recievers) sansui (very old) marantz & teac. Not to bash anyones products, I,M,O for what it,s worth rotel has them beat hands down. My business partener purchased some used proceed pieces (pre-amps) to go with his PSE amps & his system sounds great! But I honestly have to say I like my rotel pieces every bit as much!!!!!!!!!!!! BRAVO ROTEL :P




dave