Upgrade path dilemna

[med]

Hi,

I'm (hopefully) soon to be a member of club Rotel. As soon as I can, I'll be picking up and rsx-1055. That parts settled.. here's the dilmna, and I was hoping someone you guys here may have thoughts/suggestions etc.

My local Rotel dealer offers a pretty good trade-up program, so My plan is to start witht he 1055 and work my way up a little. For the first upgrade, I have two choices; buy an rb-1075 to add to the 1055 and 2) completely trade in the 1055, pay a bit more, and come home with a 1066 and the 1075 (unfortunately even though I don't care about the tuner, whatever you trade up to has to have the same functionality as the unit you're trading, so I have to purchase the tuner, so I'd be looking at the price differnce of the 1055 and the 1066, PLUS the added cost of the tuner)

Now, I've done quite a bit of reading on this forum and come to the conclusion that the difference between the 1055 and 1066 as a preamp is minimal, and that having the extra amps in the 1055 can come in handy. BUT, if I go out and buy a 1075 on it's own, I lose the ability to trade up the 1055 (unless I want to buy ANOTHER 5 channel amp...) So the choice is clear if that's where I want to stop, but...

I know the 1098 isn't quite here yet, but do you guys think it will be superior enough to justify the cost of a) replacing the 1055 with a 1066 and b) replacing the 1066 witht he 1098? I guess it depends on a few things for me... Does anybody know a ballpark for the 1098 list price? I've heard a few refernces to it's 'high price', but havn't found a figure yet. And from the looks of the back, it was designed with expansion and upgradability in mind. DOes anybody know if this is the case, or am I incorrect? If the price is right and it's semi future-proof (at least for a couple of years...) then for me it would be a no-brainer.

But then again... even if it isn't future proof, component video looks pretty damn good to me, and I'm pretty happy with using the analogue outs on my SACD player. Other than having bass/speaker management all in one box, I don't see any reason to have a digital link between the player and the pre/pro, so long as your player has decent DACs.

Anyways, any help would be appreciated. I'm glad to have found such a high volume of Rotel users and information all in one place. Lots of great reading in this section..

Thanks again

Matt

[Danbry39]

Med,

Welcome to Club Rotel.

The M.S.R.P. that I heard for the 1098 is $2998, but those things sometimes change pre-release.

Now, as to your very complex situation due to the stipulations set forth by the dealer, it's too bad that you can't get the 1066/1075 combo right off the bat, especially given that you don't particularly want the tuner. I will go on the assumption that you are set on only buying the 1055 right now and that the dealer is inflexible on his upgrade policy.

In your shoes, I'd wait to see how well the 1055 works out for you. If you really like it, then I'd simply upgrade with the 1075 as an external amp later on. You might well find that the 1055 alone suits your needs, depending on your listening habits, room size and accoustics, speaker efficiency, etc. It's a very nice receiver on its own. Still, I'm of the camp that feels a dedicated power amp is a very worthy addition to most systems.

Because there haven't yet been any reviews of the 1098, there's no way to assess how much of an improvement over the 1055 or 1066 it will be or whether it will justify the additional cash outlay. That is going to be a personal choice for each person. For what it's worth, knowing Rotel and their efforts to put out quality products for a good price, I'm feeling that it will be one very fine pre-pro though. But, I also consider the 1055 or 1066 great performers for the money spent. By the way, like the 1098, both the 1055 and 1066 are firmware upgradable.

Again, given that you're only going to get the 1055 now, I'd say that you need to wait to see how that performs in your system to your likes and needs before deciding (1) whether to add on a dedicated power amp, (2) deciding you might want to move up via the 1066, tuner, amp option as a possible stepping stone to the 1098 option later on.




Keith

[Jim Mc]

I pre-ordered my 1098 "On Sale" for $2500.

Yep sight unseen and hope it's not going to be a mistake.

I inquired directly with Rotel and they told me the 1098 will be software upgradeable. I asked because it looks hardware upgrade friendly but they said not.

http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?m=66116202303&n=1123730486

The Stargate

[Aeromos]

Hey Med,

I'm in the same boat as you as far as the Rotel's go should I decide to upgrade to all Rotel components. I was thinking myself as well to go the 1055 or 1065 route first so that I can enjoy HT right away without the greater outlay of cash for the 1066/1075 combo. Although if I can afford it, as I'm sure you're in the same predicament, I would go 1066/1075 right away. Only question is does your dealer give a fair enough upgrade price to the 1098 should you choose to. Remember if you go with the 1066 first and decide to upgrade later to the 1098 that your circle of buyers will only be targeted to those already with amps. But the 1055 and 1065 would be targeted to a wider range of buyers. If you can wait longer I would however skip the receiver and go straight for the pre/pro.




Aeromos
Enjoy life, it's too short to waste!!
My Collection

[Matt Sprouls]

Med,

We are on the same path.

I started out with a 1055 and am very happy with the power.
I will not be going to the 1066, instead I went straight to the 1095 amp.
I kept going back and forth over the 1075 or 1095.
The way I looked at it, there was a chance I might regret the 1075 over 1095 but knew I would not have any regrets the other way around.

Now I plan on going to the 1098 or Anthem down the road.
I just don't think you gain much going from the 1055 to the 1066 IMHO considering the $$$.
Also most dealers can't do much with a lateral upgrade like the 1055 to 1066.

I am in love with the 1095!!!

Regards,
Matt

[med]

Wow, fast responses!

Thanks a lot for your suggestions.

Another thing to consider is that with the impending release of the 1098, their will be at least a few people trading in their 1066s at my dealer, so I might be able to save a few bucks on one, and maybe get an older model 5 channel amp used as we... for now, and then later upgrade to a 1098/1075 or some sort of combination... decisions, decision....

BTW My dealer offers full 5-year parts and label warantee on any used items purchased. The only used items he sells are ones that people traded up from.

[Danbry39]

Jim Mc,

Wow!!! You HAVE to review it for us when you get it in your house. Too bad you don't own the 1066 now, because a review between the two of them would be really nice. How do you like those Parasound amps of yours. I have the 1205A and love it.


Matt,

I like your idea of getting a trade in 1066 and a used amp now. I'd search out for a 1066 with the higher bandwidth video switching though if you use or plan to use the video switching function on the Rotel.




Keith

[med]

Jim Mc,

I'd search out for a 1066 with the higher bandwidth video switching though if you use or plan to use the video switching function on the Rotel.

Although I plan to use video switching, I probably won't require HD bandwidth for a while. I also probably won't have more than one HD source for a while also... Probably not untill HD-DVD comes out, settles down a bit, and prices come down. I hardly watch tv as it is, so I can't see myself splurging on an HD STB quite yet... untill they're the norm, which is looking like it's gonna take a hella long time.