What's the word big birds? I am joining this forum per the recommendation of a reviewer from audioreview.com that read my latest review. I have some qualms about my purchase as I used to be a faithful Marantz owner and it looks like this is the right place to rock.
Not that you want to hear background about my purchase but it might help potential new buyers. I initially was drawn to the RSX1055 because of its natural good looks. Say goodbye to the ubiquitous black cases that seem to dominate the A/V market. I originally never ever thought I would purchase a receiver over $1000 but after merely seeing this receiver and reading rave reviews, I was convinced this would make me break the $1K barrier. And break it I did.
I am going to start with my disappointments first:
1. I thought the blue (for the silver faceplate) ring around the volume knob was to light up. It never did. For some reason before I bought it (there wasn’t a demo unit on the showroom floor), I had the understanding that it did light up (according to specific pictures I saw on websites). To me this was a selling point perk as I love the attention to detail. So you can only imagine my surprise when mine did not light up. I seriously sat there for 30 minutes after unpacking it trying to figure out if it was broken. I even called into the store to see if their floor unit lit up red around the volume knob for the black unit. It didn’t. Whatever; I wasn’t about ready to return it and be refunded. I felt even better to know the 1065 (which naturally costs more) did not light up as well.
2. Despite reviews (both professional and consumer) saying it sounds like it plays louder than 75W per channel. It really does sound and play at 75W per channel. This is minor.
3. The Marantz had an “Auto” feature that automatically sensed the signal being fed to it (whether CD, DVD etc..) and it would automatically switch the surround mode to 2-Channel (CD/MP3 playback) or DTS (if DTS was sensed) or Dolby Digital (if it was sensed). The Marantz would switch back and forth as it sensed the signal being fed to it. The Rotel doesn’t do this…here’s a perfect example. If I am playing a CD in 2-Channel on the Rotel, and then pop in a DVD with DTS, the 1055 DOES switch to 5 channel surround. However, when I stop the DVD and pop back in a CD, the Rotel throws the signal into Dolby Prologic II. THIS IS SO ANNOYING!!! I want it to read the signal and throw the CD playback back into 2-Channel!!
4. As an extension to #4 above: When the Rotel RSX 1055 receiver automatically switches surround modes (2-channel, DTS, DD, etc…) on its own, there is an insertion of silence in the playback before each mode kicks in. So you end up missing about 2 seconds of sound before the sound kicks in. It is most noticeable and annoying when watching a DVD because the introduction sound information might be in 2 Channel, then when the DVD automatically jumps into the menu, the menu might be in 5-Channel DD, then when the movie finally starts, it might be in 5-Channel DTS and switches again. It causes a lot of sound to be lost during the switchovers. In comparison to my Marantz SR7000, the Marantz actually detected the signal being fed to it much further in advance than the Rotel RSX 1055 so it would switch over in a quicker manner thus eliminating the loss of sound. This has to be fixed.
5. Receiver randomly sends a power blip to my subwoofer causing it to "rumble" when nothing is playing (CD/DVD player is off).
6. Static "click" always happens when playing a DVD movie and pressing the "EQ" button. To remedy: stop the movie first and then press this button.
Wow, I never thought I would be so picky with my equipment since I do not consider myself to be an audiophile. However, I do have expectations due to the fact that my old receiver cost me about $600 less and did not have the annoyances of a more costly receiver (the RSX 1055 for this example).
So why did I keep it? Because it sounds damn good when you take away all of those issues I have with it. Do the benefits outweigh the annoyances? To some degree yes, to another degree, no. If the breaking point is the price, then since I have paid more for a receiver that causes me more annoyances than my Marantz (which was almost half the price of my new Rotel) then the answer is yes, I am disappointed. But I think the biggest reason why I am keeping it is based on two things: 1) upgradeability and 2) the way it sounds.
In all seriousness, I am banking on the hopes that Rotel will send a software update to fix all of these problems that I have listed (except for the light around the volume knob). This would be the coolest thing I could witness with an expensive receiver; having the manufacturer do what it actually claims (the ability to be upgradeable).
Sorry for taking you from pillar-to-post with this mixed review/posting. Just thought I would share my opinion of this otherwise fine receiver.
Candid feedback is encouraged. Thank you.
Not that you want to hear background about my purchase but it might help potential new buyers. I initially was drawn to the RSX1055 because of its natural good looks. Say goodbye to the ubiquitous black cases that seem to dominate the A/V market. I originally never ever thought I would purchase a receiver over $1000 but after merely seeing this receiver and reading rave reviews, I was convinced this would make me break the $1K barrier. And break it I did.
I am going to start with my disappointments first:
1. I thought the blue (for the silver faceplate) ring around the volume knob was to light up. It never did. For some reason before I bought it (there wasn’t a demo unit on the showroom floor), I had the understanding that it did light up (according to specific pictures I saw on websites). To me this was a selling point perk as I love the attention to detail. So you can only imagine my surprise when mine did not light up. I seriously sat there for 30 minutes after unpacking it trying to figure out if it was broken. I even called into the store to see if their floor unit lit up red around the volume knob for the black unit. It didn’t. Whatever; I wasn’t about ready to return it and be refunded. I felt even better to know the 1065 (which naturally costs more) did not light up as well.
2. Despite reviews (both professional and consumer) saying it sounds like it plays louder than 75W per channel. It really does sound and play at 75W per channel. This is minor.
3. The Marantz had an “Auto” feature that automatically sensed the signal being fed to it (whether CD, DVD etc..) and it would automatically switch the surround mode to 2-Channel (CD/MP3 playback) or DTS (if DTS was sensed) or Dolby Digital (if it was sensed). The Marantz would switch back and forth as it sensed the signal being fed to it. The Rotel doesn’t do this…here’s a perfect example. If I am playing a CD in 2-Channel on the Rotel, and then pop in a DVD with DTS, the 1055 DOES switch to 5 channel surround. However, when I stop the DVD and pop back in a CD, the Rotel throws the signal into Dolby Prologic II. THIS IS SO ANNOYING!!! I want it to read the signal and throw the CD playback back into 2-Channel!!
4. As an extension to #4 above: When the Rotel RSX 1055 receiver automatically switches surround modes (2-channel, DTS, DD, etc…) on its own, there is an insertion of silence in the playback before each mode kicks in. So you end up missing about 2 seconds of sound before the sound kicks in. It is most noticeable and annoying when watching a DVD because the introduction sound information might be in 2 Channel, then when the DVD automatically jumps into the menu, the menu might be in 5-Channel DD, then when the movie finally starts, it might be in 5-Channel DTS and switches again. It causes a lot of sound to be lost during the switchovers. In comparison to my Marantz SR7000, the Marantz actually detected the signal being fed to it much further in advance than the Rotel RSX 1055 so it would switch over in a quicker manner thus eliminating the loss of sound. This has to be fixed.
5. Receiver randomly sends a power blip to my subwoofer causing it to "rumble" when nothing is playing (CD/DVD player is off).
6. Static "click" always happens when playing a DVD movie and pressing the "EQ" button. To remedy: stop the movie first and then press this button.
Wow, I never thought I would be so picky with my equipment since I do not consider myself to be an audiophile. However, I do have expectations due to the fact that my old receiver cost me about $600 less and did not have the annoyances of a more costly receiver (the RSX 1055 for this example).
So why did I keep it? Because it sounds damn good when you take away all of those issues I have with it. Do the benefits outweigh the annoyances? To some degree yes, to another degree, no. If the breaking point is the price, then since I have paid more for a receiver that causes me more annoyances than my Marantz (which was almost half the price of my new Rotel) then the answer is yes, I am disappointed. But I think the biggest reason why I am keeping it is based on two things: 1) upgradeability and 2) the way it sounds.
In all seriousness, I am banking on the hopes that Rotel will send a software update to fix all of these problems that I have listed (except for the light around the volume knob). This would be the coolest thing I could witness with an expensive receiver; having the manufacturer do what it actually claims (the ability to be upgradeable).
Sorry for taking you from pillar-to-post with this mixed review/posting. Just thought I would share my opinion of this otherwise fine receiver.
Candid feedback is encouraged. Thank you.
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