Need Feedback on new Rotel purchase

[Eusebius]

Ok Gentlemen, I think I have come to the right place. I need advice and opinions. First of all I’m pretty much sold on Rotel for a number of reasons; quality, dealer more or less in the area, warranty and independent research regarding value.

I now own two Vienna Acoustic Mozarts (6 ohm) I bought used and I LOVE them! My listening room is 24 by 26 feet by 14 foot peaked vaulted ceilings, all open. Robert Harley’s book says I need 92watts to fill this volume in an average “acoustic friendly” listening room. Media use is about 50% music and light vocal and 50% home theatre.

I trying to decide between the RSX 1067 and the RMB 1075 and RSP 1068. I will mostly likely buy a RDV 1060 to go with the choice, (damn I wish Rotel played SACD, mostly because of the availability of titles in that format.

I’m afraid with the 1067 I’m going to shortchange myself with regard to power in the room. I’m not too worried about home theatre, but I am concerned about the ability of the RSX 1067 to open up the VA’s in the room for stereo listening. The $500 to upgrade to the 1075 is affordable,, it’s the space and ease of use issue. I would rather have the one receiver in the cabinet unit rather than burying an amp and worrying about ventilation.

And the last issue/question. This will really show my ignorance. Will the 3 unused channels in the 1067 be able to be drawn on in stereo mode, or am I going to hit the ceiling of 100 watts? If not, then I’m wondering if the extra 20 watts in the 1075 is really worth the extra $500 plus another 70 or so for shipping and the space issue.

I need to be convinced the 1075 is going to open the VA’s up substantially in the room to justify the extra cost and space.

Thanks for any opinions and help.

[Stevebez]

Personally while receivers are convenient I don't like them firstly because there is in my view inevitible interference between the componentry but more importantly it seems the whole planet is moving to digital radio broadcasting as well. Not only is this superior quality but will make traditional "radios" a bit antiquated ... apologies to the receiver owners out there !!!

Having seperates is more flexible and probably more geared towards enthusiasts as well ... not saying receivers arn't for enthusiasts just seems to me most enthusiasts go for seperates... for what ever reasons.

Sounds like your speakers are fairly low impedendce as well and I think the 1075 will be better suited to drive them and could be a real win in a bi-amped mode using 4 of the 1075 channels to drive them - but that will mean no 5.1 surround sound home theatre.

With a receiver you also are not restricted to the processor technology packaged with the amplifier. Amplifier design has not changed much in the last decade or so but processors have come a million miles.

I have the 1075 and think its a gr8 piece of kit ... as for ventilation it runs very cool indeed so ventilation should not be a problem.

Hope this helps...

Rgsd Steve.

[Radec]

I auditioned the 1067 and found the 1068/1075 to be well worth the $500. Unless you can't make the size of 2 components work (the 1075 pretty big!!), I think it would be wise to consider separates. My dealer had these in the same room so an A/B comparision was easy. Listen and see, I'd be curious to hear your impressions.

[mikeyc]

I compared the receiver with the 1075/1068 and found the separates to have a larger soundstage and better imaging. However, this was with A/B comparison in the same room, with the same CDP and disk, and I doubt I could tell the difference otherwise. You also have to figure in the cost of five more cables for the seps which could get pretty pricey depending on what you get.

Tough call, but I'm going with the separates because it gives me more flexibity down the road and I won't have any buyer's remorse.

[soldonandy]

You'll hear a difference with the separates irregardless of the close power rating between the receiver and the 1068/1075 combo.

[Eusebius]

Thank you for the feedback. I'm still thinking the 1075 might be overkill for our listening tastes for HT, yet I believe I need power to open up the VA's.

Has anyone used a RB1080 with a RSX1056? I read on the Rotel site that there is a redirect feature in the receiver. Does this mean I can run my CD source through the RSX1056 cleanly to the RB1080 to light up the VA's in stereo mode and when I want HT I can simply use the 75 watts of the RSX1056 to drive my center and surrounds and the 1080 for the mains? I knda like the price point of the combo too.

How does this work? Is if fairly easy to switch from stereo using the 1080 to HT mode to use the other three channels. I suppose I should call the Rotel dealer and pick some salesmans brain, but I would sure like to be a wee bit informed before doing so.

Thanks!

[Nick M]

What type of speaker setup do you use? 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1?

If you have a 5.1 setup, moving from the 1067 to the 1068/1075 would be a good move, especially in a room like yours. If you have a 7.1 setup, you would have to buy an additional 2ch amp like the 1080 because the 1075 is only 5ch. I personally use a 1075, and love it.

If money is a concern and all you want is 5.1 DD/DTS along with good analog bypass for 2ch and DVD-A/SACD, you might want to look at Outlaw Audio's Model 950 pre/pro. Its not as sexy looking as the 1068, but it sounds fantastic decoding DD/DTS, and transparent in bypass mode. A great value. I would take my Outlaw 950/Rotel 1075 combo over any receiver anyday. The 950 is $700+Shipping.

For DVD-A/SACD, I think you would be better off with a non-rotel unit. The new Denon DVD-3910, or a used/refurbed Denon 2900. Both of these play DVD-A/SACD along with CDs and DVD Video. They are more expensive than the Rotel units, but I like my 2900 better than the Rotel 1060 I listened too.

Good Luck!

[Andrew Pratt]

The redirect feature means that you can redirect the front two speakers in the 1056 (or 1067) and use the to power 1) rear channels in a 7.1 setup or 2) second zone speakers. Adding the 1080 would help a great deal for 2 channel sound over the stock amps in either receiver. The 1056 also gives you a tuner that the 1068 lacks so if that's a consideration it might tip the favour towards the receiver plus an amp. You could also add the 1075 to the 1056 if you wanted as well. Really it boils down to how you want to use the system. The 1068 has a lower noise floor and should sound slightly better then the 1056 when used as pre amps so if sonic fidelity is the top priority go with the 1068 and the 1075. If you need a tuner going with a receiver and one of the power amps is a logical choice. The 1080 would be a better choice for music while the 1075 would give you a more ballenced powerful sound for HT and multichannel music....either way I wouldn't advise you going with just a receiver.