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Hello all. I'm Sithlord's Brother (Older) and I'm so impressed with the Rotel 1098 I must impress upon you (I doubt I need to do that anyway) just how good this Processor is. Stereo/Surround was once my hobby but I handed over the mantel to Sithlord. From my experiences in Hi-Fi and also watching my brother make various (Good) choices in components I can honestly say this is the most excited I've been about a single component yet. Sithlord has built his system using the same premise I use to build high-performance PC's - get the best you can within reason after examining all the alternatives. And read, read, read. So on with my impressions....
Sithlord had a Denon AVCA1 (Upgraded internally) as you probably already know. We tweaked the system around it with high-grade Audioquest Speaker cable/Interconnects/Power Filters and of course the Rotel 1095 5-Channel Amp. With the incredible (And yet to be matched by ANY Subwoofer I've ever heard - and I'm a Sub/Bass nut - Whise Profunder) we both thought the system sounded 'excellent' and was leaning toward the high-end without going to say 'Meridian' (Which is just far too expensive). His best upgrade was to the M&K THX5000 Speakers - pure bliss.
I didn't want to offend my Brother (As he's very sensitive about his Surround!) but I always thought there was something 'missing' from the mix. We heard (Countless times) many systems at our local Surround specialist and I was always confounded why Sith's system didn't 'quite' sound as good as theirs. And then I found out why - they'd been running a 1066 (I only just found that out). So Sith's system had the punch, the quality speakers and for all intents and purposes a top-end Processor/Amp. So what was missing.....?
The Rotel 1098 was missing. I'm simply stunned by this Processor - I really am. No single upgrade thus far has had such an impact on Surround as has this Processor. Whilst the Denon sounded 'muddy' the Rotel sounds 'crystal' & 'punchy' without being harsh. To my very well attuned ears it appears the Denon was in fact only delivering (Or rather processing) about 3/4 of the digital information being fed to it). That's the only explanation I can come up with. On the Denon the surrounds were 'dull' to the point of being 'lifeless'. Sure they made noise but it was indistinct and 'boring'. I like my Surrounds lively and entertaining whilst not detracting from the front stage. On the other hand the Rotel 1098 has justified the very existence of the M&K THX5000's. I'm almost certain now the Denon was delivering a quality of such lackluster performance that these wonderful speakers were only performing at nary 1/3 of what they're capable of (In clarity and presence). Oh my God what a difference the 1098 has made to those speakers. They positiviely SING now.
The Rears now pound out a superb, involving rear stage that is often unnerving - now that's more like it. The 1098 is so damn close to sounding like a real life movie theatre I will seriously question spending good money to go there anymore! It's THAT good. Overall sound is incredibly punchy, real, solid, involving, musical and blisteringly powerful. It's everything the Denon wasn't. I'm hearing sounds in movies we're testing I simply have NEVER heard before on ANY system. Staggering. I was just watching Bladerunner which happens to be my favourite movie of all time and whilst it's only a Pro Logic mix the whole experience has been dramtically lifted by the 1098. In fact it can be DIRECTLY compared to the Directors Cut viewing I saw back in 1993 which was in a very high-quality theatre here in Melbourne, Australia. Dialogue. This is one thing that we constantly mentioned (complained?) about in almost every DVD we've watched - it was too low. In fact some of the dialogue was so 'muffled' you often had to strain to understand what was going on over the other 'channels' in the movie. Not so with the 1098.
Dialogue is crystal, distinct, effortless, very forward and very involving. It's so good the viewer is riveted to their seat enjoying the show - fogetting WHY they are so involved. And that to me is good surround - when you can enjoy the movie without being overly critical or 'aware' of the sound. Music in movies. Delightful, big, brash, scary at times. Watch LOTR - FOTR or TT - dear me what was the Denon not doing here? Nothing! The sound from the 1098 is EPIC! I can't wait to watch Ben Hur or Saving Private Ryan on this baby!
I've waffled too much I know. If you're able then buy this Processor. For $5000(AU) this unit could almost be regarded as 'cheap' compared to other solutions (Arcam, Parasound). With a firmware upgrade to fix a couple of niggles I would have to say the Rotel 1098 is the finest single component I've heard in a decade. And we go to a LOT of Hi-Fi shows!
Stay well all.
Sithlord had a Denon AVCA1 (Upgraded internally) as you probably already know. We tweaked the system around it with high-grade Audioquest Speaker cable/Interconnects/Power Filters and of course the Rotel 1095 5-Channel Amp. With the incredible (And yet to be matched by ANY Subwoofer I've ever heard - and I'm a Sub/Bass nut - Whise Profunder) we both thought the system sounded 'excellent' and was leaning toward the high-end without going to say 'Meridian' (Which is just far too expensive). His best upgrade was to the M&K THX5000 Speakers - pure bliss.
I didn't want to offend my Brother (As he's very sensitive about his Surround!) but I always thought there was something 'missing' from the mix. We heard (Countless times) many systems at our local Surround specialist and I was always confounded why Sith's system didn't 'quite' sound as good as theirs. And then I found out why - they'd been running a 1066 (I only just found that out). So Sith's system had the punch, the quality speakers and for all intents and purposes a top-end Processor/Amp. So what was missing.....?
The Rotel 1098 was missing. I'm simply stunned by this Processor - I really am. No single upgrade thus far has had such an impact on Surround as has this Processor. Whilst the Denon sounded 'muddy' the Rotel sounds 'crystal' & 'punchy' without being harsh. To my very well attuned ears it appears the Denon was in fact only delivering (Or rather processing) about 3/4 of the digital information being fed to it). That's the only explanation I can come up with. On the Denon the surrounds were 'dull' to the point of being 'lifeless'. Sure they made noise but it was indistinct and 'boring'. I like my Surrounds lively and entertaining whilst not detracting from the front stage. On the other hand the Rotel 1098 has justified the very existence of the M&K THX5000's. I'm almost certain now the Denon was delivering a quality of such lackluster performance that these wonderful speakers were only performing at nary 1/3 of what they're capable of (In clarity and presence). Oh my God what a difference the 1098 has made to those speakers. They positiviely SING now.
The Rears now pound out a superb, involving rear stage that is often unnerving - now that's more like it. The 1098 is so damn close to sounding like a real life movie theatre I will seriously question spending good money to go there anymore! It's THAT good. Overall sound is incredibly punchy, real, solid, involving, musical and blisteringly powerful. It's everything the Denon wasn't. I'm hearing sounds in movies we're testing I simply have NEVER heard before on ANY system. Staggering. I was just watching Bladerunner which happens to be my favourite movie of all time and whilst it's only a Pro Logic mix the whole experience has been dramtically lifted by the 1098. In fact it can be DIRECTLY compared to the Directors Cut viewing I saw back in 1993 which was in a very high-quality theatre here in Melbourne, Australia. Dialogue. This is one thing that we constantly mentioned (complained?) about in almost every DVD we've watched - it was too low. In fact some of the dialogue was so 'muffled' you often had to strain to understand what was going on over the other 'channels' in the movie. Not so with the 1098.
Dialogue is crystal, distinct, effortless, very forward and very involving. It's so good the viewer is riveted to their seat enjoying the show - fogetting WHY they are so involved. And that to me is good surround - when you can enjoy the movie without being overly critical or 'aware' of the sound. Music in movies. Delightful, big, brash, scary at times. Watch LOTR - FOTR or TT - dear me what was the Denon not doing here? Nothing! The sound from the 1098 is EPIC! I can't wait to watch Ben Hur or Saving Private Ryan on this baby!
I've waffled too much I know. If you're able then buy this Processor. For $5000(AU) this unit could almost be regarded as 'cheap' compared to other solutions (Arcam, Parasound). With a firmware upgrade to fix a couple of niggles I would have to say the Rotel 1098 is the finest single component I've heard in a decade. And we go to a LOT of Hi-Fi shows!
Stay well all.
The more I hear about the 1098, the more I think it might be worth the upgrade. It's just that the 1066 is so fricken good for the money, or period for that matter. Another problem is that the dealer I bought my 1066 from is no longer carrying Rotel and the only other dealer around here isn't my favorite. You know how it is when one shop makes you feel real comfortable and at home and the other shop, while polite, makes you feel somehow uncomfortable. 
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