Sad Rotel Story

[wca156]

:banghead: The sad story starts off with my decision to get a high end HT system a few months ago. (Believe it or not, I started out looking for XM radio when I heard the B&W speakers through a McIntosh amp and was tranformed.) The units that I wanted would fit in to my family room so I had to finish my game room. I pick out the Rotel 1068, 1075 and 1072. For speakers I pick out the B&W 803S for the front, the HTM3S as the centre, the Martin Logan Depth for the sub and haven't picked out the rears as yet. I aslo got a 50 inch plasma TV. The game room is finally complete (it seemed like it took forever) and last Wednesday to system was installed. WOW!!! It really sounded great. I was really enjoying the system and the new media room. I'm watching a movie this morning when all of the sudden I hear about 5 seconds of fizz coming from my speakers and then nothing. The TV is still showing a picture and the smell of burning wire eminates from my new cabinet. All bets are off. The 1075 is history! It's a good thing I bought the less expensive plasma TV that included speakers or I would be out of luck. Not a good way to start out my foray into the high end HT world.

[mitch57]

Sorry to hear that your amp failed. Any idea what caused the 1075 to crash and burn? :cry:

[lvhung]

Made in china is the problem with QC

[wca156]

I don't have any idea what happened yet. A new amp has been ordered and all will be well soon. It won't be long until it is just another story to tell while listening to some great music.

[Andrew Pratt]

Its rare that we hear about 1075's failing...not that will make you feel any better. Nice gear choices though

[KathyMason]

lvhung said: "Made in china is the problem with QC" :E

Ivhung, I know you can't be that naive! Practically everything is manufactured in China these days! Including your computer.
Quality Control is not the problem with being manufactured in China. :rofl:

[mattburk]

right oh, kathy, I beat my 1075 with a stick, and it still runs great, never a glitch, low noise floor, and I use 4ohm speakers.

[DrJRapp]

I agree with Kathy, the final assembly point is not the problem. Not that it's any consolation to you, WCA156, but this is probably the 1st 1075 problem I've seen show up on this forum since I joined two years ago. MY 1075 is probably the ONLY piece of Rotel gear I have not had a problem with. Therefore your statistical chance of getting a good one the second time around is excellent.

[DelRay]

Sorry to hear about your 1075. But why are you glad you bought the less expensive plasma tv? I'm a little lost hear. Did it fry your speakers also?

[RebelMan]

I've been pretty fortunate that none of my Rotel components have had any issues, thus far, although others that own what I do have. Of all the pieces that Rotel makes only one stands out as having "world class" performance and reliablity and that has been the RMB-1075. This was probably just a "fluke" of nature and hopefully it won't be too long for the replacement to come in and you get back to enjoying what you have been missing.

[wca156]

DelRay - I should have been more clear about the plasma. The reason that I'm glad I bought the less expensive plasma TV is that the more expensive one did not include speakers in the unit. It was made specifically for HT. If I would have bought that one I would be out of luck until the amp was replaced.

[DelRay]

Oh OK. Thanks for clearing that up for me. Like everyone else has stated about the 1075. Built like a tank with very few issues. I'm sure the new one will be just fine. Double check all your connections just in case. :T

[Azeke]

I concur, this is the first time I have heard of any issues with the 1075. Sorry to hear about your amp's demise.

I would certainly trace the issue to find the root cause and to ensure there are no problems in the future.

Just my quick thoughts,

Azeke

[Cracking Oboe]

:banghead: ... and the smell of burning wire eminates from my new cabinet.

Sorry to hear of your misfortunes .

Does your new cabinet have good ventilation and shelving allowing for space above the amp?

Cracking!

[wca156]

Yes it does have good ventilation and shelving. The cabinet was designed for a component system. Help is on the way! The replacement 1075 will be in tomorrow!

[pbarata]

Unfortunately I’ve also joined a few months ago the “sad story group”. My RSP-1066 died on 23rd April this year and I’m still waiting for a repair, which I believe will be quite expensive, as the last diagnostic point to a major failure on main processor board.

Just take a look on thread http://www.htguide.com/forum/showthr...light=rsp-1066 and maybe you will find some comfort, or maybe you will start thinking that Rotel reliability is going down. But I’m note sure it's not only about Quality Control, because my unit worked for about 2 years without any problem. Nevertheless I strongly believe that Rotel will try to improve here.

At least I sincerely hope that your repair to be done quickly, otherwise have my sympathy, because It’s really hard to live without our system for such a long time. ;x(

[GosonFletchy]

I just wanted to share something on the Made In China issue. Some time back I emailed Rotel and asked about concerns of product made in China and their dedication to quality control. Here is the response that I received:

"The Rotel Company is a family owned company who has been in business for 40
years. Although presently located in China, the company is actually operated
through the Tokyo office and is therefore seen as a Japanese operation. The
Japanese government is very conscious that Japanese companies are fair to
their Chinese employees and have a system in place that ensures a minimum
standard.

The present factory is in Baoan, southern China however very soon Rotel and
its employees will be moving to Zhuhai close to Macao, where a new purpose
built 9000 sqmt factory and 200 room condominium are being built. Perhaps
the thought of living at the factory condominium and eating with your
coworkers would be considered unacceptable in the west but it's a big plus
in China as the majority of the employees send money home for their families
and welcome the 'pay rise'.

While China is not like anywhere else, the people are the same and all
aspire to attain the norm - home, auto, etc. They have TV's and lots of off
time. They mostly live in the condo units because they come from all over
China. Certainly, the wages are less than in the west but taken within the
context of China, Rotel employees earn a fair wage and have good living
conditions. They are free to change jobs at will and actually the employer
cannot let staff go without going through a somewhat complicated process.
And, city regulations do not allow overtime of more than 20%.

Problems seem to be more apparent when companies in Europe and America carry
goods made in China by local manufacturers who do not need to be so careful
how they look after their people, particularly when they are being driven to
meet the lowest price. Worse, of course, is that you can't write to these
offending companies because you don't know who they are. Rotel may not be in
the big leagues, but we do operate our business in the open.

While the labor is sourced in China many of the component parts are sourced
from Europe, Japan and America Rotel uses parts from Wellwyn, Vishay, Analog
Devices, Cirrus Logic and Toshiba and others. Being in a Chinese base
enables the Rotel engineers to recommend and use only the very best parts to
build our products and we don't try to cut corners by using unbranded
inexpensive parts from Chinese vendors. Rotel winds the transformers for
their models not because it's 'cheaper' but so they can use a better
component to make a better sound.

Whatever you decide to buy, I can assure you that if you do buy Rotel
equipment, it will provide many years of musical enjoyment we have more and
more testimonials every year from the worldwide press confirming our
commitment to better sound!

Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions.

Best Regards,"


I thought it was a very honest repsonse.

G.

:assimilate:

[lvhung]

My denon DV 2900 made in China has some problems with
vibrating and really hot

[Elvis]

My denon DV 2900 made in China has some problems with
vibrating and really hot

Ha.....they all(2900's) do that.Blame Denon not China.

The 1075 has a great record.

[stanleyleecm]

Ha.....they all(2900's) do that.Blame Denon not China.

The 1075 has a great record.

I agree....blame Denon!!

[wca156]

Update on the problem - The diagnosis of a bad 1075 was incorrect. The amp is fine, but the 1068 was the culprit. I am running everything on analog until the new 1068 arrives. At least I can enjoy my new system. BTW - the 1072 and my B&W 803S speakers are fantastic. I can't wait until HTM3S and my CWM650 are fully operations.

Many of you said that the 1075 was not known as having problems. Well, false alarm. As far as I'm concerned, it is still top shelf.