Are Rotel's really this bad??

[Markmm]

I'm trying to decide between an Outlaw 990 and their new 5 channel amp when it comes out combo and Rotel's 1068+1095. Been glancing over the Outlaw forums and this one, and this one is scaring me off the Rotel's a bit. Seems almost everyone has hiss or a channel not working. Is there something I'm missing or is it just the angry people post?

Has anyone here compared both these sets of products?

Thanks!

[Marlboroman]

Your average consumer will not post on forums such as this unless they have a problem with something. They also will not usually post a follow up with what the problem was if they ever solve it. The best thing you can do is to listen for yourself and see what you think.

[Kevin D]

It all about percentages. Since Outlaw is an internet only company, almost 100% of the people buying their product is internet savy. So you get almost 100% posting their findings, good or bad. In addition, since Outlaw is an internet based company, they are able to take care of people having issues directly without having to go through a dealer support network.

Lets just assume that both companies have a 5% problem rate. That means that 5% of the posts you find about Outlaw will be bad, a small percentage of posts. With us being one of the only outlets for help, we tend to get a higher percentage of posts dealing with problems.

So Rotel probably has about the same problem rate as Outlaw, we just get a higher percent of problem posts compared to praise posts.

Kevin D.

[calmac]

It all about percentages. Since Outlaw is an internet only company, almost 100% of the people buying their product is internet savy. So you get almost 100% posting their findings, good or bad. In addition, since Outlaw is an internet based company, they are able to take care of people having issues directly without having to go through a dealer support network.

Lets just assume that both companies have a 5% problem rate. That means that 5% of the posts you find about Outlaw will be bad, a small percentage of posts. With us being one of the only outlets for help, we tend to get a higher percentage of posts dealing with problems.

So Rotel probably has about the same problem rate as Outlaw, we just get a higher percent of problem posts compared to praise posts.

Kevin D.

I am sure that Rotel , being an international company ,outsells Outlaw by at least 10:1 so there may be more complaints for Rotel but the percentage of faulty units will be the same or less.
Gordon

[PewterTA]

Well here's one thing to think about...

At least you KNOW what problems you might come across... Do you know what problems you will come across with the Outlaw (not saying you will or won't have problems with either manufacturer's product). Plus there's alot more people here figuring out solutions to those problems...

So that might be something to think about as well.

I don't mind having a product with a known defect to it as long as there's a simple solution...especially if it sounds as good as my 1098/1095/1080 does. ha ha.

I'm not telling you to go with Rotel over Outlaw, that should be your decision on which you think sounds better.

[aud19]

FWIW, my 1066 and 1075 have been flawless from day 1 and sound awesome :T

[eelco74]

I own a almost 8 years old RB-981 (now RB-1070) and a 5 year old RB-985MKII (now RRM-1075) and I have never had any problem. I accidently shorted it twice, just replaced the fuse and it was up and running.

Different Rotel equipment have arrived and beiing sold again over the past 17 years. The only thing that ever broke was my RDV-985, witch got its region code confused.

Rotel service is excellent and they fixed it quickly. Amps have a 5 year warrenty, just in case you need it.

[DrJRapp]

Has anyone here compared both these sets of products?

Thanks!

One area that is easy to compare...resale value. I'm willing to bet Rotel will win that one hands down.

[Eliav]

I'm trying to decide between an Outlaw 990 and their new 5 channel amp when it comes out combo and Rotel's 1068+1095. Been glancing over the Outlaw forums and this one, and this one is scaring me off the Rotel's a bit. Seems almost everyone has hiss or a channel not working. Is there something I'm missing or is it just the angry people post?

Has anyone here compared both these sets of products?

Thanks!

Hi
I have owned the 1068/1095 combo for 3 months. while not top high-end products, it is definitely great value for the money, it is very musical in my opinion, and sounds surprisingly great .Can you get better than this? sure, if you double or even tripple the price. expect what you pay for!
I have had no problems with the gear so far.
cheers
Eliav

[RebelMan]

Rotel service is excellent and they fixed it quickly. Amps have a 5 year warrenty, just in case you need it.

What was the turnaround time for yor RDV? I sent my RDV-1050 in two weeks ago tomorrow and they told me last Friday that it may not be until next week when they send it back. Three+ potential weeks, for repair, doesn't seem so quick to me.

[RebelMan]

One area that is easy to compare...resale value. I'm willing to bet Rotel will win that one hands down.

It will also win any beauty contests. :B

[Boombox]

"...Three+ potential weeks, for repair, doesn't seem so quick to me..." understandable...

All I would care about is that the manufacturer is prepared to repair/replace a product which is under/not under guarentee...whether it takes 2 days of 2 months....(while I think 2 months is on the unacceptable side though...)...I've heard of companies (such as my speaker brand), that replaced drivers at no cost to the consumer on their products that were out of guarentee. Now that's client service..!!

[eelco74]

What was the turnaround time for yor RDV? I sent my RDV-1050 in two weeks ago tomorrow and they told me last Friday that it may not be until next week when they send it back. Three+ potential weeks, for repair, doesn't seem so quick to me.

I think it took about two weeks to repair. I think it is rather normal, concidering you need to identify the problem, perhaps order some part, fix the problem, test if it is OK and send it back to the customer.

I have had about 12 different Rotel pieces in the last 17 years. Only one broke down....

[Markmm]

Thanks for the info! Definitely no contest as far as looks go. Rotel has done a really good job as far as that.

The issue that concerns me the most from reading is hiss from the surround speakers when listening to 2 channel CD's.

[aud19]

"...Three+ potential weeks, for repair, doesn't seem so quick to me..." understandable...

All I would care about is that the manufacturer is prepared to repair/replace a product which is under/not under guarentee...whether it takes 2 days of 2 months....(while I think 2 months is on the unacceptable side though...)...I've heard of companies (such as my speaker brand), that replaced drivers at no cost to the consumer on their products that were out of guarentee. Now that's client service..!!

I agree, shipping to, diagnosis, part ordering, repair, testing and shipping back doesn't happen in a couple days 2-3 weeks is acceptable IMO. Obviously faster is better though :B

Try the MONTHS it took Yamaha to try to repair my RX-V1!! :evil: Though to their credit after sending it in a couple times and having new problems pop up each time I got it back, they did send me a brand new copy of the the newer model (RX-Z1) :T