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OK, well not a full review just yet but I thought I would post my initial impressions:
I will first get the list of gear used out of the way:
Pre-Pro: Parasound Halo C2
Speakers: Totems Model-1's Signature Series. (4 pairs) A pair of Totem Thunders Subs (on the inside of the left and right front speakers) and one Definitive Technology sub (In rear of theater)
Interconnects: Transparent 12Gauge "The Wall Speaker Cable"
Amps for comparison: QSC EX1250 THX Pro amp, McIntosh MC-225 Tube Amp
Pre-Pro to Amps interconnects: Monster M550i
Amp selector switching (for all but the Rotel 1077): Niles HDL-6 in reverse
For some reason the Rotel does not like being connected to the HDL-6 while any other amp is connected to it even it they are switched off and unplugged. All the other amps have no problems but the Rotel just goes straight into protection mode so for the comparisons I had to physically un-plug the other two amps when listening to the Rotel which of course slows things down.
Initial Impressions:
Out of the box… nice sounding, very nice sounding in fact.
I listened to some SACD and DVD-A and a few red book CD’s and a few DTS CD’s all down converted to 2-channel stereo. The Rotel, not even broken in yet mind you, sounded as good if not a tad better in the high and mid end range then the other two amps. Sound stage, as mentioned many times before is a tad bit more forward with the 1077. I really like the sound of the McIntosh tube amp but was equally impressed with the Rotel and amazed how similar the Rotel sound was to the tube amp but only cleaner with less harshness to it… very crisp and detailed highs… that’s the best I can explain it.
I also did a tad bit of viewing of some movie clips, like the newly released King Kong DVD and a few others just to see how the 1077 worked with multi channel sources and was extremely impressed with not only the front sound stage but the surrounds and the rear channels that just seemed to come alive with this amp versus using the 4 QSC pro amps I had originally been using for my amps.
So far the hardest thing to get used to is how small and light this thing it! The 4 QSC amps weigh so much that the floor sags when they are all racked, :E (well you get the idea anyway) the 1077 amp you can pick up with one hand.
But can such a small amp crank to the levels of four professional QSC amps you ask? Well you would have to stop by my theater to believe it! Seriously this thing cranks to ears bleeding levels, I kid you not.
These Totem speakers are power hungry and when I would crank up “Shak’in the Tree” – Peter Gabriel – Secret World Live, the QSC amps cooling fans would kick into full speed at reference level…. With the 1077 at reference level for the entire song, I could still place my hand on-top of the amp and it was only slightly warm??? I even put some ear plugs in and cranked the Halo C2 to +9 above reference and the 1077 was still only slightly warm to the touch and did not show signs of going into protection or even topping out for volume! Simply amazing as far as I am concerned!
The other really neat thing about this amp is that when I would crank the QSC amps up this loud the lights would actually dim with the hit of a drum or a strum of the guitar, but with the 1077 I could not see an effects on the lights. After looking up the current draw of the QSC amps on the specs sheets I can now see why. This 1077 will pay for itself in my theater with electric bill savings in probably a year or less.
So far I would have to give the 1077 a big :T :T :T
Well so much for a short initial impression.
I will post back after a few days break-in. If needed??? Will it get that much better??? ;x(
One last thing… you really have to pay attention when wiring this amp up as the back it very tight and not laid out intuitively, I could see how easy it would be to wire it up out of phase if you do not take your time and in my case, use a Mag light to light up what you are doing in a darkened home theater.
I will first get the list of gear used out of the way:
Pre-Pro: Parasound Halo C2
Speakers: Totems Model-1's Signature Series. (4 pairs) A pair of Totem Thunders Subs (on the inside of the left and right front speakers) and one Definitive Technology sub (In rear of theater)
Interconnects: Transparent 12Gauge "The Wall Speaker Cable"
Amps for comparison: QSC EX1250 THX Pro amp, McIntosh MC-225 Tube Amp
Pre-Pro to Amps interconnects: Monster M550i
Amp selector switching (for all but the Rotel 1077): Niles HDL-6 in reverse
For some reason the Rotel does not like being connected to the HDL-6 while any other amp is connected to it even it they are switched off and unplugged. All the other amps have no problems but the Rotel just goes straight into protection mode so for the comparisons I had to physically un-plug the other two amps when listening to the Rotel which of course slows things down.
Initial Impressions:
Out of the box… nice sounding, very nice sounding in fact.
I listened to some SACD and DVD-A and a few red book CD’s and a few DTS CD’s all down converted to 2-channel stereo. The Rotel, not even broken in yet mind you, sounded as good if not a tad better in the high and mid end range then the other two amps. Sound stage, as mentioned many times before is a tad bit more forward with the 1077. I really like the sound of the McIntosh tube amp but was equally impressed with the Rotel and amazed how similar the Rotel sound was to the tube amp but only cleaner with less harshness to it… very crisp and detailed highs… that’s the best I can explain it.
I also did a tad bit of viewing of some movie clips, like the newly released King Kong DVD and a few others just to see how the 1077 worked with multi channel sources and was extremely impressed with not only the front sound stage but the surrounds and the rear channels that just seemed to come alive with this amp versus using the 4 QSC pro amps I had originally been using for my amps.
So far the hardest thing to get used to is how small and light this thing it! The 4 QSC amps weigh so much that the floor sags when they are all racked, :E (well you get the idea anyway) the 1077 amp you can pick up with one hand.
But can such a small amp crank to the levels of four professional QSC amps you ask? Well you would have to stop by my theater to believe it! Seriously this thing cranks to ears bleeding levels, I kid you not.
These Totem speakers are power hungry and when I would crank up “Shak’in the Tree” – Peter Gabriel – Secret World Live, the QSC amps cooling fans would kick into full speed at reference level…. With the 1077 at reference level for the entire song, I could still place my hand on-top of the amp and it was only slightly warm??? I even put some ear plugs in and cranked the Halo C2 to +9 above reference and the 1077 was still only slightly warm to the touch and did not show signs of going into protection or even topping out for volume! Simply amazing as far as I am concerned!
The other really neat thing about this amp is that when I would crank the QSC amps up this loud the lights would actually dim with the hit of a drum or a strum of the guitar, but with the 1077 I could not see an effects on the lights. After looking up the current draw of the QSC amps on the specs sheets I can now see why. This 1077 will pay for itself in my theater with electric bill savings in probably a year or less.
So far I would have to give the 1077 a big :T :T :T
Well so much for a short initial impression.
I will post back after a few days break-in. If needed??? Will it get that much better??? ;x(
One last thing… you really have to pay attention when wiring this amp up as the back it very tight and not laid out intuitively, I could see how easy it would be to wire it up out of phase if you do not take your time and in my case, use a Mag light to light up what you are doing in a darkened home theater.
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