New / Old

[dharris]

Hi all! I have been using the Rotel RB-870BX for years now. It has been running strong since I have bought it. I never turn the power off as well.
My question is this, should I stay with this amp or look into new versions.
Are the new ones any better? I have also been running my Rotel 930AX with it for just as many years.

Thanks in advance,
Don

[wkhanna]

Hi Don, and welcome to the forum!

I noticed that you are also looking for a speaker upgrade too, by your post on the B&W Club Forum. I am a big fan of the older 9 series Rotel gear, I’ve had two RB980's for thirteen years. I feel if you are thinking of getting better speakers, you will need a little more power to get the SQ that they are capable of delivering. Under powering a speaker like a B&W is like having a Porsche with a Yugo engine. Oh, it will still look good, but will never deliver what it capable of on the road.

I might suggest upgrading to one of the newer 10 series Rotels, and if your considering HT also, your 870 will perform just fine for your rear surrounds or possibly bridged for powering a center. I’m known as a bit of a bottom feeder around hear, and so would also suggest considering buying a used amp. Amps are probably one of the safest components of buy used, as they tend to be fairly durable when they are on the mid to upper range of the quality hierarchy, IMHO.

Regardless, I like your idea of staying with separate components, as this allows flexibility for future upgrades.