Rotel system purchase opinion...

[PJL-Canada]

Hi all, I'm a Rotel Newb here...

I am contemplating replacing my Marantz SR7000 Receiver (6.5 yrs old) with a Rotel RSP-1068 Processor, RMB-1075 5 ch amp , and RB-1070 2 ch amp for front L and R.
The set up will be located in an avg size basement room (900 sq ft) powering Newform Research R630 spkrs for front L and R mains, Newform Research R58-center, Boston CR-65 Surr, and Energy Reference - rears.

Do these Rotel models seem matched to the task?

How much different and presumably better will this sound from the Marantz receiver?

Should I wait till new product replaces these Rotel models or should I get these current ones at a 20 % discount?


Would appreciate your thoughts...

[CombatWombat]

I was looking at almost the same set up last year sometime, Then choose to wait and save to get the 1098 and a heap of stereo amps

Not that there is anything wrong with the setup you have picked I thought about It sounded awsome when I listend to it I just craved a bit more Im a sucker for that. So I would say yes good pick (IMO)

BTW make sure you set aside a bit of tokens for Interconnect cabels between you amps and Pre/Pro and also from your source (DVD,CD ect) other wise you will not get the most out of it as a matter of fact it might sound worse dont have to spend a heaps jusyt dont connect with $2 connectors

Talk to LEX from CAT cabels he might have a soloution that might suite you


Good luck and welcome

[soundhound]

The only thing I would do differently (and did) is replace the 1070 with the 1080 for the front mains. Very nice gear and have kept many people happy for some time. Would assume you could get a pretty good price break if you buy all at once.
Good luck and post your outcome.

[rickyo]

Hi guys im new here but if it was me, instead of getting the 1070 why not get another 1075 for a mere $300 difference. With 2 units of 1075 you have 10x120w of power that you can use to bi-amped both your FRONT left-right and CENTER speakers(6x120w) and the remaining 4x120w to power your REAR and SURROUNDS for an awesome 7.0 set-up.

[gd]

900 sq ft is huge... you need power.

I say more amps, even if it means hanging on to the Marantz as a pre (that 7000 is a bullet-proof classic that sounds great, if a little different than Rotel).

I'd suggest an RMB-1095 + RB-1090 – or a bank of RB-1092's... either could easily be your last power amp purchase ever.

Then hold off for a pre-pro after a couple generations of HDMI-3 models come and go to get the bugs out.

[PJL-Canada]

900 sq ft is huge... you need power.

I say more amps, even if it means hanging on to the Marantz as a pre (that 7000 is a bullet-proof classic that sounds great, if a little different than Rotel).

I'd suggest an RMB-1095 + RB-1090 – or a bank of RB-1092's... either could easily be your last power amp purchase ever.

Then hold off for a pre-pro after a couple generations of HDMI-3 models come and go to get the bugs out.

The SR7000 @ 100W/ch has been loud enough for most situations in this room. I'm assuming/ hoping that 130 -120 w/ch from the under rated Rotels would be enough. I do believe that you can never have too much headroom but, the RMB-1095's and RB-1090 will require more real estate and may strain the budget as well. The Marantz 7000 has limited bass mgmt and basic DD/DTS only so I would like to update the processor soon. As far as HDMI, Rotel will offer a compatible add-on box to switch/integrate HDMI to existing 1068/1098 processors via the RS-232 port which I could look at down the road if I should need it.

Also, I'm curious about what you mean that the Marantz and the Rotel differ in their sound? Could you eloborate? I have no complaints about the Marantz "sound", but I am looking for an improvement in 2 ch "musicality", and improved definition/impact with 5/7.1 Music & movies.

Regards

Pete

[PJL-Canada]

[QUOTE=soundhound]The only thing I would do differently (and did) is replace the 1070 with the 1080 for the front mains. QUOTE]

I could squeeze a few more $$ for the 1080 if it made a difference. Was your reason to upgrade for more power only. Was there any sonic improvement in the 1080?

Pete

[soundhound]

Yes, the 1080 (after broken in, all my Rotel gear sounded a little "stiff" out of the box) does everything the 1070 does, only Better. Enough to justify the few xtra $$$$. It had a better bottom end, seems to come to life a little earlier (lower db) than the 1070, and had a little better head room at higher db. I had even tried a 1090 just for the sake of, but my favorite of the bunch was the 1080. I have since moved on to all 2 channel tubes so.......but, did just grab a new RSX-1056 for ht because I like Rotel.

[gd]

Also, I'm curious about what you mean that the Marantz and the Rotel differ in their sound? Could you eloborate? I have no complaints about the Marantz "sound", but I am looking for an improvement in 2 ch "musicality", and improved definition/impact with 5/7.1 Music & movies.

The eternal question... sound characteristics.

In the most generalized terms, I think of the Marantz – especially that older X000-series – as 'detailed, smooth' and the Rotels – especially the current series – as 'detailed, slightly forward' (don't like to use quasi-audiophile descriptive terms)... both are extremely pleasing for music to me, I favor them over all other mainstream receivers for that reason... and yes, I'm confident the Rotel pre would get you the extra 'punch' you seek.

Certainly, if you need serious (or ANY) bass mgt, the Marantz has outlived its usefulness... and a Rotel pre will provide exciting audio, for music and film.

I still say get as much power you can for what most would regard as a seriously large room, and never buy power amps again (maybe a space-friendly 1077 + a single 1092)... you may possibly upgrade speakers in the future (I'd suggest a voice-matched system), and it would be nice to have sufficient power in place in the event that you are drawn toward low-efficiency speakers.

Happy hunting.

[grit]

I'll throw my $.02 in with the "get the 1080 crowd". Or if you're doing HT, get the 1075 or 1095 or 1077. You'll save yourself the "damn, I wish I'd gotten the bigger amp" problem later on. And, bigger amps mean more detail at LOWER volumes too. I was quite surprised to discover that the 1095 provides more detail at lower volumes, and has (understandably) better control of the woofers, providing more detailed bass.

As for the 1068, I'd really recommend waiting for 6-12 months for the next generation that'll support HDMI 1.3 and decode the audio formats. I could really not care too much less about the video throughputs, but the lack of future-proofed audio decoding (for a pre/pro) is kinda important (to me). As far as quality goes (if you don't care to wait), the 1068 is a GREAT investment.

[PJL-Canada]

I'll throw my $.02 in with the "get the 1080 crowd". Or if you're doing HT, get the 1075 or 1095 or 1077. You'll save yourself the "damn, I wish I'd gotten the bigger amp" problem later on. And, bigger amps mean more detail at LOWER volumes too. I was quite surprised to discover that the 1095 provides more detail at lower volumes, and has (understandably) better control of the woofers, providing more detailed bass.

As for the 1068, I'd really recommend waiting for 6-12 months for the next generation that'll support HDMI 1.3 and decode the audio formats. I could really not care too much less about the video throughputs, but the lack of future-proofed audio decoding (for a pre/pro) is kinda important (to me). As far as quality goes (if you don't care to wait), the 1068 is a GREAT investment.

"I NEED MORE POWER SCOTTY!!!"

I see your point about "damn, I wish I'd gotten the bigger amp" scenario. I liked the heap of stereo amps idea from CombatWombat too, however 200 watts would be more than recessary for my surround speakers. I'm going to put more weight on upsizing to the 1080 amp that I originally thought for the front mains, especially in 2 ch mode. I also wouldn't have expected that bigger amps mean more detail at LOWER volumes . I thought the opposite would be the case. I appreciate everyones input on these things.
As for the Pre, I have little faith in the HDMI format stabalizing in the near future. The spec keeps changing and I feel may not settle down for a yr or two.
I would like to know if the analog bypass mode on the 1068 pre is as good as a 2 channel only pre amp. Is it discreet electronics or at least high end op-amps in the signal path. Like you, I am more interested in the audio sections than the video.

Well, Im off to go ROTEL shopping now, I will report on this later

Later

Pete

[PJL-Canada]

Hi all, I'm a Rotel Newb here...

I am contemplating replacing my Marantz SR7000 Receiver (6.5 yrs old) with a Rotel RSP-1068 Processor, RMB-1075 5 ch amp , and RB-1070 2 ch amp for front L and R.
The set up will be located in an avg size basement room (900 sq ft) powering Newform Research R630 spkrs for front L and R mains, Newform Research R58-center, Boston CR-65 Surr, and Energy Reference - rears.

Do these Rotel models seem matched to the task?

How much different and presumably better will this sound from the Marantz receiver?

Should I wait till new product replaces these Rotel models or should I get these current ones at a 20 % discount?


Would appreciate your thoughts...

I forgot to mention an important fact...I'm using a Paradigm PW-2200 sub and givin' that all my speakers have small woofers < 7-8", I re-route the LF to the sub via bass mgmt. It causes less strain on them and sounds better.
The larger amp may not be AS necessary then, do you think?

Pete

[grit]

To answer the analog bypass question - No, I've *read* that Rotel's top of the line 2-ch pre is definitely better. That's just what I've read. My 1068 is really my first "high end" pre/pro, and I can't tell you anything from experience (all the other pre/pro's I heard were hooked up to different amps, so I cant say what caused the difference).

The sub - I'd not use a sub for 2-ch music, for 2 reasons. I don't care for the way they integrate on 2-ch music. The other is that you lose bypass mode when you route the signal to the sub (pre/pro converts it to digital, low passes to the sub, back to analog, out to speakers). That's just my opinion (on the quality). If it sounds pleasing to you, then yes, a less powerful amp might be less of a concern.

[soundhound]

The 1068 is quite respectable in analog pass through as a 2 channel pre only.
It is quiet, and runs pretty true to form.
At its price point for ht processing as well as 2 channel its hard to find something to beat it.

[cmac]

Hi all, I'm a Rotel Newb here...

I am contemplating replacing my Marantz SR7000 Receiver (6.5 yrs old) with a Rotel RSP-1068 Processor, RMB-1075 5 ch amp , and RB-1070 2 ch amp for front L and R.
The set up will be located in an avg size basement room (900 sq ft) powering Newform Research R630 spkrs for front L and R mains, Newform Research R58-center, Boston CR-65 Surr, and Energy Reference - rears.

Do these Rotel models seem matched to the task?

How much different and presumably better will this sound from the Marantz receiver?

Should I wait till new product replaces these Rotel models or should I get these current ones at a 20 % discount?


Would appreciate your thoughts...

I have the 1068 and RMB 1075 powering Polk LSi9 front L/R main Polk LSi/C center and LSi/7 rear. all of these are 4ohm speakers and this Rotel combination is barely warm to the touch when driving these babies but i'm a Rotel fan.

[CombatWombat]

"I NEED MORE POWER SCOTTY!!!"

I liked the heap of stereo amps idea from CombatWombat too

Ohhh people like me.... I got freinds now that listen too me.

LOL

[Russ L]

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[PJL-Canada]

Trial Results

Hi gang!

This past weekend I borrowed the 1068 pre-processor and 1070 5ch amp from the dealer and I tested them for a day and a half and had mixed results.

The 1068 pre-processor was excellent. It does everything I could want it to do. The rear panel layout is well thought out. The functionality of assigning each audio & video input with a default setup was amazing. The video pass-thru quality of the HD cable's 1080i and the DVD's 480p signal was also excellent. The tweaking of the bass management, audio channel levels and contour was great too. If I could improve this 1068 any I would have an independent level input trim for the multi-channel input, be able to dim or turn off the display, and find a way to run the unit cooler...man does this sucker get warm on the top above the power supply. I would put a small fan on top of the grill to draw the heat out.

The 1075 worked reliability too and I hooked up the 12V triggers to play with that control. The input jacks and speaker binding posts were good quality and well laid out too. This unit ran a lot cooler than the 1068 pre.

The sound for the movies was fine. Dialogue was clear and intelligible, lots of punch and surround effects whizzed around me like I was in the middle of the action-no real complaints there as I'm not too picky for movies.

Now the disappointing part....the sound quality of music. My perception was that for music (vocals, jazz & acoustic instrumental), the Rotel combo made the upper mids/highs sound a little more pronounced and harsher than I prefer. When listening to 2 channel (even on bypass) the dynamics and soundstage seemed diminished compared to my Marantz. As gd commented prior the Marantz's have a "smoother" sound and the Rotels are "slightly forward" This forward sound works for rock music really well but can be a little fatiguing on purer signals.

Unfortunately, I didn’t separate the units and test them separately so I don’t know for sure where the problem for me lies. I’ll make a presumption and say it could be the 1075 amp. Perhaps a better 2 channel amp like the 1070 or 1080 would have performed smoother. Does anyone have experience with this?
I would be a little surprised if the tone / dynamics / imaging to be compromised on the 1068 pre-processor. Would you agree with this?

Anyways, I haven’t written off this Rotel gear yet. I’m going to audition some other brands in the next week or 2, including these same 2 pieces again with an additional Rotel 1070 or 1080 amp if I can swing it. This time I will try the 1068 pre-processor with different amps to rule it out, because I really want this 1068 to work out for me, as I feel it is such an awesome unit.

As always, your comments are encouraged.

Pete

:T

[grit]

What speakers are you using? Right now, I'm thinking synergy (or lack thereof) may be to blame.

[NonSense]

I would like to know if the analog bypass mode on the 1068 pre is as good as a 2 channel only pre amp. Is it discreet electronics or at least high end op-amps in the signal path.

Pete

Here is the big question. When you consider all the amazing DSP features loaded up on the HT processor, 5 to 7 channels, combined with competative pricing for the target market, something usually has to give. So you probably won't find any OPA627's in the analog bypass circuit. When you consider what you get for the money, it's still good value. You usually have to move into a higher level of HT processor in order best a mid range dedicated 2CH Pre. This shouldn't be shocking, as their target markets are slightly different. Many 2CH pre-amps are now adding HT bypass circuits as there is still a market for a dedicated 2CH pre in a HT system. The life span of a 2CH Pre is usually much longer than a HT processor, so if you want great 2CH sound this is a good option and swap out lower cost processors as new formats arrive every couple of years.

[Slice]

If I could improve this 1068 any I would have an independent level input trim for the multi-channel input, be able to dim or turn off the display, and find a way to run the unit cooler...man does this sucker get warm on the top above the power supply. I would put a small fan on top of the grill to draw the heat out.

If you press & hold the MENU button on the RR-1050 the 1068 display will black out; I only wish the blue STANDBY light went with it. I'd like to see Rotel include several display/power light dim settings before going to black, and have that setting extend to any other Rotel components connected by triggers.

[gd]

I would be a little surprised if the tone / dynamics / imaging to be compromised on the 1068 pre-processor. Would you agree with this?

Nope... I'd say that the Rotel's sonic signature is simply different from that of the Marantz... whether it's 'correct' or not is up to you and your experience and impressions of what music (esp live / acoustic) actually sounds like.

It's been debated, but my experience is that the pre-pro has more SQ influence than the power amp... but less so than the source components... and even less so than the speakers... and even less so than the room acoustics.

You might try a couple quick-fix room tweaks, like a big throw rug in front of the main speakers... if your room has a predominance of hard surfaces, that can cause the highs and mids to sound harsh... unless room decor is overwhelmingly important, this is a good place to attempt adjusting for a preferred sound quality.

But I also agree with NonSense... after considerable experimenting, it's hard to escape the conclusion that excellent 2-channel performance is hard to squeeze into a receiver or pre-pro... and a dedicated 2-ch pre or integrated is worth considering, depending on your particular expectations (which can run higher than usual if you're a serious listener of acoustic / jazz / classical).

[jimC]

love Newform Research

I have a pair of their speakers, best sound ever.

[calmac]

Try one of the stereo poweramps . 1070 or 1080 for music replay .The RMB 1075 is great for ht duties but less cultured sounding than the stereo amps ,which are designed with music replay in mind.
What source components are you using?.
Gordon