Adding a 2 channel Rotel amp to a 5.1. System?

[wildpanda86]

Recently the upgrade itis bug has bit again. Moved to a smaller place neccesitting getting rid of the sub for space and noise control so as to not bother the neighbors as much.

Currently I have a Rotel RSX-1550 powering my B&W 683's and HTM 61 center channel.

Any pros and cons with any of these setups? Will the sound for Home Theater still remain cohesive while providing better low end control for home theater and better sound for 2 channel steroe?

1) upgrading the RSX-1550 to an RSX-1560/1562 and using the 2 extra rear channels of the 7.1 setup to bi-amp the front 683 towers?

2) staying with the RSX-1550 and adding in an RB-1582 or older 1080/1090 to run the 683's while running the center channel and surrounds off of the RSX-1550

3) just stay with my current setup and trade in my speakers for Golden Ear Triton 3's with matching center as the speakers dont need much to power them as the sub is built in with a built in amp.

[mjb]

Option 2, add a bigger amp for left and right. Use the RSX-1550 FRONT LEFT/RIGHT Pre-out jacks to drive the new amp. Use the RSX-1550 redirect feature to use the now spare internal left/right amps as surrounds in a 7.1 system. Its mentioned in the Owners Manual on page 24. Don't bother with bi-amping, you're better off investing in a bigger amp.

[Dmantis]

Option 3 isn't a bad idea IF you like the way the Golden Ears sound. You could also check out Definitive Technology Mythos STS package. It also might be right up your alley.

[wildpanda86]

Option 2, add a bigger amp for left and right. Use the RSX-1550 FRONT LEFT/RIGHT Pre-out jacks to drive the new amp. Use the RSX-1550 redirect feature to use the now spare internal left/right amps as surrounds in a 7.1 system. Its mentioned in the Owners Manual on page 24. Don't bother with bi-amping, you're better off investing in a bigger amp.

That's the option I ended up going with... that way I have class A/B power going to all my speakers rather than class D which will serve me well for both HT and 2 channel stereo use

Just ordered it yesterday after listening to a pair of Golden Ear Triton 2's. While I liked the Triton 2's I think I still preferred the overall sound from my current B&W 683's. Might be because the Triton's where powered off of a tube amp and my source was high rez audio tracks from my iPhone... but it was just too warm sounding for me that it seemed the detail got muddled in the warmth of the sound.

I figured if I like the overall sound of my 683's... then feeding them more power will bring out the best in them

So hopefully the RB1582 gets to me by the 31st so I have a new toy to play with on New Years day

[mjb]

That's the option I ended up going with...
So hopefully the RB1582 gets to me by the 31st so I have a new toy to play with on New Years day

Congratulations, you'll not be disappointed :T

[wildpanda86]

I just hooked up this beast. At 37lbs I think this is heavier than my RSX-1550. So far the sound sounds fuller, more defined, tighter bass however I haven't had a chance to really sit down with the system yet.

Questions on setup. Currently my front stage is a pair of B&W683's hooked up to the new amp with the matching big center connected to the RSX1550. I'm not running a subwoofer either.

Should I just set all my front speakers to large? or maybe set the center to small and set crossovers for the center to redirect bass frequencies to the towers? If I go that route what crossover should I set it to?

Also... hopefully this isn't too much of a cable question... but since there are 4 binding posts on the 683's and 4 binding posts per channel on the RB1582... should I take advantage of that and bi-wire?

[madmac]

I just hooked up this beast. At 37lbs I think this is heavier than my RSX-1550. So far the sound sounds fuller, more defined, tighter bass however I haven't had a chance to really sit down with the system yet.

Questions on setup. Currently my front stage is a pair of B&W683's hooked up to the new amp with the matching big center connected to the RSX1550. I'm not running a subwoofer either.

Should I just set all my front speakers to large? or maybe set the center to small and set crossovers for the center to redirect bass frequencies to the towers? If I go that route what crossover should I set it to?

Also... hopefully this isn't too much of a cable question... but since there are 4 binding posts on the 683's and 4 binding posts per channel on the RB1582... should I take advantage of that and bi-wire?

With no sub, I would set all the speakers to large :T Make sure you tell the amp/ processor that you do not have one though.

[wildpanda86]

With no sub, I would set all the speakers to large :T Make sure you tell the amp/ processor that you do not have one though.

thanks, yes I've set them all to large on both the Rotel RSX-1550 with sub set to off as well as on my Oppo bdp-95 all set to large with sub set to off (using the analogue connections to let the Oppo do all the processing). I also have my surrounds set to small on both devices.

However on both they still give me the option of setting the crossover... I am assuming if sub is off then crossover is just not active correct? or is it just redirecting the bass frequencies at the set crossover point for my small surrounds (a pair of crappy Sony HTIB satellite speakers)