Adding a RB 1070 to RSP 1066 & RB 985 combination

[Ross Smith]

Thanks to Rotel, I have just had my faulty RSP 976 replaced with a RSP 1066 running a RB 985 Mk 1, I couldn't believe how much smoother and detailed the sound is. No more do I have to squirm in my seat when listening to D/D music DVD's and the CD stereo performance has me tapping my feet and listening to the music.
My RB 985 mk1 is quiet old now so I was wondering what major difference would I hear by adding a RB 1070 to the front channels for stereo listening. I'm happy with the 5.1 set up for Home theatre and I haven't got the room for anymore rear speakers. If by adding another power amp is only subtle I would not bother.

[aud19]

Adding the 1070 would likely be subtle, adding a 1080 :T would be more dramatic IMO :P

Jason

[shadow]

Adding the 1070 would likely be subtle, adding a 1080 :T would be more dramatic IMO :P

Jason

Why? it only adds 70 watts per channel which is about 1.5 db more peak output than the 1070, which is insignificant unless you have very inefficient speakers which you like to play very loud. Product design is very similar so I would be inclined to pocket the $300 difference and buy more music :P

[aud19]

There's more to it than 1.5dB shadow. Better imaging, detail and dynamics to name a few. Hopefully Azeke will come along with his own comments as he's actually fortunate enough to own one with, I believe, a 1095... If he's hears an improvement over his 1095 with the 1080 I'm pretty sure Mr. Smith will hear one over his current amp

Jason

[Azeke]

Indeed Jason 8) . I originally had the RMB-1095 driving my 5.1 speaker configuration, I was happy, but not content with my front channels perfomance. I then added the RB-1080 to drive my front channels (Mirage OM7s), in essence my dynamics increased and the 1080 provided a better soundstage, due to the dedicated front channel amp upgrade. I am very happy with my current configuration (with the exception of the blown fuses on my RB-1080, which I believe theoretically is related to the 12v trigger configuration on my RSP-1098, needless to say I will power my RB-1080 manually).

All this aside, technical specs can only provide baselines, but the true test is listening and making the determination for yourself. I believe my front channel upgrade was well worth the money, but of course your mileage may vary.

Perhaps Will can provide further ensight on this topic .

Regards,

Azeke

[shadow]

There's more to it than 1.5dB shadow. Better imaging, detail and dynamics to name a few. Hopefully Azeke will come along with his own comments as he's actually fortunate enough to own one with, I believe, a 1095... If he's hears an improvement over his 1095 with the 1080 I'm pretty sure Mr. Smith will hear one over his current amp

Jason

Again, why? The amps are very similar in design and not that much difference in cost. Why would imaging and detail be better?

[Azeke]

Shadow,

I don't believe you understand, technical specifications are one thing, however personal listening preferences are another. You can have an amp that pushes 200W/channel, but the internal hardware can vary from amp to amp, depending on it's power supplies, etc. These factors are not really measurable via technical specs. Perhaps, I can provide an analogy, you can have computers with the same technical specifications, but the internal hardware is quality dependent. Hopefully, this analogy will clarify the issue. Perhaps you should listen for yourself.

Regards,

Azeke

[shadow]

Well, you have provided no explanation why the 1080 sounds better than the 1070. I assume that Rotel has not placed a magic spell on the 1080 and ignored the 1070. I have listened to both at the dealer and I think they sound about the same. I see nothing in the specs or parts used to indicate that there is any difference other than power output. If we are talking personal preferences, this has nothing to do with the performance of the amp. I might prefer its silver color or its nicer heat sinks but that does not make it sound better. BTW, I have owned Krell and Audio Research in the past and I had no trouble hearing the superiority of these amps over their competition. I hear nothing remotely like this with the Rotel components in question.

[Azeke]

Magic spell that's funny . However, I never stated that I made a comparison between the RB-1070 and the 1080.

I purchased the RB-1080 for two reasons, the first the RMB-1095 is 200W, and therefore I wish to maintain the same wattage match, the second is the maximum wattage of my front speakers is 200W, so the reasons for my purchase were purely subjective. If I could afford Classe, Krell, etc, then I would consider these amps, but since I can not, I try to get the most bang for the buck which I believe Rotel provides. I hope this clears things up.

Regards,

Azeke

[aud19]

Exactly Azeke, I thought we were comparing the 1080 to the 1095 and Ross's RB 985 mk1, not the 1070?

I agree shadow that between the 1070 and 1080 there shouldn't be a HUGE difference in sound quality. They're both dedicated 2-channel amps made with the same or very similar parts by the same manufacturer. The difference between the 1070 and 1080 will mostly be power handling. Ie: the 1080 will be able to play cleaner at higher volumes and/or on less efficient speakers. Being that the 1070 is not that different in power capacity from the 985 I still believe that the 1080 would be a more noticeable improvement over the 1070 in comparison to his 985. Granted this is still dependant on a lot of other variables. Are his speakers inefficient? Good cables? Good source? etc. As always each persons results may vary and he should try both options to see if the investment is worth it to him. In the end it's our own ears and wallets that have to make the decision

Jason

[shadow]

I think they are both excellent amps. I will probably buy one myself though I am leaning toward the 1070 due to my room size, volume levels and speaker choice. The $300 saved would buy a lot of music and movies. :T I agree the differences are on the edge of the performance envelope regarding speaker efficiency and room size, which makes them less valuable to me. YMMV.

[aud19]

Basically why I recommended the 1080 to Ross over the 1070 is because if I was upgrading my 1075 (or his 985) I'd rather just skip the intermediate step and go right to the 1080. would the 1070 offer an improvent over my 1075? Yes, slightly, but for $300 more I could have a quite noticeable improvement. YMMV However you are correct that if he has efficient speakers and does not listen all that loud the 1070 would still offer an improvement in imaging just less so with dynamics and power handling and at a lower cost

Enjoy your 1070 when ya get it :T

Jason

[Ross Smith]

Thanks guy's for your opinions I think I will try the 1080, I remember listening to an old 991 and the improvement in dynamics, the clarity in the midrange and bass extension was amazing. Power wise is not an issue my speakers ( KRIX LYRIX) are rated at 92db but the only problem is that the speakers are only rated at 100 watts RMS into 4 ohm, I'll just have to be careful with the volume control.

[shadow]

You should have no problem unless you clip the amp which is unlikely unless you want to blow out your ears too! :T

[aud19]

Especially considering the efficiency of your speakers, definitely give the 1070 a listen too, you may find it's more than enough power for you and offer the better imaging etc that a dedicated 2-channel amp provides at a lower price. Still I won't blame ya for getting the 1080 but try out both :T

Jason

[Ross Smith]

Decision time the 1070 costs $899 and the 1080 $1499 here in Australia, unless Aussie Geoff knows anywhere cheaper. Six hundred dollars difference in price is a lot of money, the 1070 would be kinder on the old hip pocket but will it offer better dynamics and clarity compared with my old 985mk1. If it only offers a subtle difference in performance I don't think I will bother.

[aud19]

Time for a demo :T

Jason

[shadow]

If you try both, post your impressions since I would like to know which you preferred and why.

[Ross Smith]

Only if going into a shop and having a demo was that easy. Here where I live there is only one dedicated Hi Fi shop and he doesn't keep much separate stereo gear only all in one home thearter recievers. I even bought my RSP 1066 without listening to it I just read reviews from forums like this one which is a great help.Plus I have some Rotel gear and know basically the sound characteristics and the reliability of them.
I rang a shop in Melbourne and I can get a 1070 for $A699 a 1080 $A1299 shop demos and in black, thats saving two hundred bucks.I'm leaning towards the 1070 because it will be less painful on the back pocket. I don't necessary want more power considering my efficient speakers plus I have them crossed over at 100hz so that th M&K sub handles the bass for all modes. I just thought with the 1070 having a dampening factor of 500 that the bass would be a bit tighter also was hoping for a little bit more clarity in a stereo amp.

[GosonFletchy]

Going back to the original post:

"Thanks to Rotel, I have just had my faulty RSP 976 replaced with a RSP 1066 running a RB 985 Mk 1, I couldn't believe how much smoother and detailed the sound is. No more do I have to squirm in my seat when listening to D/D music DVD's and the CD stereo performance has me tapping my feet and listening to the music.
My RB 985 mk1 is quiet old now so I was wondering what major difference would I hear by adding a RB 1070 to the front channels for stereo listening. I'm happy with the 5.1 set up for Home theatre and I haven't got the room for anymore rear speakers. If by adding another power amp is only subtle I would not bother."

You know what blows me away about this post? Rotel upgraded your RSP 976 to a RSP 1066. That is one hell of an upgrade! Rotel customer service is at it again. This company seems to go above and beyond to make sure that their customers are happy. I am sure that they could have given you another RSP 976, or even a lower upgrade, like an RSP 985, but they did not. Instead they decided to make the customer, who was probably frustrated that his unit had problems, very happy. This is one more example of why I am a Rotel fan for life. Kudos to Rotel and congratulations on your RSP 1066, that unit rocks!

Goson

[will1066]

Is it safe for me to show up now, Azeke? LOL Either 1070 or 1080 will be fine. Go with what's best.

[Azeke]

Yeah, Will, I think it's safe now. Right Shadow?

I digressed, however what I try to consider is that I would rather have too much power than not enough, therefore the RB-1080. This of course depends on budget, equipment, and personal preferences. Your gas mileage can vary greatly.

Just my quick thoughts.

Regards,

Azeke

[shadow]

They are both fine amps but the price penalty in AU is substantially more than the USA, which makes a decision more risky to go with the 1080.

[Aussie Geoff]

Ross,

I have listened to both the RB-1070 and RB-1080 on several speakers. They are very similar sounding amplifiers - but there is no doubt that for more difficult loads the RB-1080 (which will do an easy 200W into 4 Ohm and well above that into 2 Ohm) has a greater sense of clarity and control at loud volumes. My speakers are 95 db and easy loads and for me I found the RB-1080 worth the extra (but I'm obsessive...) The Krix you have are quite a bit more demanding.

If you can't listen - I'd be tempted to get the RB-1080 since you will know it is more than enough - with the RB-1070 you (if you are like me) will alway be wondering "what I am missing..." However with $ an issue the RB-1070 will be better for stereo than what you have so...

Geoff

[Ross Smith]

Aussie Geoff
I tried out an older RB 991(200wpc) power amp yesterday and the results where different to what I expected.The RB 991 for sure was more detailed and had effortless power but the difference wasn't that great.One thing that I noticed was that the RSP 1066 is a little bit too smoothed off in the treble region and with the extra power this made the sound a bit too mushy. Trying the same power amp on my old RSP 980 pre-amp the sound was much more to my tastes a bit more brighter in the treble and leaner in the bass. On my brothers Accuphase amp using the pre-outs, the 991 was simply amazing with the detail and dynamics the best I have heard.
So maybe for now I will stick with what I have for home thearter as the RSP 1066 is very easy to listen to and for music DVD's it takes away that horrible brightness with some D/D disc's. Then later I might get a nice Rotel 1070 stereo Pre-Amp or even the RC 1062 Intergated Amp for stereo listening and run a line in from the 1066 for home thearter listening. One thing for sure the old RB 985 still sounds good even compared to the RB 991.
I must change my speakers around and try the VAF DC 7's as fronts and the KRIX as rears.

[Aussie Geoff]

Ross,

I'm gald you did the comparision. It's interesting how the big amp sounded better on your Brothers Accuphase etc. It emphasises the importance of balancing your components sounds.

I've got VAF DC-Xs for fronts and they love the extra power - really smooths and tames the midrange.... So you may want to try your DC-7s...

Geoff