Some questions about my new RSP 1098

[Ossi]

I am in process of comparing my new RSP 1098 with my Denon AVC A1SE+.
I have a question regarding hiss on the unit. At which level do you users experience hiss from your listening position? I can hear it from 3 meters starting slowly at about 70 to get real loud hiss at 85. And I mean real loud.
Can't be normal in my ears.
Next problem is that the centre channel is also emitting a constant parasitic frequency. I guess this is an issue that might already have been addresses, but is this actually the issue that has been reported?
I plan to do a side by side comparison with the Denon, but initially I must admit that I am not overly impressed in terms of sound quality. The hiss is clearly either a defect of a bad engineering thing. In 15 years of this hobby and great experience with Rotel Stereo/Preamps this is a bit let down. I will report of this in the in depth comparison but some flaws need to be corrected first in case I might have a defective unit.
Ossi

[Olaf]

Dear Ossi,

I have a RSP-1098, the 5-channel RMB-1075 for my center and surround channels and a 2-channel RB-1080 for my front channels. At a volume of 90 I can hear an ever so minor hiss with my ears glued to the speakers.

I am also not experiencing any problems with my center channel.

I think you may either have a defective unit or you are picking up some interference from another unit, power supply, interconnects etc.

Regards,
Olaf

[Aussie Geoff]

Ossi,

From about August 2003 until early 2004 the RSP-1098s made had a problem (which varied from unit to unit) where the DSP chip created low level interference with the RSP-1098 Pre-Outs. For those Rotel users affected Rotel offered a no cost upgrade involving a shielf fitted to the DSP board (end of hiss).

Is it possible that your unit is a few months old and doesn't have the shield?

Geoff

[Ossi]

Thanks for the reply. I guess that I have an old unit then. It came with version 1.1.0 software. But upgrade went smooth and I now have 2.1.2. I bought it as a display unit, so it was rather cheap. I will get in contact with the dealer to get the shield upgrade done. Meanwhile I am testing and will post some results tonight. In fact this is a rather interesting comparison and sound is only a small part of it.

[Andrew Pratt]

Get the shield installed and that should take care of the problem. If you have any issues with your dealer not being able to do what you need let me know and i'll have Rotel of Europes tech guy contact you and or your dealer.

[DrBoom]

Geoff,

the shield you refer to does nothing to reduce hiss, but only the well-known center channel whining.
The hiss doesn't get any less, but the whining noise from the center channel goes away (mostly).
But I have to agree with Ossi on the hiss part, the 1098 has a way too high noise floor and a poor S/N ratio for this pricerange.
One of my major complaints about this device.
Over here it's just the same, hiss starts getting louder at around 66, and becomes very strong over 70.
Luckily I'm in a small room and I don't have to go over 70 at any time, but I can imagine being in a larger room having to crank it up to 75 - 80 for movies.
Then when there are quiet parts in the movie, you can really hear the hissing, very annoying.
That's absolutely something they should've invested more money in.
I'm really surprised you don't hear this complaint more often, as it's very distracting.

At a volume of 90 I can hear an ever so minor hiss with my ears glued to the speakers.

Wow, I can't even imagine what that must be like, if I turn it up to 90 I can easily hear it hissing from 10 feet away, no kidding.
Maybe I should contact Rotel about it then, if it's not common in all RSP1098's ?
My Parasound C2 (I still have both units for comparison) is almost dead quiet at 0 dB reference level, and hisses just slightly if you go up to maximum volume.

[Olaf]

Dr. Boom,

I am not joking.

Just for the fun of it I turned on my unit and cranked the volume up to Max (no inputs playing ) to check the maximum hiss I can get.

In my 7-channel setup I can start hearing the hiss (from my listening position) from about 90 onwards and at maximum volume (96) it starts to get a little bit annoying.

I listen to most my movies at a volume level of 72 and listen to music from my CD player at volume levels around 55. At most I can listen to a movie at a volume of 79 (played Planet of the Apes crash sequence just once) at which time my wife left the room because it was just way too loud .

At these "realistic" volume levels there is absolutely no audible hiss.

I do not know whether this makes any difference but....

I am using the Rotel RLC-1055 power filter & sequencer to power all units and have:
- Audioquest NRG-3 power cables for all units,
- AudioQuest King Cobra (the new ones) for all analog interconnects,
- AudioQuest YIQ-3 component video cable
- AudioQuest Slate biwire speaker cables,
- AudioQuest VDM-5 digital interconnects.

I have also installed an Axing TZU 10-02 ground loop isolator and have a dedicated mains feed for my hometheater.

Regards,
Olaf

[Aussie Geoff]

I still recommend the shield...

Olaf,

I agree - I have to set the volume to something that I suspect would kill me (95 or 23db above reference (ie 128db) to get hiss I can hear sitting down. At 75 (3 dB above reference level on my system) I need to be 30 cm or less from the speakers with my ear turned to hear anything.

(Dr Boom You may wish to have your RSP-1098 unit checked or the power supply checked the hiss you are getting seems abnormal?)

Also the experience of the "centre channel is also emitting a constant parasitic frequency" is a perfect description of what gets fixed by the shield - so I would still recommend the shield regardless - it will make that go away (or reduce to very faint)

Geoff

[DrBoom]

OK, I just tried something I probably should've done some time ago but just never occured to me.
I turned up the volume to 70 and even 80, and these were my findings regarding hiss:
1) There is absolutely no hiss when the multichannel inputs are selected so I'm definitely going to start using these when I get a decent player.
2) There also very little to no hiss when an analog input is selected, and Bypass mode is used.
3) If stereo mode is used on an analog input, hiss increases but remains very tolerable up to 70 which is way too loud to listen to anyway.
4) If a surround mode like PL II is used on an analog input, hiss increases to annoying levels starting from around 66 and can be heard from all speakers which makes it more annoying than from 2 speakers only.

So I guess all the hiss comes from the A/D converters and the DSP, since it is virtually inaudible in Bypass mode.
I have a nice Arcam DV88+ sitting here at the moment, so I'm going to experiment some more tomorrow with different inputs and surround modes (it's too late now).

[Ossi]

Ok, the problem with the parasitic noise from the centre is solved. I installed the metal shield on the DSP board and that is it.
Now one last problem remains: I do not get any DD+DPLIIx C with any bitstream from DVD and I cannot change it as using the path button there is no choice other than DD+DPLIIx M. DPLIIx C and M does work fine for any analogue sources.
I came to the conclusion that this might be because I have a 6.1 setup and did set as surround back in the setup menu only one speaker. If I choose 2 surround back speaker than the problem is gone and I can choose either DD+DPLIIx M or C.
But right now I do not even get the option of DD+DPLIIx C.
I am further under the impression that this might only occur with DD5.1, because occasionally with DD 2.0 DD+DPLIIx C does work.
Any clues?

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

Hi!

Two days ago, my new RSP-1098 finally arrived. So far so good...

Unfortunately, I also noticed this hiss coming from all channels if volume is set somewhat above 65/70. And it´s getting really, really loud above 80+. Additionally, I experienced the problem that the center channel is emitting a constant parasitic frequency as well. This high frequency chirp does not seem to become louder if volume is increased (in contrast to the hissing). Although I will never ever listen to such extreme sound levels because of my rather small room, that hiss can´t be normal for a 3500 Euros unit.

In all probability, I must have received a unit that was manufactured between August 2003 and early 2004 as Aussie stated (no shielding). The pre-installed software version was 1.16 and a label on the packaging tells me that it already arrived in December 2003 at my local dealer.

Furthermore, I made the same experiences as DrBoom did. There is almost no hiss if bypass-mode is selected. Thus, I also come to the conclusion that all the hiss comes from the A/D converters and the DSP, since it is virtually inaudible in bypass-mode.

So, everyone recommends me to get that shield to be installed? Do they know this hiss problem here in Germany? What else can be done if the shielding (as DrBoom stated) does not help to reduce the hiss? I mean, what has Rotel exactly changed concerning the units that were produced since early 2004 to reduce the hiss? If there is no way to get rid of it, may I ask Rotel to replace my 1098 by the latest revision?

Another issue that strikes me is the following: Sometimes there seems to be a "displaying bug" when switching between the numerous surround modes and increasing/decreasing the volume immediately afterwards (using the remote control only). Sometimes the display looks like this (the 1098 seems to mix two text lines, also keep in mind that I use the latest software version, so the bug seems still to occur:

[Ossi]

Hi Wolfenstein,
First, they know about the parasitic frequency in Germany as well. I am from Germany and got the shield on my unit as well. The shield can be installed by you dealer. I did it myself as I did not want to ship the unit back and forth.
The shield gets rig of the parasitic frequency, but it does not have any affect on the overall hiss of the unit.
The hiss however is only to be heard with volume levels above 70.
To me this is a level I cannot listen to, just too loud.
So not really an issue.
As for the TFT bug you have, It might be helpful to redo the ROM Update and reinstall the latest Software.

[Olaf]

Dear Ossi,

Note that the OSD bug has not been solved with the latest version of the firmware (2.1.2) and is unrelated to the EEPROM updated. Many people have already reported this bug to Rotel and I hope it is going to be fixed in the next version.

Regards, Olaf

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

@ Ossi

Thanks for reply. This morning I wrote an e-mail to Rotel Germany concerning the hiss / center channel problem. As far as I know from other German 1098er users, Rotel knows the center problem that can be solved by installing the shielding (most of them installed the shielding on their own, seems to be easy). However, they do not seem to know the hiss problem at high volumes. But there has to be a difference as some users are concerned with that hiss, some are not. Of course, I will never ever listen to such extreme sound levels, so I don´t really care. However, it would be good to know why several users here have made different experiences so far.
By the way: What had to be done to install the shield? Where did you have to put it? For instance onto one of the boards that can be removed like in a PC?

@ Olaf
OK, I see. I already found some other threads in which that display big was reported. This is just a minor bug which really does not affect sound quality. So, again I don´t really care

[Ossi]

@wolfenstein
The shield is placed directly on the DSP board. It is a thick metal plate with a thick plastic foil on one side. This side is put on the board so that no electric contact between the parts can occur. To place the shield you cannot just remove the DSP board, but have to remove the top cover and then the metal cover of the board (many screws!). This is due to the fact that when you replace the DSP board back in the unit, you have to support the board where it goes in as rather strong force is required. It is also easier to remove the DSP board if you go this way round.
I have done some picture of the DSP board with shield that I could send you if you like. Unfortunately I have no way to post them online as I didn't find any free picture hosting yet. Give me a mail if you like to have the pics.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

@ Ossi

Hi!

Are the pictures too large to post them here by means of the attachments? If you want to show them in full size in your post, then use the "insert image" button in the toolbar and enter the address of each picture in your thumbnails. That´s the way I chose to show my pictures. Or just restrict to the thumbnails only. Then you have to click on each pic to get a full size view.

Nevertheless, I would still like to know a solution to the hissing problem if there is any.

[Aussie Geoff]

Wolfenstien,

The DSP board is right next to the RSP-1098's pre-outs - and high frequency electromagnetic interference affected the centre channel the most (being nearest to the DSP chip), must actually created small levels of hiss on the adjoining channels. So you are likely to find a general reduction in hiss on the other channels as well with the shield installed.

I was in the local Rotel tech when they were installing a batch of shields (they had just come into stock) and while they guy did the first one by taking the whole cover off to see (he'd never opened a RSP-1098 before) - after that he just used a power screwdriver to remove the screws on the DSP board, pull it out the back. The board is mounted in a frame, he then undid the screws for this, pull the shield in (it's pre-drilled) and used the same screws to lock it in. The board was then just reinserted by sliding in carefully and then locked in place with its own back panel screws. Too about 3 minutes start to finish...

I was very happy with the hiss levels after this - and could only get audible hiss from more than a few feet away by doing things like pausing a DVD and then turning the RSP-1098 volume to near maximum levels (IE a irrelevant situation).

That aside - as covered in a separate post, I recently installed a high quality mains filter on all my high fight components. This put the RSP-1098 in its own isolated and filtered power socket. This lead to a further overall reduction in hiss for me...

Geoff

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

Thank you for the information, Aussie. Rotel Germany already answered my yesterday´s e-mail and told me that they are going to send the shield to me tomorrow. I should receive it by the end of next week. That´s what I call a good service! In addition to that, Rotel will provode me with a detailed mounting guidline for a proper self-made installation. Thus, the whole installation should not be a problem at all.

PS: I just read your thread. But I think using a mains filter can´t be a general solution for everyone. The hissing should be much lower right from the start of delivery. Hm, maybe the shield will already please me. At least it is good to know that Rotel is concerned about their customers :T

[Ossi]

Let's see... Hm... not the best quality, but you get the idea.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

Hi!

As I had nothing better to do, I wanted to exercise myself in opening and closing my 1098. After all I will have to do that anyway when the shield plate arrives. While doing that, I made some pictures of my "naked" 1098 as well! 8O By the way, warranty won´t be lost - Rotel promised it :T

[DrBoom]

Still I wonder how it's possible that some people can turn volume up to maximum and NOT hear any hiss at all (unless it's muted or something, which it does sometimes)
And I also have that display bug, they better fix it in V2.1.3 cuz it looks really stupid on a €3500 processor.
I definitely agree on the hiss thing, it shouldn't hiss that loud for it's price.
And maybe it's true that you'll never reach volume level over 70 in a small room (I don't either), but in a medium size living room I can imagine reference volume being around 85 or something like that.
Anyway, we've narrowed it down to the DSP and ADC's, so it's just not going to go away with a software or whatever update.
The bad thing is that the one source that absolutely needs the DSP is DVD, which happens to have a huge dynamic range and you have to turn up the volume pretty high, way higher than for CD's.
Then when there's a quiet part of a movie, you can clearly hear the hiss.

The one thing i've yet to try is a dedicated line for the system, which isn't easy since it's an older appartment, and i'm lucky to have a ground connection.
That and a quality line filter which aren't readily available here.
The most known is Kemp Electronics but they charge a whopping €1300 for their PowerSource line filter.
Another one is Isotek, but again it ain't cheap.

I've been wanting to get rid of my 1098 for several of these reasons, and I've already got a Parasound C2 sitting here, but I just can't seem to let the 1098 go.
I've gotten somehow attached to it's really heavy chassis, and it's continuous relay-clicking with everything you do. :roll:
So I'm still (almost 2 months now) switching back & forth, which must mean that the 1098 isn't all bad if it can keep me in doubt for that long, compared with a €5850 processor !

[DrBoom]

Seeing that chassis open again reminds me what a great machine this is, and what possibilities it must have for tweaking.
I wonder why no company has started modifying it with better components and offering it as an upgrade pack.
Power supply is already great, perhaps a few expensive Black Gate capacitors in the filtering stage could improve it a bit more.
Also, I notice a huge amount of small capacitors on the output boards, I think if you'd upgrade those with better ones it can make a huge difference.
I've even read someone who wanted to replace the opamps in the pre-outs, something they skimped on a bit at Rotel by using cheaper ones for the center and surround channels.
But I guess it's byebye warranty if you do that, so maybe in a year or 5

[Bing Fung]

OH-maw gosh that is beautiful looking inside. Thanks guys! :T

I turned my volume up to 70-80 with no source signal. I had to place my ear close to the speaker to hear any buzz/hiss. However, I think that its a very tolerable level for me... and typical of most systems I have ever been around.

My 1098 came from the factory with v2.1.1

[DrBoom]

and typical of most systems I have ever been around.

That's the problem of working in a hifi store, you get to be around stuff that costs a hell of a lot more, but is dead quiet at any volume setting.
Then again, they're only stereo amps, and those aren't very prone to hiss anyway.
The C2 is really really quiet too, even at reference levels.
With that in perspective the 1098 is very noisy, I can tell you that.
And the C2 even has a switching power supply, which are known to be noisy.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

Hi all!

In case the shielding won´t help to reduce the hiss in my 1098, I can only repeat myself: Why do older 1098 units seem to have that hiss and newer ones not? Has Rotel changed anything, especially with regard to the DSP-board? Nevertheless, I won´t give away my 1098 simply because I don´t see any alternative on the market (within the price range of 3500 Euros) that would fulfil all my requirements.

@ Ossi

Did you REALLY experience no difference concerning the hiss after having installed the shielding?

------------------------------------------

Maybe Andrew could comment on all this again. I mean if several people state that the shield does not help to reduce that hiss...is there any other solution, maybe replacing the whole DSP-Board if Rotel has made some changes to it??? :roll:

[DrBoom]

I'm starting to ask myself the same thing, why aren't the new owners complaining but just the "old" ones.
I got mine in December 2003, and it came with v1.1.6 which was the most up-to-date version at that time.
But I did notice the box had been opened and re-taped, so perhaps it was updated at Rotel Europe after manufacturing it.
I can rule out a store or demo-model, it certainly isn't.

Regarding the hiss after shield install, I didn't notice any change (or not enough to notice it anyway).
The parasitic noise is way less, but you can still hear it very faintly from really close to the speaker.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

I got mine just 2 days ago, however it came with v1.1.6 software too, and a label on the packaging shows the date of delivery at my local dealer: December 2003. :roll: Therefore, mine also belongs to the "old" ones. At least Rotel Germany offers every customer to have the latest software version updated before they will send it to you or wherever - maybe that´s the reason why your unit came in a box that had been opened previously (because Rotel made an update before).

[Bing Fung]

That's the problem of working in a hifi store, you get to be around stuff that costs a hell of a lot more, but is dead quiet at any volume setting.

The operative words being "costs a hell of a lot more"... :P

While I can't speak for the ones having problems, based on what I heard out of mine at 80, the amount would be border line nitpick fanatical if I were to complain about it. I have never heard anything really much quieter given the situation, and I have been around some nice systems too. Maybe nothing that "costs a hell of a lot more", but still....

With my TV speakers going at a very low volume, I can;t even hear the HT Systems buzz/hiss speaker, even with my ear right against the speaker... ok, maybe I could, but I couldn't be sure... :W

Thats not to take away from those that are experiencing the problem.. I hope it gets resolved for you some how.

[Bing Fung]

Maybe its the Amplifier's noise floor you're hearing?

I really have to listen close in a quiet room to even hear it... If it's any consolation, I think my centre is louder than my mains. Its powered by one of my mono blocks... Still it's nearly impercivable.... and the Mains are very quiet too.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

In case it is the amp´s noise floor, then the hiss should be still there if the bypass mode is selected. However, the hissing is gone whenever the bypass mode is activated for analog sources. Therefore the hissing has to come from the 1098. We already narrowed it down to the whole digital section (DSP´s etc.).

[Adrian Smith]

Aussie Geoff
Just wondering, I will be getting my 1098 next week and was wondering if the shield would already be done. Since I can't imagine a whole lot of stock turnover in Aus maybe the units are older stock. BTW Encel are getting it shipped from Perth to their Mel office then up to me in Syd.

Adrian

[Bing Fung]

I just tested my system on Multi (bypass) and it's even quieter... Comparatively the DSP is noiser, but it's still very acceptable in my unit, based on my standards (they could be trashy standards :wink: )

Of note, it seems its consistent across all speakers and not just the centre channel.

I think what gets me more is the constant clicking of the 1098 during signal loss (ie: FF, pause, skip..etc)

[Aussie Geoff]

Adrian,

You'd be very unlucky to get an older RSP-1098 unit as there have been several months where the whole of Australia has been out of stock of the RSP-1098s other than one or two demo units kept by dealers so that they can sell more to eager customers...

If you have 2.1.x software its new (March / April 2004) - and will have the shield as standard fit.

If you have 1.1.6 Software it is a December 2003 to February 2004 build - some have the shield some don't (Jan 2004 onwards) - ask Encel before delivery.

If you have older than 1.1.6 you definitely have a demo and should be seeking an appropriate discount and the shield fitted and software upgraded before delivery

Geoff

[Ossi]

@Wolfenstein

I did check this morning regarding the hiss another time with the shield installed. My unit is setup to a max output of 76 which is already way to loud for me, but sometimes you like to have a little room to push it, don't ya? :B
Anyway, in bypass mode, cd player is switched on, I here at 76 no hiss from my sitting place, 3 meters away. To here is I have to go to the speakers and can here it at that level at about 30 cm.
With the multichannel input in bypass, just the same.
When I switch to the DVD input which is set to a digital input, at a volume of 70 I can only notice the beginning of something like hiss. However in this case, my surround speakers are only 1,2 meters away from the listening position. At a volume of 76 I can now hear hiss at a very low level which is in my case not a problem.
I am not sure if the shield does affect the hiss, but it sure does in my case get rid of the parasitic noise to 100% at this noise that could be heard mainly from the centre channel is gone.
By the way: If you like SACD, get the Frankie goes to Hollywood - Rage Hard - The Sonic Collection. GREAT!

Anyway the question remains: did Rotel make any change in the production so that newer units seem to be quieter than older one? Sure they did. My guess is that once they realised there was a problem with grown noise, hiss and all the other stuff they realised there was something wrong with the DSP implementation. However if they where to change all units affected or if we can narrow this down to the DSP board, they would go bankrupt.
And honestly I do not think that the hiss we are experiencing now is a problem as you can only get affected by it at extremely loud volumes way over reference levels.
Still I think that Rotel should have the balls to give users some comments about hiss issue (no really an issue to me).
I also think that if Rotel would provide a future upgrade to the RSP 1098 in form of an i-link input and possibly room correction, this would make a complete new DSP board necessary anyway and this might be the opportunity for all users the get a less hissing DSP board.
Anyway, I am more than happy with the unit and have no reason to complain. Did you read my comparison with the Denon AVC A1SE+?
I guess this makes clear that right now the RSP 1098 is all that I want.
By the way: The Denon did hiss as well at very loud volumes. It may have hissed a little less on the main and surround channels, but sure did hiss more on the sub channel.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

When I switch to the DVD input which is set to a digital input, at a volume of 70 I can only notice the beginning of something like hiss. However in this case, my surround speakers are only 1,2 meters away from the listening position. At a volume of 76 I can now hear hiss at a very low level which is in my case not a problem.

Hi!

In case it´s right what you´re saying, then the shield HAS helped. Why? Because at a volume of 70 the hiss is already clearly starting, above 80 the hiss is more than clarly audible. At a level of 99 you get the impression as if a river is floating through your room. I´m going to describe my experinces with that shield installed once it has arrived here.

[DrBoom]

At a level of 99 you get the impression as if a river is floating through your room.

That's the best description of it I've ever heard :B
I've got mine limited at 80, but I rarely go over 66 - 68 except on DVD's that were recorded rather silently (some concert DVD's).
I'm going to email Rotel and ask them a few things about this, I've got some other Q's for them too while I'm at it.
For example: Why doesn't the 1098 accept a 192 KHZ/24 bit upsampled PCM signal from my DVD player on it's digital inputs, when it clearly states it has 192 KHz DAC's ?

Still I think that Rotel should have the balls to give users some comments about hiss issue

They also never publically acknowledged the center channel noise problem either, if you don't complain about it you'll never get the shield if you have a unit without it.
I feel they should've put a message on their website or emailed their registered users that they could bring in their 1098 for a free upgrade if they wanted to.
They also never wanted to admit the problem with the subwoofer output where the level is 10 dB too low, something I've emailed them dozens of time but they can't seem to reproduce it at the factory.
And yes I'm 100% sure it is 10 db too low but they don't really wanna believe it.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

Hi!
There is a subwoofer problem as well? Concerning the subwoofer, I only made the experince that the output level is much too quiet during non-analog stereo operation (I don´t mean the bypass-mode where the subwoofer is inevitably deactivated), i.e. whenever a source is connected digitally and the display shows FL/FR + SUB in the current SYSTEM STATUS screen. I set the subwoofer output level to MAX without any positive result. There was a sound coming from the sub, however only at a minimum level. In the end, I found a solution to the problem. Maybe this issue was not a problem at all but a stupid handling-error, but the following helped: Go to the detailed loudspeaker setup in the 1098´s menu and select SMALL instead of MASTER for the STEREO/MPEG mode. Ever since my subwoofer runs at a "normal" sound level - I set the subwoofer output level in the menu to +2 for STEREO/MPEG and it works fine!

[DrBoom]

The issue with the subwoofer output is as follows:

Normally you 'd calibrate all your speakers to 75 dB so they all play equally loud.
If you do this, you'll notice the subwoofer barely does anything during movies or music.
You can easily check the difference by switching your mains to large (no sub) and then back to small (with sub) and notice how much bass disappears.
If you calibrate the sub to 85 dB, while leaving all other speakers at 75 dB (e.g. a 10 dB difference) the level will sound correct during movie and music playback.

These are my findings, but Rotel claims they cannot reproduce this in their facilities.
Perhaps it's another one of those things they fixed, but didn't tell anyone about and it only happens with a certain batch of 1098's.

[Wolfenstein 2k2]

I got my shielding yesterday and installed it immediately onto the DSP Board.
Results: The center channel problem is solved, but there is no change concerning the hiss (I somehow expected that). At maximum volume level the hiss is still as loud as before -sounds like a high speed water jet or so. Hiss level still starts noticably to increase at about 65/70, at 80 you cannot fail to hear it (unless you are deaf), and at 99 we have the water jet or river-like sound again. Although I will never ever listen to that extreme sound levels (OK, I´m repeating myself :wink: ) at my home, I though want to know why there seems to be such a difference (no matter if some might think it´s irrelevant due to the killing volume levels we are talking about) between older and newer units. :roll:

[Bob Knarly]

This thread is almost funny.I been screaming all Rotel pre/pros/avrs hiss in all channels all the time.That is a fact I will back up any where any time with a cash bet.Anyone within 50 miles of me show me a Rotel 10xx that don't hiss and I'll pay you $100,if it does you pay me,any takers?I've heard every 10xx model,several of each including MY newest 1056 just arrived in country and it hisses in ALL channels all the time,just like my other two,just like all my dealers,just like every other dealers I been to.