Hi folks, I just got the Rotel 1075 amp to run my new speakers (Polk LSi15). I really like the looks of the Rotels line and tehy get good reviews. I have it hooked up to the Polks which are 4 Ohm speakers that sound great. I am running a Harman AVR 230 as pre/pro. I have the system BI-AMPed with each speaker using 2 channels of the Rotel PER speaker. Right now, I am not 100% happy with my rig tho.
Here are my observations:
1. The speakers sounded good with HK running them and when I hooked up the Rotel (no-biamp), it sounded worse. With bi-amping, it sounds better than with HK alone. Of course, bi-amped sounds better than HK alone or without biamping. Why is HK's 50 watts better sounding than 120 watts of Rotel? The answer is likely in #2 below.
2. My rig appears to be interconnect sensitive meaning that I can clearly hear differences between the cables between the HK and the Rotel. It helps that I have good hearing. So far, I have tried coax type from bluejeans cables and they sounded pretty bad with the highs being muddied and harsh. Monster interconnects "Reference" improved it. Radio Shack cables got rid of the muddiness but it is harsh. Acoustic Research Pro Series II really opened up the speakers and highs are crystal clear but the bass sounds a bit out of control. The AR cables are the best of the bunch and I have them in now.
Are there known good interconnects that work well with Rotel amps, and in particular, HK/Rotel combo? I don't want to be raped on the interconnects and AR seems to be of pretty good quality...just wondering if there is anything better....coaxial types of cables need not apply.
3. Am I better off with a Rotel 1080 that has a much higher dampening factor? The 1075 serves my desire to drive my center speaker using hte extra channel with the HK driving the rears. My orig. plan was to use 1075 until I can also get a 1090 to drive the mains but that amp is pretty $$.
Of course, if I return the 1075 and go 1080, I will lose bi-amping and power so I am not sure how that will play out.
What do you guys think?
Daniel
Here are my observations:
1. The speakers sounded good with HK running them and when I hooked up the Rotel (no-biamp), it sounded worse. With bi-amping, it sounds better than with HK alone. Of course, bi-amped sounds better than HK alone or without biamping. Why is HK's 50 watts better sounding than 120 watts of Rotel? The answer is likely in #2 below.
2. My rig appears to be interconnect sensitive meaning that I can clearly hear differences between the cables between the HK and the Rotel. It helps that I have good hearing. So far, I have tried coax type from bluejeans cables and they sounded pretty bad with the highs being muddied and harsh. Monster interconnects "Reference" improved it. Radio Shack cables got rid of the muddiness but it is harsh. Acoustic Research Pro Series II really opened up the speakers and highs are crystal clear but the bass sounds a bit out of control. The AR cables are the best of the bunch and I have them in now.
Are there known good interconnects that work well with Rotel amps, and in particular, HK/Rotel combo? I don't want to be raped on the interconnects and AR seems to be of pretty good quality...just wondering if there is anything better....coaxial types of cables need not apply.
3. Am I better off with a Rotel 1080 that has a much higher dampening factor? The 1075 serves my desire to drive my center speaker using hte extra channel with the HK driving the rears. My orig. plan was to use 1075 until I can also get a 1090 to drive the mains but that amp is pretty $$.
Of course, if I return the 1075 and go 1080, I will lose bi-amping and power so I am not sure how that will play out.
What do you guys think?
Daniel
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