Adding a Rotel RMB-1075

You might notice a bit a difference not going to be night and day it will still be the same sound

If you are not worried about the new HD audio codecs (DTS Master, Dolby True HD), the Arcam AVR 350 receiver is outstanding and can be had easily in your price range (used here on AG). I haven't had experience with it myself, but everything I have seen/read about it has been extremely positive. Might be worth looking into. There have been several forum threads I read where the poster said they preferred it to the Rotel RSP-1068/RMB-1075 combo by no small margin.

if you dont mind buying used - the multichannel classe cav150 should do the trick and are a absolute bargain on the used market.

I have zero interest in HDMI and video circuitry from an AVR. This is all to do with audio sound. I have an HDMI DVD player connected directly to my Sony Bravia LCD TV and that's more than adequate.

My budget would be around $1500.00 for this next step. Can you name the AVR's that outperform Rotel at the $2K point? I need those recommendations and why. I love the features of the RSX-1057 such as separate volume controls for the center channel speaker and the subwoofers. I use those features reguarly from the remote. I love that the Rotel defaults back to a preset volume level each time you turn it on. This way there's no surprises if you know what I mean. It also has many surround sound "music" format choices, more than I've seen on other units such as Marantz. Marantz AVR's in my opinion are definetly more geared to HT than music. It decodes HDCDs into two channel which I have a number of that I play and sounds fantastic. It has multi-channel input for my newest SACD player.

I've always just wondered if Rotel power is still a bit too polite compared to others. For example, what about a comparable NAD AVR or separates? Would that have more oomph, slam, & punch than Rotel? How would you compare the two in terms of pure audio? That was my experience back in the 1980s and early 90s before AvRs (2 channel receivers) and I guess it's still stuck in my head.

Mono blocks I just don't know enough about and I really don't have the physical room for them anyway but thanks for the suggestion. Yes CLASSE amps are super but probably out of my budget. Again, $1500.00 to $2K.

Signed, confused !!

how about using your current unit as a pre-amp and adding a large 5 channel amp / mono blocks ?

you can never have too much clean power on hand - it adds a certain amount of ease and authority to the music. what blows a speaker driver is when it receives a 'clipped signal' from a amp (amp does not have the current to produce the signal cleanly)

btw, b&w's match beautifully with classe amp's.

I think at its price point Rotel is hard to beat. If you want to move up what is your budget?

If you can afford it, I recommend seperate boxes: a pre/pro and a matching 5 or 7 channel amp. But,there a number of avr receivers that outperform Rotel. These are in the $2000 to $5000 price range.

Also, do you need HDMI input (for DVD, Blu Ray Disc, HDTV)?

Mmarvin19

Thanks for the advice. You are in agreement with Mekong56 so that would be the way to go. I guess going up to 125 watts x 5 from 75 x 5 will not produce a noticeable difference. That's what I needed to know and why I started this thread. Thanks guys.
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Mmarvin19:

You mentioned if "I want to stick Rotel....." Are you suggesting another brand? What other suggestions would you have and why? I would love to hear back from you. Appreciate it.

Hi Pdn

If you want to stick with Rotel, I recommend the RMB 1095 (200w x 5)as you would need that much power increase over your 75w x 5 to make a real difference. Your speakers will handle 200w so long as you do not play at rediculously high volume.

An altrernative would be to upgrade by going to a seperate proecessor/amp set up. Like the RSP 1068 pre/pro or, if you need HDMI, the 1069. Couple that w/ an RMB 1075 (120w x 5). I used to drive my surrounds with the 1075 and found it to be a great amp.

That shouldn't be a problem. As long as you aren't pushing the speakers so hard that they distort. You would probably have to have them cranked well beyond normal reasonable listening levels to do that. If you are concerned or uncertain about that, check with B&W or your B&W dealer to get their recommendation on your particular speaker and the output of the amp.

Mekong56:

Thanks for the feedback on your very similar upgrade and the results you obtained. That's excellent info. The only issue I would have is that my main speakers have a max power rating of 150 watts each. If I went with the RMB-1095, could I blow them out with too much power?

I had a RSX-1056 receiver, and added a RMB-1075 amp. In my experience, and this is only my opionion based on that, it was not that big of a difference to the stand alone RSX-1056. Maybe a bit quieter/cleaner with a bit more low level detail. Volume wise, it is more power, but 125wpc isn't going to be a night and day difference to 75wpc internal to the 1057. You are nearly doubling the cost of the 1057 by adding the 1075, which for me didn't end up justifying the investment. I think you need to go up to the 200wpc RMB-1095 to really hear a significant difference. Now, when I eventually replaced the RSX-1056 with a standalone processor (RSP-1068), I did find that more of a jump in sound quality. My advice would be to save a little longer and get a used RMB-1095 here on Agon. As always, your mileage may vary.

You will get all that you posted. Use good cables.