Receiver Rotel? and Speakers Maggies? for HT?


Hi,

I need to buy sound gear and video switching for our HT (front projector). Already have a 2-channel separate music system which I love (tube amp with Soliloquy speakers).

Room is about 16x30 with angled ceiling (1.5 story house) on the sides, so speakers for rear surrounds must be small/flat and wall-mountable. Detailed sound processing and clear dialog are number one priorities, without sounding too bright.

Since there do not appear to be any reasonably priced pre/pros ( = 100MHz bandwidth, I've resigned myself to buying a receiver with pre-outs instead. I've got a couple of 2-channel amps with an honest 100W/channel rating floating around, and could always buy another used amp if necessary. The top contenders right now are Rotel RSX-1056 and RSX-1067, though I'm not sure the 1067 (100Wx7) is worth $900 more than the 1056 (75Wx5 with 2 preouts for the other 2 channels).

Thought of getting the new Magnepan MMG W and MMG C speakers, augmented with a Dayton Titanic 10" sub (or 2 if needed). They look nice and fit flat against the wall, perfect for our room. Imaging and clarity are supposed to be their strength, and the lack of bass is made up by the sub(s). Trouble is, they are 4ohm speakers and supposedly difficult to drive. Question is, how are they for HT, would they be "loud" enough for our room, and can the Rotel receivers handle them or will I likely require outboard amplification?

Sorry for the somewhat lengthy post, but I figure more info is better than not enough. You may not have all the answers, but any advise or experience with respect to the above choices are greatly appreciated!

Thx,
Frank
fvoelling
A friend of mine is considering a similar setup, although I am steering him towards picking up a used pre/pro (perhaps a Rotel RSP-1066) and multichannel amp (again, perhaps Rotel) instead of going the receiver route. He is also thinking of getting the floorstanding MMG's for L/R, with a MMG C for center and MMG W's for surrounds.

I will be interested to hear the responses to this thread, or is you go ahead and bite the bullet, please share!

Tom.
Tom,

I haven't looked at that possibility (used 1066), thx for pointing that out. Have to look at how much they go for and if they have 3 component inputs.

Frank
The outlaw separates at $700 for the pre/pro and $900 for the 7x100 watt(strong) amp is an infinitely better solution than ANY RECEIVER!...especially considering you doin Maggies. You won't be driving maggies with any $1000 receiver any time soon if you ask me. Also, you're crossing over at 80hz or higher! You must do that, yes.
The cheeper maggies(which by the way don't sit flat, they attach and fold out) could use some good extension and clear sound from an amp/pre pro, and the Outlaw offers that.
I've worked in 6 high end audio video stores over the years, and have sold/heard/installed all the receiver based systems you can immagine(including Denon 5803). The Outlaw combo is superior for any money to a receiver! Too clean a sound, too much power, too many features, great processing, pure analog passthrough inputs, etc. And built very well.
Basically, you'll not see me using cheep receivers with maggies any time soon.
The maggies are indeed clear and free from coloration. They lack top end extension for the cheep HT pieces, and are harder to drive for a receiver(even at 80hz crossover), and offer LOWWWWWW sensitivity, making things even more difficult. They are not as dynamic as other piston speakers in the bass reigion. But I suppose that's not a high priority for you. Still, crossing them over high enough, with a very good sub(or more preferably, perhaps smaller subs) will help, yes.
If you're sold on the Maggies, I'd consider Outlaw separates..couldn't recommend anything but maybe a big old Denon at $4k as a MARGINAL RECEIVER CHOICE for ya here, sorry.
Good luck
Why not soliloquy speakers all around since you already like them. You should be able to find Sat-5's for $400/pr and a center for $400. These would sound great with the Rotel.