2. amps-preamps
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Rotel RMB vs. Sunfire Cinema Grand

Hi guys,
After months of searching and reading etc, I have narrowed my selection of amplifiers down to two.
I am very much interested in what a Sunfire Cinema Grand could do in my system. My Infinity Kappa 600s (Front) and 400s(surrounds) are wheezing with the 50-watt Adcoms I have pushing them, and they are bi-wireable, thus the Sunfire, with it's voltage and current source posts for the fronts seems like the logical choice. THey are available here on the 'Gon for around $1,500 used, or less, and $1,699 B-Stock from various dealers such as ATS.
THe Rotel RMB-1075 is not as powerful, nor does it have the flexibility of biwiring, but it would save me roughly $600, and I could buy the Rotel here in town at my dealer, new in box with factory warranty. It would also leave me room to upgrade my interconnects as well.
Can anyone attest to the benefits of said biwiring, and are they worth it as far as musical performance goes? I am a fan of high-rez digital sources, SACD and DVD-A, and of course need the best performance possible in two-channel mode. (The best performance short of Halcro, Theta, VTL, etc!)

Any suggestions would be helpful. I am quite treble sensitive, and many amplifiers sound a bit edgy or bright - maybe a good amplifier will correct the harshness my Kappa's produce at limits of their amps - when auditioned with B&K amplification, they sounded wonderful and wieghty, but were very fatiguing, thus I am not looking at B&K!

Thanks! Happy Listening!

Jon BRown

breitlingdj@yahoo.com
breitlingdj
sean
6,231 posts
 
Anybody that tells you that a Rotel amp is "warmer & smoother" than a Sunfire is either a bold-faced liar or speaking out of lack of experience with both product lines. The Sunfire is specifically voiced to sound slightly soft in the upper mids / lower treble region. Bob Carver was not shy about admitting this and it has been commented on in several different reviews of these amps. Sean
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breitlingdj OP
23 posts
 
Sean -
From what I've heard, I have absolutely no doubt that, due to the voltage & current source connections on the Sunfires, they are smoother than the Rotels. My audition this evening of the Rotel RMB 1075, driving B&W 704s, yielded a very smooth, very laid-back sound. I was altogether pleased with the sound of the amp, which is why I ordered one, to be picked up Monday.
I saved some money, and like I said, if I don't like it, then I'll either put it elsewhere or sell it and get the Sunfire!

THanks all,
Happy Listening!

Jon BRown
miatame
6 posts
 
Do you know what cables the B&Ws were being fed with?
I'm interested in your 1075 experience as it is a fair priced amp that may be a bit better then the older 985. I'll audition the 985 this week and hopefully be the owner by early next week. I'm not holding my breath though, I'm picky! haha
tombowlus
416 posts
 
Those two amps are going to sound quite different, as noted above, so system synergy is going to be the key, here. Personally, I tend to prefer the sound of Rotel amps to Sunfire, but in the right system, I could see myself going for the Sunfire. If you are considering other brands, and if you can find a deal on one, the Theta Digital Intrepid is incredibly good for the money, and far more powerful than its 5x100w ratings would make you believe. I have one for my center and surrounds, but for a time, it powered my mains (Thiel CS3.6) as well, and those 3.6's are a bear to drive! But the Intrepid sounded incredibly good. I now have Enterprises on my 3.6's, FWIW.

The Rotel sounds like the best bang for the buck option. Once you start looking at the Sunfire's price range, you could probably step up to the Theta.

Good luck, Tom.
breitlingdj OP
23 posts
 
That particular setup was as follows, straight from the sales guy:

Rotel 1072 CD Player
Rotel 1068 Pre/Pro
Rotel 1075 amplifier
B&W 704's FL/FR
B&W 705's SR/SL
B&W LCR 60 Center
Velodyne DD-12 Subwoofer / Monster MB1000 Sub IC
Digital Cables : Monster M1000D
Analog Cables: Monster M550
Speaker Cables: Monster Z2 Reference
Power Delivery: Monster HTPS 3500 (I think, I didnt ask him about that)

I referenced the new Dave Matthews Live at the Gorge CD, and although the space was smaller than most listening rooms in homes, the soundstage was quite wide, relatively deep, and imaging was very specific, although muddied a bit by the Dolby PL II processing I used to listen to all five speakers.
THe subwoofer was much to loud and I didnt mess about with it, but the overall presentation was good enough to have me produce the 50% deposit to order one from the factory.

I will update this hopefully by Monday, when I should be able to take delivery of the amplifier.

I did not hear ANY edginess or brightness from this amp personally, and it slightly reminded me of the sound produced by a McIntosh 402 driving Nautilus 803s. Very laid back and mellow, but still very detailed and lush. Just not quite so much as the Mac rig...

MOre later..

JB
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