Are Rotel Pre/Pro's any good? (1 Viewer)

[Will]

hopes me name don't become muuuud around here.

Compared to lots of us including me, you needn't worry. You're fine.

 

[John Morris]

I still have my order in, but why gang up on people just for not originally taking the announcements with the proper grain of salt? Especially since the grain turned into a bag o' the stuff.

Thanks! I love it! I am now an official "gang 'o people"... Wow! OKAY, I'll take a gang of 950s at the Intro price... Outlaw, do you see this???

 

[Will]

to sell us a $3K unit for a $1K cost.

I don't expect it to be a $3K unit for a $1K cost. Until someone bench-tests it and listens to it critically, someone who is a neutral third party, I'll expect it to be an $899 pre/pro. All I'm expecting from Outlaw for $899 is an entry level pre/pro. I expect it to be a step up from the pre/pro section in most receivers. If that's all it is, I'll be happy with the unit. I don't expect it to compete with current $3k pre/pro's.

 

[John Morris]

David: No Sweat! Usually on these forums it quickly becomes apparent if you have a hatred of a product or company. In that case, no explanation is necessary.

I wouldn't consider it a $3K unit for a $1K cost.

Will: What performance based on todays unit would you consider a $3K unit, from any source? Please note a comparable $3K unit and from where I can buy it from. Thanks, since I be glad to compare those units, per your suggestion, directly.

 

[Will]

I understand the Integra streets in the $3K range. The Cinepro pre/pro is expected to as well when it comes in a few months. I think there are other pre/pro's (either current or anticipated) that are also expected to street in the $3K range that have been mentioned in the various forums.

Will

 

[John Morris]

huh?

 

[george king]

Boy has this thread drifted (and I am partly to blame). We start with Rotel (primarily the 1066) drift into SACD players and analog outs, then into the Outlaw preamp, and now into $3-4K preamps.
Ain't life strange

 

[BrentPollard]

Agreed George. I am in the market for a new pre/pro. And would like to see the topic move back in that direction. I think the concerns about the Outlaw shipping date are well establised. Lets talk comparisons between the two if possible.

Brent.

 

[Evan S]

Brent, THIS is why the thread has drifted. The features that Outlaw is offering on the 950 and the price point they are attempting to hit blow away the competition. We've already figured out that it has far more value than the Rotel and has basically the same features at a lower cost than the AT. Basically, you have to compare it to the Integras and Cinepros and Ref 30's and Aragons of the world to do it justice. But the thread shifted because the wait is interminable for this "giant" of a product. This is my opinion, and my opinion only, but if people get the Rotel, they are settling just a bit. If they get the AT, it's going to be solely for aesthetics. If they get one of the higher end units, basically they are breaking the bank for great performance, getting sick of waiting for Outlaw, or both.

 

[Legairre]

John,

In response to your question to me of when has Outlaw lied to me. Outlaw has repeatedly announnced to us release dates for the 770 and 950. When someone purposely misleads me. I consider that a lie. Yes, I do beleive that they knew the product wouldn't ship on time and they just kept us hanging on so they wouldn't loose our business. That to ME is a deceptive business pratice and I consider that a lie. Whether you consider that a lie is up to you. I, just like everyone else here have a right to voice my feelings.

Before this thread turns into the other Outlaw thread that was locked. I'd like to say I respect John's and everyone elses feelings on this matter. Now that I've voiced my opinion you guys won't hear me criticizing the Outlaws anymore in this thread and I wish the Outlaws many sales.

I'll stick to the topic of the products and their featurs.

 

[george king]

I was not complaining about the drift, just making an observation.

As to the Outlaw, features wise, it does seem to be a killer product for its price point. However, we will just have to wait and see how it sounds. That will be the key point. Their amps have a great reputation, but they have never put out a preamp, so who knows.

As to the AT clone, asthetics do make a difference, especially if one is married or has a SO, so there is some basis for making part of one's judgement based on looks.

I do not necessarily see how people would be "settling" for the Rotel. They have a long history of making great sounding, reasonably sounding equipment. Given Rotel's history, it is a pretty safe bet that this will be an excellent sounding preamp.

Someone sort of complained about the lack of a stereo analog pass through (a problem for some I admit) and said that this reflected Rotel's mid-fi mindset. This is true, but this is what Rotel is: affordable entry level audiophile equipment. Rotel is not Theta, Meridian, Tag, Lexicon, or Levinson. That is not their market or customer base, so IMO their decisions regarding their designs are in complete agreement with their history and philosophy. For the vast majority of their customer base the lack of a pass through for stereo inputs will not be significant.

Just my 2 cents. BTW, I have not decided which preamp to get, I just find much of the criticism toward both Outlaw and Rotel misplaced in light of their targeted customers.

 

[BrentPollard]

I guess I would have to agree that the Outlaw is a better value, now have any fellow Canadians been able to get on the waiting list for it .there seems to be no feild for Can. I just sent them an e-mail within the last hour or so.

 

[Legairre]

I'm not in the Rotel or AT camp yet. Depending on my needs and the sound I could go either way. Both units fall into the $1500.00 price range I set back in December. I'm currently not into DVD-A or SACD(and don't plan on it for the forseable future) so the pass thu is not an issue for me. I'll have to do what I always do. Read some reviews and then have my dealer let me take the products home for a weekend. That way I can compare them to eachother and to my Denon receiver in the environment they will be used in.

 

[Jim_C]

>>Does anyone use Rotel pre/pros or have suggestions for other brands in the 1-1.5k range?

 

[george king]

JimC,

I agree, and have said, this has been a wonderfully informative thread, and I was only commenting on the wide range of topics covered (drift may not have been the best choice of words, I admit).

You are going to love this amp. I have had it for a couple of months and am continually amazed at how good everything stands.

Also like I said, I have not made up my mind. The Rotel is somewhat at the top of the list, but only for easy financial reasons. I can trade my Yamaha 995 in for $500 which brings the price of the Rotel down to $1K. Unfortunately, the only Rotel dealer close to me always charges list, and especially on trade ins. That is why they are always my 2nd choice. As a result, I do not have to find someone to buy the Yamaha etc. At $1K the Rotel is an attractive option.

Everyone keep up the lively debate.

 

[Mark C.]

I've been following this zig-zag thread (at least trying to) for a while, so I'll take it back to the Rotel topic. Some folks who have a dedicated stereo system don't care whether our HT pre/pro has analog pass-through. That group includes me.

That being the case, I can't recommend Rotel more highly. I bought the RSP-976 as a floor model. For what it does, DTS, DD and, yes, casual two-channel music listening, it does well. Mated with the RMB-1075, I have a great HT.

Now I've been an audio enthusiast for many years, but I just don't get this preoccupation with two-channel analog pass-through. My HT sounds just fine in stereo without the pass-through. Sure, it doesn't sound as good as my Classe and 804 Nautilus system, but it shouldn't.

Someone please enlighten me.

 

[Jim_C]

Hey George,
I wasn't picking on you. Sorry if you took it that way. I was just commenting on the concept of drift. No slight on you was intended.

 

[george king]

Jim,
I never interpreted your statements to mean that you were picking on me. The thought never crossed my mind. I was just thinking that drift has some negative connotations (aimless, purposeless movement), and that wasn't the case for this thread. Indeed as you insightfully pointed out, the divergent topics covered were generally important, and related to the reported specs on the Rotel. That is all I meant by changing my mind on the term drift.

 

[Evan S]

Mark, basically I don't want my redbook signal put through DSP and then sent to the volume control. Any time an electrical component processes the signal, it slightly degrades it. Seeing as I have an SACD player which will be hooked up to the 5.1 inputs (and receive analog pass-through), I don't understand why the 2 channel redbook signal (which would come through a CD input) should not receive the same treatment. I mean Outlaw is doing it for all analog inputs on the 950 for significantly less money. Why couldn't Rotel offer this pretty simple feature? It's not like I'm asking for something complicated like Logic 7 or DPL II. I just want pure stereo 2 channel listening. I also don't want to go the route of getting a separate 2 channel pre-amp.

Legairre, as for your thoughts on SACD. I know you plan to not get SACD or DVD-A "for a long while". Have you heard it yet? One listen and you'd be a believer. I know the titles out there are sparse, but the quality of the sound is absolutely stunning...breathtaking. I'm not the kind of guy who would go back and buy an issue on SACD that I already have on Redbook (I'm not filthy rich), but if I had the choice of SACD or Redbook, it wouldn't take a second to decide. Even at $5 average more per SACD. Night and day IMO. My advice to you is that if you don't want to get one of these players, then DON'T take the time to listen to one. You'll be hooked.

 

[John Morris]

Hey Merc, as our resident company apologist and soon to be beneficiary of low, low introductory pricing, here's one line from my posting you didn't respond to: "But announcing short term ship dates while the unit is still in Alpha testing doesn't exactly scream good faith."

LarryB: Another post, another lie from YOU. Where did I ever appologize for anyone? Of course I could appologize to the rest of the folks here on HTF for having to put up with you and the rest of the whiners endless, boring, repetitive posts. BLAH, blah, blah, on and on from you whiners. As for your statement on Alpha testing time period shipping estimates, go back and read my earlier posts on this. Essentially, you just don't seem to understand that an estimate is just that. If you, or any of the whiners, would have taken a minute to have called Outlaw, then you too would be as informed as the rest of us who did.

I'm done with talking on the whiners topic, unless I'm personally addressed, until I have a 950 in my hands.