Hi everyone. Here’s the write up on my new RB-1070 amp.
I was and still am using a Rotel RMB-985mkII as my other amp. Both amps are matched with Rotel 1055 receiver. Speakers used are Klipsch KG series speakers, except the center backs, which are KSB series.
Equipment is:
Rotel RSX-1055-Preamp section only
Rotel RB-1070-Mains
Rotel RB-985mkII-The other 5
Sony CE775-CD/SACD
Philips DSR6000
KG 5.2’s--R/L
KG 4.2’s--Surrounds
KG 2.2v---Center
KSB 3.1’s-Center backs
SVS 20-39’s(2) with ISD
SVS 35-31Pci
Fidek 3002-Sub amp
I have the 1070 powering the 5.2’s and the 985 powering the centers and surrounds.
First I would like to say that the amp is well built. Seems nice and solid. Weighs in at just over 26lbs. It matches the 985mkII and 1055 perfectly. Which means that it looks great.
Kudos to Rotel for putting out such a fine product for a nice price. The 1070 list for $699.
Ok, now for what everyone wants to hear. How does it sound?
Well it sounds great. As I noted earlier in this post I think, imho, that the 1070 is a much better amp that the 985mkII. It just sounds bigger during 2 channel use. I have the 1055’s LP crossover set at 60hz. This seems to work best for me in my room.
After listening to several Bela Fleck discs, I can most definitely say that the 1070 drives the 5.2’s better than the 985mkII. Bela Fleck’s cd “Left of Cool” is my favorite disc to listen to new equipment. It has huge dynamics and will test your speakers and well as your electronics.
Compared to the 958mkII the RB-1070 is a more musical amp, imho. Bass seems sharper and tighter. The 5.2’s seem to have more snap with the 1070. I don’t know is this is due the 1070 have a much higher dampening factor (500) compared to the 985’s dampening factor(180).
The difference during home theater use was not really noticeable. I watched The Haunting DTS and Stars Wars TPM at reference levels and everything sounded great. As much as I wanted there to a noticeable improvement, there wasn’t. This just confirms that the 1055’s amps are the real deal and put out a true 75 watts. If I could find a way to switch back and both instantly I might have been able to find a difference.
Of course with the amps I was able to increase the volume to around 10db above reference before the speakers or amps started to get a little hairy.
So there were no real surprises with the RB-1070. Based the equipment I own and used for this review, I can highly recommend this amp. It can drive my speakers to volumes I will never need, while sounding great at lower volumes.
The only thing else I can say is give it a try, I think you’ll like it.
Earle
I was and still am using a Rotel RMB-985mkII as my other amp. Both amps are matched with Rotel 1055 receiver. Speakers used are Klipsch KG series speakers, except the center backs, which are KSB series.
Equipment is:
Rotel RSX-1055-Preamp section only
Rotel RB-1070-Mains
Rotel RB-985mkII-The other 5
Sony CE775-CD/SACD
Philips DSR6000
KG 5.2’s--R/L
KG 4.2’s--Surrounds
KG 2.2v---Center
KSB 3.1’s-Center backs
SVS 20-39’s(2) with ISD
SVS 35-31Pci
Fidek 3002-Sub amp
I have the 1070 powering the 5.2’s and the 985 powering the centers and surrounds.
First I would like to say that the amp is well built. Seems nice and solid. Weighs in at just over 26lbs. It matches the 985mkII and 1055 perfectly. Which means that it looks great.
Kudos to Rotel for putting out such a fine product for a nice price. The 1070 list for $699.Ok, now for what everyone wants to hear. How does it sound?
Well it sounds great.
As I noted earlier in this post I think, imho, that the 1070 is a much better amp that the 985mkII. It just sounds bigger during 2 channel use. I have the 1055’s LP crossover set at 60hz. This seems to work best for me in my room. After listening to several Bela Fleck discs, I can most definitely say that the 1070 drives the 5.2’s better than the 985mkII. Bela Fleck’s cd “Left of Cool” is my favorite disc to listen to new equipment. It has huge dynamics and will test your speakers and well as your electronics.
Compared to the 958mkII the RB-1070 is a more musical amp, imho. Bass seems sharper and tighter. The 5.2’s seem to have more snap with the 1070. I don’t know is this is due the 1070 have a much higher dampening factor (500) compared to the 985’s dampening factor(180).
The difference during home theater use was not really noticeable. I watched The Haunting DTS and Stars Wars TPM at reference levels and everything sounded great. As much as I wanted there to a noticeable improvement, there wasn’t. This just confirms that the 1055’s amps are the real deal and put out a true 75 watts. If I could find a way to switch back and both instantly I might have been able to find a difference.
Of course with the amps I was able to increase the volume to around 10db above reference before the speakers or amps started to get a little hairy.
So there were no real surprises with the RB-1070. Based the equipment I own and used for this review, I can highly recommend this amp. It can drive my speakers to volumes I will never need, while sounding great at lower volumes.
The only thing else I can say is give it a try, I think you’ll like it.
Earle
