***Official*** Rotel RSP 1066 Fact and LOGICAL discussion thread (1 Viewer)

[RichardMA]

I read this in the Rotel manual. It's a response to

another thread, but I thought it might have a place here.

Interesting. I read that DTS ES is non-flagged from

the manual of the Rotel RSP-1066 (pg. 15). I guess it

"could" mean that the Rotel does not recognize DTS ES matrixed flags on DVDs and uses some generic method to

extract the 6th channel from the surrounds?

 

[Gregg Z]

Hi Richard,
I think if you go back and re-read that section you will see that the manual clearly says that the 1066 will automatically recognize and decode dts ES flagged material (both discrete and matrixed). I can vouch for the fact that it does work properly. And with the v1.35 software update that came out last month, the 1066 now also automatically recognizes and decodes Dolby Digital Surround EX flagged material as well.
What the manual does say further down the page is that the 1066 also features "Rotel XS" processing which will monitor for and decode matrixed but NON-flagged dts ES and NON-flagged DD-EX discs into the rear channels. So, you are correct that for a non-flagged disc, another method is used to extract the rear channels.
I also know that you can force the 1066 into DD-EX mode for material that is not DD-EX flagged or encoded. What I don't know is if you can force the 1066 into dts ES mode for material that is dts ES encoded but not flagged.
Does anyone know of a DVD that is dts ES encoded but not properly flagged? If I can get access to one, I'll try it and see what happens.
Gregg

 

[Andrew Pratt]

gents my prelim review of my 1066 is now up here

 

[Jeff Kohn]

Well, just for kicks I stopped by Home Theater store here in Houston during my lunch hour to see if they had the 1066 in stock. They're not my favorite place to shop due to their 7-day return policy, but they're the only Rotel dealer in Houston. Turns out that they didn't have the 1066 in Houston but had some at the Austin store and could get it on a truck to be here for pickup Saturday morning. Impulse took over, and I decided to bite the bullet and get one.
I've been on the 950 waiting list since January, but it's been getting really hard to wait when the 950 is the only piece holding up my complete audio system upgrade. When the Rotel 1066 was first announced, it didn't seem to me like the extra features justified the cost difference over the 950. But now that some people who have had both units in their homes are characterizing the 950 as sometimes being a bit edgy or harsh compared to the 1066, I started to get concerned. The speakers I'm getting are Axioms, which are often characterized as being accurrate and revealing, and I'm wondering if pairing them with the 950 would result in a sound that is a little too accurate and revealing. Some people also seem to being having some problems with toslink dropouts when using the 950 with an HTPC, which is a concern for me since I use my HTPC for DVD, HDTV, and music.
I guess if my 950 order comes up in the next few days I might go ahead and get one to compare, but I only have 7 days to evauate the 1066 so I'm not sure if that's going to happen. Based on what I know about the 1066 I don't think I'll be disappointed with its performance and features. The only possible regret would be the price. At $1350 the 1066 is actually $650 more than my price on the 950 since I would be getting the $200 discount for buying the 950/770 combo (I'm getting the 770 either way, so the $200 discount is a factor for me).

 

[Andrew Pratt]

congrat's Jeff IMO you made a good choice.

 

[Jeff Kohn]

I have a question. Looking over the manual, it mentions MP3 playback. How exactly does this work? I mean, I can understand if you use an MP3 player that decodes the files and sends analog audio to the pre/pro, but how would you feed actual MP3 data to the pre/pro without decoding it first? Are there devices that support this, or could I do it with a computer?

I already use an HTPC for DVD, HDTV, and music, and I've recently started ripping my CD collection to MP3 using Lame @ 320cbr, so this feature holds some interest for me, but I don't know how you could actually take advantage of it. It seems like this would be a better way to go than decoding the MP3's on the computer, since there some issues with sending unaltered PCM data from a computer (the WDM driver model forces everything though a mixer).

 

[Serge Breton]

Jeff,

although i have my 950, i'm in the same boat as yourself. Problem is there are no Rotel dealers around here so i'm searching for a gently used one.

 

[Brian Corr]

Congrats Jeff,

I have been trying to decide between the 950 and 1066 myself. I'm pretty sure I'll be getting the 1066 now.

My reasons (in no order whatsoever):

1. The 950 is butt ugly, the 1066 is not.

2. The 1066 is upgradeable and has been, doubtful on the 950.

3. I don't care about a tuner.

4. The 950 seems buggy and maybe a little lacking in regards to quality control, sheilding or something to be causing people to have issues with noise, dropouts, etc.

5. I don't care about the price difference.

6. Rotel's been around awhile and probably will be, Outlaw is a young company, so who knows.

7. I don't care for Outlaws marketing.

8. I have M&K's so the Rotel is probably a better match.

The only thing I wish the Rotel had was bass mgmt on the multichannel inputs. Oh well, can't have everything!

 

[Rich Auchter]

I am ready to pull the trigger on the 1066. Problem is the two local dealers in town (Portland, OR) refuse to come down from retail. Does anyone have any good negotiating tips. Seems like most people are paying $1350, which I would buy at. Thanks!

 

[Karl Englebright]

Rich,

If it's the two I'm thinking of (I don't know if it's ok to mention names) I'm surprised that the one on Hawthorne doesn't want to come down. Although, I asked about the 1075 amp there once and they quoted me list and wouldn't budge. The other dealer (I suspect the one in Beaverton)doesn't surprise me one bit. They seem to have a very snobbish attitude. I won't buy from them ever since one of the sales guys there compared my Def Tech speakers to Bose!

 

[Camp]

one of the sales guys there compared my Def Tech speakers to Bose!

Grrr!! That place needs to burn to the ground!

 

[Rich Auchter]

I got Fred's Sound Of Music(Hawthorne location) down to $1399 and just wanted it too bad to fight. The beautiful silver 1066 now resides in my make-shift HT until I can get the basement going. Sounds great. Thanks for all the great info everyone.

 

[Karl Englebright]

Grrr!! That place needs to burn to the ground!

LOL!!! Although it would be a terrible thing to see all those B&W speakers and all that classe gear gone forever

 

[Jeff Kohn]

I have a question. Looking over the manual, it mentions MP3 playback. How exactly does this work? I mean, I can understand if you use an MP3 player that decodes the files and sends analog audio to the pre/pro, but how would you feed actual MP3 data to the pre/pro without decoding it first? Are there devices that support this, or could I do it with a computer?

I already use an HTPC for DVD, HDTV, and music, and I've recently started ripping my CD collection to MP3 using Lame @ 320cbr, so this feature holds some interest for me, but I don't know how you could actually take advantage of it. It seems like this would be a better way to go than decoding the MP3's on the computer, since there some issues with sending unaltered PCM data from a computer (the WDM driver model forces everything though a mixer).

So does anybody know the answer to this question?

 

[Gregg Z]

I haven't tried to use this feature, but I think there are some DVD players that you can drop a CD-ROM with MP3's on it and it will send the MP3 data out the digital out (Toslink or Coax) to the pre/pro where the 1066 will handle the decompression and playback of the music.

I also seem to recall a while back folks like Gateway and Dell used to sell these "internet music boxes" that looked like stereo equipment but pulled music from the internet. Perhaps one of those type of devices has a digital out on it that could feed MP3 encoded data to the 1066.

Again, this is all a "best guess" on my part.

 

[Tony Lai]

It's the same as Harmon Kardon's implementation of MP3 decoding.

T.

 

[Nicholas Renter]

I received my 1066 and 1095 on Saturday. I'm officially part of the club.

So far, I love the combo. The amp is a bit crispy, but just needs a few hours on it.

I do have a question about the 1066....is it possible to get 4-channel stereo or 6-channel stereo (lefts and rights only - no center channel)? I like to be surrounded by music, but don't like the center channel.

Thoughts?

 

[Andrew Pratt]

Nicholas to get 6 channel stereo try editing a DPLII setting so that most of the music goes to the mains not the centre.

 

[Jeff Kohn]

Yes, use DPL2-Music, and customize the settings to put "Center Width" at 7.

 

[AVspec]

It's the same as Harmon Kardon's implementation of MP3 decoding.

Tony, or anyone.... do you know what program will output the MP3 through the digital coax out on a HTPC?

I would like to try this feature.

Thanks,