Rotel RSP-1066 Vs. Outlaw 950 (1 Viewer)

[ArthurJ]

Checking out the major differences between the two...

Are both upgradable?

I am in the marker for a good pre/pro but I want one that you can upgrade instead of having to buy a whole new pre/pro! Thanks!

 

[EarleD]

I own the 1055(used as a preamp only) and it is upgradeable via the 232 port. The 950 is not user upgradeable. Rotel has provided many upgrades and fixes already. All you need is a laptop and your good to go.

In my opinion the 1066 has better bass management. It allows you to adjust volume/turn off the sub for each mode(stereo,DD,DTS, and Multi Inputs). This is a great feature, for people who have full range mains and dont want to use their sub for music.

Now that the analog input BM fix is in there is no more bass doubling. The 950 allows the option of HPing the multi Inputs and redirecting the bass to the sub. The only problem is that this feature is not defeatable without bass doubling.

I am very happy with the sound of my 1055 I have it matched with a RB-1070 and a RB-985mkII. Music sounds great, clear enough to hear details that I never heard before, yet can knock you back into the couch when needed.

I have never owned nor heard a 950 so maybe someone else here can help you with it

 

[Kevin C Brown]

You should do a search. This has been beat to death in this forum before.

 

[Andrew Pratt]

Kevin it sure has but Earls comments about the bass management fix for the Rotels does change the ballence a little since there's now nothing wrong with the Rotels at all

 

[kevitra]

As far as I know, the Rotel still has the popping issue with some digital satellite receivers. Not all people experience it, but I had two 1055s and they both made popping noises when changing channels on my Hughes E86, and popped during shows with my DirecTiVo.

It is an incredible sounding unit. I'd recommend the 1055 or 1066, as long as they work with your equipment.

 

[Jed M]

So you no longer have to cut a wire inside the 1066 to get it to perform correctly? Thats cool if that is so. I would still choose the 950 for the reasons I originally chose it. If you live in the U.S. Arthur I would recommend at least trying the 950 for 30 days, it only cost about 20 to ship back. I was torn between the two also but after trying the 950 for 30 days I was decided. Good luck and I am sure you will be happy with either. Also, if you don't have the same size speakers all the way around don't underestimate the triple crossover, it really makes DD and DTS sound great.

 

[EarleD]

Jed,

You still have to cut the resistors to fix the BM issue on the multi inputs. But its takes about 5 minutes if you dont want to add a switch. It doesnt affect your warranty as long as youdont screw up.

I did the fix and trust me if I can anyone can. I have no electrical training whatsoever and it was simple.

Andrew, I agree. Its a sweet preamp/receiver.

Earle

 

[Kevin C Brown]

It doesnt affect your warranty as long as youdont screw up.

So if you do screw it up, it isn't covered? IMO, Rotel then still hasn't fixed the problem.

1) Are new units shipping yet without the double bass?
2) Can you ship a current unit back to Rotel for them to fix it for free? (Or, can a dealer do it while you wait, and it *is* covered if they screw it up?)

 

[Andrew Pratt]

Kevin no the ones from the factory are going to continue to ship as they were spec'd out originally. Thats the way the dealer network wanted it. If you want the dealer to perform the modification I'm sure they'd do it for free providing they know about it (doubtfull) but as Earl mentioned its very easy to do. There's a couple of detailed threads on Club Rotel detailing the process for the 1055 and the 1066. Both have pictures to follow so its pretty straight forward for you or a dealer to follow. As for Rotel honoring warrenty I was told that Rotel won't turn its back on its users but you can't expect them to do free warrenty service if you drop a screw driver into case and short out some cap because you're clumsy. On the other hand if you need warrenty work on something unrelated to the BM fix they shouldn't care that you opened the case to snipe a few resistors.

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Ok, I'll buy that for a dollar.

Honestly? If this "fix" had been around fall of 02, I might have went with the 1066, and not the 950. But in the end, I am happy with the 950 as well. Still has the tuner and the analog BM on the 5.1 inputs, but would have been a much harder decision, for me anyway...

 

[David Giesbrecht]

whats the price dofference between the two?

 

[DanaA]

Outlaws are $899 plus shipping. Rotels retail for $1499, but the going discount is about 10%, so figure on about $1350 plus tax, although this varies significantly from dealer to dealer.

Even though I've never heard the Outlaw (I own the Rotel), I feel both are great values for the money. Looks, the availability from local dealers, and the firmware upgradability are what sold me on the Rotel, but I'd probably be pretty happy with the Outlaw and a few hundred richer. One of these days, I'll move up to the Anthem, higher priced Rotel, Parasound, whatever, but, until then, I'm really quite satisfied.

 

[Andrew Pratt]

David you should be able to get the 1066 for about $1800 cdn. The 1055 has a tuner and is cheaper then the 1066 sounds extremely similar and makes an awesome pre amp (its what I'm now using)

I'm now sure how much the outlaw would be once it crosses the boarder but with our strong dollar it might not be too bad.

 

[David Giesbrecht]

Thats what I was concerned about, the prices on Outlaws sight look great until you factor in the exchange and shipping costs toget it here.