What pre/pros will be available this year from $1500 down? (1 Viewer)

[Joe Bauman]

Need a pre/pro costing less than $1500. I know of the Rotel 1066 and Outlaw 950 but what else is coming out by year end in this price range?

 

[Bob-N]

MSRP or street price. There will be a few 950 clones coming out this year...Atlantic Tech $1699 MSRP and Sherbourn $??? for sure. Sherwood Newcastle is supposed to be working on a pre/pro but I recall that it won't be ready for a while.

 

[Joe Bauman]

I was thinking MSRP of $1500 or less.

Looks to be a very limited choice of pre/pros at this point. It is hard to believe there is such a gap. I could buy a near top of the line Yamaha 3200 6.1 receiver or a Rotel 1066 for the same price. No wonder most people purchase receivers, they are nearly forced into it.

rant, rant, rant...

 

[RAF]

No wonder most people purchase receivers, they are nearly forced into it.

No, Joe, nobody is "forced" to buy anything. It's a matter of priorities and choice. True, you can get a good receiver for the cost of one of the new pre/pros coming out, but you have to understand that these receivers do not perform as well.
Of course, "performance" is in the ear of the beholder. Receivers may provide you with all the sonic qualities you desire and if this is the case then they are the best choice. But the point of all these discussions, whether it be about the Rotel 1066 or the Outlaw 950 or all the clones they will be sending in, etc. is that there is now a new game in town.
Within the month it will be possible to spend the same money or less on separates as you would on one of the "mega" receivers and, many would claim, get far better performance. I'm using the $2499 package price of the Outlaw 950/770 combination as my example here, but the same would be true for the Rotel 1066 combined with any of a number of amplifier options for the same general price range. And when you factor in some of the other new and used components out there or soon to be introduced you can come up with many other "separates" choices.
To summarize, if the "one box solution" is important to you (a receiver) and/or you can't hear the difference, then that's the way to go. If separates have always been something you aspired to, but most of them were priced way beyond even the top receivers, then the playing field has been leveled. The difference between the price of separates and receivers has changed in my opinion. And since I favor what separates offer in increased performance and flexibility, this becomes an easy decision in my case.
Here's to the separatist movement!

 

[Will]

Here's to the separatist movement!

Ahhh -- that's music to my ears. Real sweet music, when said by an owner of a Denon flagship receiver.
But still, I agree with Joe's point as well. There are still good reasons to buy non-flagship or even near-flagship receivers these days, based on price. But there's not such a good reason to buy a flagship receiver, either now or before (but we can agree to disagree on the before part ), based on price performance, in my opinion. Again, this is merely an opinion. A flagship receiver can still be justified perhaps based on convenience and less overall size, fewer cables to buy, electrical power issues, etc.

 

[Randy G]

I can almost guarantee ya that when there's a standard(ieee1394?) for a single cable hookup between amp and pre-pro, the receiver market will be in for a world of hurt...except for the real cheap ones, of course. Hey, I like the convenience of the receiver as much as anybody, but why should I be forced to repurchase a receiver amp section whenever I desire new pre-pro features? This is aside from the subjective "sound quality" differences.

 

[RAF]

when said by an owner of a Denon flagship receiver.

Will,
Shortly to be "the artist formerly known as the owner of a Denon flagship receiver." I should have my new amp early next week then my son gets the 5700.
Stay tuned...

 

[Wayne Ernst]

then my son gets the 5700.

Since you are such a generous partent, would you adopt me?