Anyone familiar with Rotel amps?

I've got a friend who just got out of the Marines. He's got some $$ saved up, and instead of getting Outlaw gear, for now he's looking into the Rotel 1095.

We will probably head to a dealer this weekend to do some listening, but it's never quite the same as having it run your own speakers, in your own room.

I told him I'd ask in here, seeing as how there is such a variety of members here. I hope I'm not crossing the line by asking, seeing as its not about Outlaw gear.

Is the Rotel, a step above as far as sound quality? I believe its got about the same power ratings.

I have a feeling he might return it and go with the Outlaw amps. He was very impressed with my 200's. Thats why I was shocked when he said he was looking into Rotel. Oh well...thanks in advance for the replies.

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Play it LoUd!!

Rotel makes extremely good amplifiers, and your friend will be more than happy with an amp. However, keep in mind that he's paying the markup of having to work through a dealer.

Let's say that you have a Rotel amp and an Outlaw amp, both of which costs $1,000. Factor in the dealer markup: now the Outlaw amp still is worth $1,000 and the Rotel is worth about $500. Then factor in the manufacturer markup, and the Outlaw is probably made with $500 of parts and the Rotel with $250 of parts.

Of course these are rough exagerations, but the point I'm making is that I believe that while Rotel products are truly excellent, Outlaw can offer even better for less because of the direct sale nature.

But in any case, whether he buys Outlaw or Rotel, ultimately he won't be going wrong. Both make extremely high-quality products. The only difference is that he's getting less bang-for-the-buck with the Rotel.

Jeff

I agree, and I doubt anyone would be silly enough to disagree...Outlaw definitely has the best "Bang for the buck" with any and all products.

But out of curiosity, I'd like to get a Rotel mixed into my system and do some comparisons. If he does buy it, He will most likely let me bring it over here and let me do some listening tests.

Anyone else have any input?

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Play it LoUd!!

I have a 1095 which I was lucky enough to get used for $1200 about a year ago. If I remember right, my dealer wanted $1800 for new. I am very happy with the Rotel. It replaced the amplification from my old H/K AVR 500 and those additional 140 watts per channel blew me away. But realistically, I can't imagine that the extra $500 for a new Rotel vs a new 755 is really worth it. If he is comfortable with going the used route and can get it for $1200-1400 I'd say it might be worth it.

I have two Rotel amps that I picked up used from a guy on ebay. I think I paid $700 for both. One is a 5 channel (100w x5) and the other is a 2 (125w x2) both THX certified. I have been very happy with both. Combined with my 950 it is like night and day to my old Sony ES receiver. However neither amp has a remote trigger which is driving me crazy.

dragonmonger

Get a power strip that has one, such as Monster Power or Panamax.

Jeff

On Rotel,

Well, I agree that Outlaw saves you money by cutting out the middle man, but there are things that should be mentioned...

1) Rotel has one of the lowest dealer markups in the business...

2) There is actual value from buying from a dealer, now that value is different for different people, but there are some benefits...for example, i bought my receiver from a dealer, if i want, i can bring it their and they will do the firmware update for me, so basically no cost...if there was no dealer, i would have to find a way to do it (depending on the case, that could be easy or hard) or I would have to ship it...this is just one advantage...

I also roughly disagree with bang for the buck...I have seen many reviews list the Rotel 1075 as the best bang for the buck amplifier. I have seen adcom, parasound, sherbourn, and a bunch of others win that title...

Bang for the buck is too subjective, its not simply watts per channel, its not features, its too subjective...If you fall in the camp that all amplifiers sound the same, then you can measure this, but otherwise its too subjective...

However, I do believe, based on pure $ basis, if that is your only criteria, Outlaw would be very difficult to beat in its price range in terms of features & performance/dollars, others may disagree.

Rich