Amp issues with B&W/ROTEL

[admin_exported]

Hi Folks,

I started creating my home cinema system around the old 10 series Rotel equipment and the B&W 600 S3s. The issue Im having has been caused by an upgrade ive made recently.

Current Kit: Rotel RSX 1057, RCC1055, RDV1080 (up for sale), Pioneer BPD51FD. B&W 604s3, LCR600s3 and 601s3, ASW300.

I upgraded my RSX1057 to the RSP1098 and RMB1075. At this point I didnt realise that the max power my 601s could take was 100w and my rmb1075 is 125w x 5. A friend tells me that in surround sound modes on my rsp1098 will never deliver enough current to the back two 601s to cause any concern. Not to mention that i live in the middle in a terraced house, so its not like I have the luxury of turning up that volume.. do I have a cause for concern using my setup this way? Any comments would be appreciated!

 

[CnoEvil]

There is absolutely nothing to worry about. Generally pushing a low power amp into clipping is much more likely to cause damage.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi Folks,

I started creating my home cinema system around the old 10 series Rotel equipment and the B&W 600 S3s. The issue Im having has been caused by an upgrade ive made recently.

Current Kit: Rotel RSX 1057, RCC1055, RDV1080 (up for sale), Pioneer BPD51FD. B&W 604s3, LCR600s3 and 601s3, ASW300.

I upgraded my RSX1057 to the RSP1098 and RMB1075. At this point I didnt realise that the max power my 601s could take was 100w and my rmb1075 is 125w x 5. A friend tells me that in surround sound modes on my rsp1098 will never deliver enough current to the back two 601s to cause any concern. Not to mention that i live in the middle in a terraced house, so its not like I have the luxury of turning up that volume.. do I have a cause for concern using my setup this way? Any comments would be appreciated!

Hi Wilson

I used to sell RSP1098, RMB1075 and the B&W speakers. Yes, the RMB1075 is a powerful amp with a quality of power that is more then capable of effectively driving all of the speakers to high constant levels. The speakers are likely to give up before the RM1075 will. Anyway as long as you keep the volume in check then you can safely use the RMB1075 with your speakers. I also used to use 601's with the big RB1090 (380w/ch) power amp without any issues.

One of my clients (who lives a stone's throw away from me) that i sold a 600 Series speaker package and a RMB1095 to (200w/ch) has been happily using this combination for almost a decade without any issues (and he often listens to movies at high levels).

Btw, if you haven't already done so then i'll recommend that you should at least set the centre and the rear speakers to small on the processor. This will take some strain off these speakers and lead to better peformance as it will send the low bass frequencies to the sub. Also try alternating the large/small settings with the 604's as well to see which works best in your room.

All th best

Rick @ Musicraft