rotel rb/rc 06... Need to change?

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hello everyone, first post on here...

I've had a rotel 06 series amplifier combination for about 2 years - I didn't know when I bought them if they were particularly good, just fancied a power/pre basis for my system as I'd only had technics/jvc things before. I bought them from my local shop in canterbury as they were a bit of a bargain, but I was just wondering if they are a good/bad model in this price range? Maybe someone could tell me if they have any particular characteristics, that could be improved upon? I guess as ive got more into the technical side of music Ive become less satisfied with playing my collection on any old thing!

I recently upgraded my speakers to a pair of KEF iQ7s, which I am really happy with. I have a Rotel 971 CD player which is good, but tends to skip a bit - so I'll probably upgrade that, possibly to a Rega Apollo, when I can afford one!!! I'm just getting my dads old Goldring record player, which should be ace too...

Back to the amp situation though, what makes the most difference to the sound from the speakers? The control amp or the power bit? Could I just upgrade the power section, because the RC 06 unit has all the things I need on it? Any suggestions, or should I just stick with it?

Sorry for the long post, haha!
 

d_a_n1979

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What would be handy to know is what music do you listen to?

Also; what speaker cable and interconnects do you use?

IMO at that level and with your speakers; a decent integrated amp would make mince meat of the RA-06 combo you have (i.e. Roksan Kandy LIII or the K2, Arcam A32, NAD C355BEE, Cyrus 6v2 or 8v2 etc...)

Also; the above amps would work very well with the Rega Apollo CDP.
 
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Anonymous

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I think d_a_n has exagerated the 'blow out of water' statement there. The pre/power you have is very good and you'd be looking to the level of a Cyrus 8vs2, Naim Nait, etc, as a very minimum to improve much. The Rotel sound is very punchy and smooth and I've found it a difficult transition to move away from it.

If you were to change either the pre or power I'd probably look to the power. The pre isn't hugely competent but a power amp like the Quad 909 would bring vast improvements in resolution.

I think the Apollo would go very nicely with the Rotels and you'll prepare yourself well for an amp upgrade in the future.

The Rotel range of amps don't get the credit they deserve but they're very natural sounding, enjoyable amps. I'd think carefully before flogging them!
 
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Anonymous

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I'd echo everything Igglebert says. The Rotels are heavily underrated amps, worthy of partnering with speakers way beyond the budget range.
 
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Anonymous

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Hi DeathDwarf

Have you considered bi amping and cable upgrades perhaps
 

John Duncan

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To answer the question, which seems to be "is the amp any good?", I'd say yes. I'm with Ig in that I don't think you'd get leaps-and-bounds performance improvements unless you spent bigger money.

To the question "which bit makes the biggest difference, pre or power?", harder to say, since they both play a big part in shaping the sound, but to be honest seeing as I say keep them both, doesn't really matter, does it?
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There's merit in getting another identical power amp and biamping (off the top of my head the preamp has two sets of outputs to make that easy), with one amp powering the tweeters and one powering the bass, provided your speakers are biwirable.

Edit - lastly, clean your CD player with a three quid "cd lens cleaner" from any record shop (if you can find one that's still open), which ought to stop the skipping, before you launch into unnecessary upgrades there.
 
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Anonymous

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Right...

Many thanks to everyone who replied. To answer your question about what music I listen to - everything from old blues records to techno to Reggae to the White Stripes off the top of my head - pretty broad I guess, in other words. I have some QED anniversary speaker cable at the moment, and some Audioquest leads between the CDP and amp, although the others are pretty standard.

So you think going back to a better quality integrated amp wld be the way?
 
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Anonymous

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Thanks for your input igglebert. I think that's probably what I'd have to do anyway. What about a Rega Maia, by the way?
 
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Anonymous

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I have tried that, but no luck so far. (cleaning, i mean).
 
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Anonymous

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DeathDwarf:
Thanks for your input igglebert. I think that's probably what I'd have to do anyway. What about a Rega Maia, by the way?

My friend tried the Maia and thought it was very good. For a good price it's def worth a try. I'm not sure how much of a gain you'd get over the Rotel though.
 
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Anonymous

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igglebert:DeathDwarf:
Thanks for your input igglebert. I think that's probably what I'd have to do anyway. What about a Rega Maia, by the way?

My friend tried the Maia and thought it was very good. For a good price it's def worth a try. I'm not sure how much of a gain you'd get over the Rotel though.
You could always buy a used Quad 405 from ebay (£100?) and get it upgraded by David Pritchard at Netaudio. I got mine upgraded to MK3 dual-mono level for £390 and it's very good. The level of detail I get is staggering, even with my RA03 as a preamp. In fact, it may even be too detailed, haha.
 

Cypher

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I'm a Rotel fan too. I only have the RA-04 but I still love the sound it's giving me. There's a new integrated amp coming out from Rotel in a few months time, the RA-1520. It's the successor of the RA-1062 amp. I don't know for sure if it's better than the combination you have though.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Hi again igglebert,
is that a valve amp?

I've decided that's 'the way to go' for me. Trouble is they're v sought after at the moment.

Never mind tho, cos that's the sound i'm after, i think - just have to save and save...
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I think if I bought another 'modern' amp Id end up with something not much different and it'd be worth naff all after I bought it like my Rotels. If you know what I mean.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The 405 is the first of Quad's current dumping transistor power amps, designed in the late seventies. The general design is the same as that carried into the 606, 707 and 909 with the later versions improving on components such as the transformer (which in part explains why the 909 is capable of 140W rather than the 405's 100W).

A standard 405 can be serviced and it sounds respectable. The midrange is very good, probably because it's a class A amp. The bass is a bit lacking and there could be more openness and punch all round.

David Pritchard at Netaudio has taken the design and improved upon it using significantly better components, including a higher rated dual-mono PSU, superb op amps, etc. His Website details exactly what he's done. The end result is a fairly powerful and transparent power amp that digs deep into the detail provided your source and speakers are up to it. Everything about the sound is a vast improvement over a serviced 405 (speaking from experience) and for the money you can't complain. I'd like to compare it to something like the 909 or Caspian, etc, but I don't have access to such things.

Apparently having a pair of these MK3's in mono block arrangement brings significant improvements again. My box count is getting high...
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