SlashGear Japan
While I’ve never been locked in a cupboard containing a load of HiFi gear, I can only imagine it’s similar to being locked in the tumble dryer cupboard when you’re little because your mom caught you stealing kibble from the cat’s dish. By that I mean perilously hot, rather than shaming and likely to leave you with severe social dysfunction. So any audio maestro worth their wage knows that it’s better to keep your components cool if you don’t want to either plumb in air-con or suffer hardware failure; step in Rotel’s latest range of nigh-on zero-heat poweramps, the RMB-1076 and RMB-1085, and RSP-1069 surround-sound processor, launched at CEDIA 2007.
Designed with easy rackmounting in mind, the pair of poweramps are under three-inches tall and weigh less than 12 pounds apiece, using Rotel’s own “Class D” amplifier technology that combines controlled oscillator modulation and enhanced cascade control without sacrificing efficiency. The main difference between the pair is channel-count; the 1076 has six 100W channels while the 1085 has five 100W (both 20Hz – 20kHz, all channels driven, 8ohms, <0.2% THD). Both also have 12V trigger power on/off, while the 1076 also has signal sensing on/off.
Meanwhile, the RSP-1069 uses Texas Instruments’ admired Aureus audio-DSP engine, supporting Dolby Digital/EX, Pro Logic II/x, and DTS/ES-Discrete and Neo:6 surround sound modes. Burr Brown 24-bit/192kHz digital to analogue converters, together with the Faroudja DCDi video upscaling processor handle four HDMI inputs (supporting full 1080p Hi-Def) and three 1080i/720p-capable component paths.
Click for full-size rear panel image
The 1069 is rounded out with home automation triggers (so your curtains can swish as the movie starts) and multi-room audio and video distribution for up to three extra zones.
All three are available Q3 2007, priced at $1,199 for the RMB-1085, $1,599 for the RMB-1076, and $2,199 for the RSP-1069.
