Question Can I add a Rotel RA1570 Int. Amp to my Marantz SR7011 AV receiver?

drieswal

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Hello all,
I have an Marantz SR7011 AV receiver and B&W CM9S2 speakers with CM5 as surrounds. I heard these speakers this week combined with a Rotel RA-1570 Integrated amp and they sounded much better this way in stereo when playing music than when I drive them with my Marantz.
Can I add this to my setup and still use the Marantz for playing movies with surround sound and can I use the Rotel to drive my front 2 speakers for playing music?
I know the Marantz has "pre outs" for the front speakers but since I am a noob to this I am not sure if that is the correct way to set this up?
Also can the Marantz deliver the source to the Rotel (Spotify or Airplay)?
Any help is appreciated.
 
Hello, yes you can.

You would run an RCA cable from the front left pre-out of the AVR to the left main in of the Rotel, and then another RCA cable from the front right pre-out of the AVR to the right main in of the Rotel.

You would then be using the Rotel's power amps for the AVR, and it would be at a fixed volume. Re-run Audyssey to get the correct levels.

When listening to music, keep the AVR switched off and connect your music sources to the Rotel and use it as usual as a stand alone stereo amp.

Now, you could also connect the Zone 2 pre-outs of the AVR to another spare input of the Rotel to use the AVR as a musical source, but, it may not sound as good, as you will be 'double pre-amping' that is, using both the pre-amp sections of the AVR and the Rotel. Might sound better with a separate streamer, but try it and see.
 
Thank you for your detailed response. I have a few more questions.
- When I attach a source to the Rotel (i.e. Apple TV for adding airplay) the decoding will be done by the Rotel and it will sound the same as it normally would as a standalone unit? It doesn't matter that the Marantz is connected to it when it is switched off right?
- I guess that when the source comes from the Marantz (movies, youtube on computer, etc.) the Rotel will only function as a power amplifier and not do any decoding (hence the sound will be different). Will this still make my two fronts sound better than when connected directly to the Marantz?
 
Thank you for your detailed response. I have a few more questions.
- When I attach a source to the Rotel (i.e. Apple TV for adding airplay) the decoding will be done by the Rotel and it will sound the same as it normally would as a standalone unit? It doesn't matter that the Marantz is connected to it when it is switched off right?
Right

- I guess that when the source comes from the Marantz (movies, youtube on computer, etc.) the Rotel will only function as a power amplifier and not do any decoding (hence the sound will be different). Will this still make my two fronts sound better than when connected directly to the Marantz?
Possibly, but you will still get the added advantage of the power amplifier in the Rotel over the power amplifier in the Marantz, so it depends which one is better. But likely it will sound the same. It is the pre-amp section of the Rotel that is going to be making music sound better, so if you use the zone 2 pre-outs of the AVR into a normal input on the Rotel (not the main in / HT bypass) then you can still use the pre-amp section of the Rotel. But, putting the source through the pre-amp section of the AVR, and then through the pre-amp section of the Rotel, is not ideal.

The workaround I use, is that I have a HTPC connected to my AVR via HDMI for movies and tv, which I always listen to in surround mode. I then have a USB out of the HTPC into a DAC, that is connected directly to my integrated amp for digital music, bypassing the AVR altogether.

Ideally, you would want the AVR not in the chain at all for music. But, you could try the zone 2 out and see how it sounds.
 
Thanks for the detailed response. Do you think I can also achieve a good improvement by adding just a poweramp to my system instead of the more expensive intergrated Rotel amp?
It might not be as good as when de Rotel does the decoding but will it still improve the sound by adding this extra power to drive the speakers? It would make my system less complex and it's less expensive than when buying the Rotel RA-1570
 
Thanks for the detailed response. Do you think I can also achieve a good improvement by adding just a poweramp to my system instead of the more expensive intergrated Rotel amp?
It might not be as good as when de Rotel does the decoding but will it still improve the sound by adding this extra power to drive the speakers? It would make my system less complex and it's less expensive than when buying the Rotel RA-1570
I have been down this road, and my one box solution from one year ago (a nice simple set-up) has now grown into a 6 box solution. It has been tricky fitting everything in, but in my view, worth it for having great sound for both movies and music.

A good pre-amp and a good power amp are equally as important. An integrated amp, such as the Rotel RA-1570 is of course, a combination of those two.

The power amp section will give you improved dynamics, so that on music and movie soundtracks where there is a lot of dynamism, which can be as much as a 20db fluctuation from quiet passages of audio, to the big explosions, or rock guitars, the additional headroom that a sufficient power amp section will bring will ensure that these moments are played back clearly and cleanly with no distortion.

My view and experiences on using the pre-amp section of an AVR for music, is that it is compromised. There is too much going on in the chassis in terms of electronics, to produce a really clean musical output with great voice and instrument separation.

Personally, I use an AVR for the pre-amp for music, a stereo hifi amplifier with HT bypass and pre-outs as a pre-amp for music, and separate power amps for my front left and right and centre speakers. I managed to source all of this, new, for under £2000. But it sounds a lot better all round than my £2k AVR that I had this time last year (Cambridge Audio CXR 200).
 
Can you tell me more about the setup that you have? Brands and models?
What would you advise to start with in my case? Maybe a power amplifier first to add to the Marantz? Any good suggestions for this and for a decent price? Or maybe a sub to put less strain on the AV receiver?
 
Can you tell me more about the setup that you have? Brands and models?
What would you advise to start with in my case? Maybe a power amplifier first to add to the Marantz? Any good suggestions for this and for a decent price? Or maybe a sub to put less strain on the AV receiver?
Oh, yes, definitely a powered subwoofer is worth the investment, as is a centre speaker if you don't have one already?

My set-up is now:

Marantz SR7011
Musical Fidelity DAC V90 (using for both cd's and digital music) into..
Musical Fidelity m3i (using as pre-amp for music)
Crown XLS 1002 (power amp for front left and right speakers)
Behringer A500 (bridged, as power amp for centre speaker)

I also have a graphic equaliser which I use for music, that is just a personal taste thing that I am experimenting with, it was inexpensive and has nice flashing lights!

As you can see, I use pro audio power amps, they are not as pretty as the consumer ones, and they don't have triggers, or remote power on/off. But they are a fraction of the cost and work fine, with loads of power to give nice headroom for the dynamic music and movie soundtracks.
 
I think as a power amplifier for the 2 mains the Crown XLS is a good option after reading quite a bit about it. For the pre-amp for music I think I can use the Rotel RC-1570.
It has a built-in DAC so I guess I don't need to invest in that separately, correct?
You have any suggestions for the digital input device? I don't need a CD player since I only use Spotify and Mp3's from my computer. With my current Marantz AVR I only use Spotify connect and Airplay for music. In the near future I would like a Tidal subscription for music but I like to keep it wireless.
For movies I play everything through my mediaplayer (Macbook Pro which is connected through thunderbolt to HDMI to my AVR).
I really appreciate your information and I am quickly starting to understand the process better after your detailed responses.
 
Adding a power amp won’t make a huge difference. Add the integrated amplifier as suggested and run all of your music sources directly through that and you’ll have a HUGE improvement for music
 
Hi, no problem :)

Do you already have the Rotel RC-1570? If so, then using that with the Crown (or another) power amp would work, and be less expensive than buying another integrated amp, not to mention give you a lot more headroom (power). Also, it has balanced outputs, and the Crown would have balanced inputs, not that it really matters at short distances, but still nice to use them if they are there.

Yes, the RC-1570 pre-amp has a DAC, so you don't need a separate one. I got mine a bit by accident (it was discounted) and I was curious to try it. It sounds better to me than the DAC in my CD player (warmer) plus, gives me the asynchronous USB to use with my HTPC, so it stayed.

The only issue is that the Rotel RC-1570 doesn't seem to have a HT bypass equivalent. So, if you connect the left and right pre-outs from your AVR into the Rotel pre-amp, you will have two volume controls in use. The one on the AVR and the one on the Rotel. So, when using the AVR you will need to set the volume on the Rotel to a fixed spot where it is balanced with your AVR. And leave it there.

Connect all your music sources direct to the Rotel pre-amp, and use that for music, leave the AVR off when doing that.

Another point is, that the better your system becomes, the more revealing it is. And, mp3's sound horrible on my system now, too compressed. Hence I use CD's or FLAC digital files for better quality.
 
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Do you already have the Rotel RC-1570?

No I don't have it yet and I am open for other suggestions. I just heard the RA-1570 and loved the sound. The reason of choosing the RC-1570 in combination with the Crown amplifier would be because it would be quite a bit cheaper than going for the RA-1570.

The only issue is that the Rotel RC-1570 doesn't seem to have a HT bypass equivalent. So, if you connect the left and right pre-outs from your AVR into the Rotel pre-amp, you will have two volume controls in use. The one on the AVR and the one on the Rotel. So, when using the AVR you will need to set the volume on the Rotel to a fixed spot where it is balanced with your AVR. And leave it there.

- How complicated is this volume setup for a newbie who doesn't have any kind of device to measure sound?
- Do I have to repeat this proces each time I watch movies?
- How complex is this in practice compared to a pre-amp or integrated amp WITH HT bypass?

Subwoofer
- For this setup do you have any recommendation for the subwoofer? I read good things about SVS but I find them quite ugly tbh. My room is about 40 square meter of which half is living room / TV area and half is dining area. Would a REL T7i orT9i for example be a good solution or would you recommend sticking with the B&W matching sub for the CM S2 series?
I can't (and don't want to) spend a crazy amount on the sub so I would like a sub with good value for money for the space and match with my system. I heard the subs of B&W or MA for example are quite overpriced compared to subs from REL or SVS etc.

- Do I need a sub with a minimum wattage or is this not really important for the sound?
 
With the pre-amp or integrated amp, I think you will almost certainly have to demo them. I listened to three that I didn't like much, before I found the fourth one that sounds lovely, so I kept it. On paper, they should all have sounded similar, but in my room, with my speakers, cd's and ears, they most certainly didn't sound the same. I know it's easier said than done, if you find a dealer that will let you have a home demo, that would be great. Otherwise buying online and using the distance selling regulations is a last resort and might cost a little bit in return postage and re-stocking fees.

Using an integrated amp or pre-amp without HT bypass is not that complicated. The process would be to connect all the speakers and then get an SPL meter (or SPL meter phone app) and cycle through the test tones, turn the volume knob on the integrated amp or pre-amp until the front left and right speakers are at a similar volume to the other speakers that are connected to the AVR. Then run the room correction set-up, in your case Audyssey, and just check that the levels are all similar. That is, within 3 or 4 db of each other and not +10 or -10. Then you are done. You just need to remember that volume level on pre-amp or integrated amp, and return it there whenever you are using the AVR.

Subwoofers - I am not an expert on these, I would suggest asking in the subwoofer forum. I am still using my MS-309W that I purchased in 2005!
 
That list suggests the RA1570 has HT bypass so I’d get that and you’re all set.
 
The list says it has HT bypass but I can't find any other information anywhere that confirms this. I can only find articles that state the same as punctilio's comments.
 
The Rotel manual states that, via the Settings Menu, any of the line inputs can be designated "fixed gain". Extract below:-

FIXED GAIN: Configures a Fixed Volume level for a specified input. To enable this feature press the +/- buttons to select the desired fixed volume level for Aux 1, Coax 1, Coax 2, Optical 1, Optical 2, PC-USB or Bluetooth. When enabled and the input with a Fixed Volume is selected, the Volume level will immediately be set to the specified level. Valid settings include: VARIABLE, FIXED 01-95, FIXED MAX

Just connect your AVR pre-outs to the input on the Rotel you have designated as fixed gain and when switching to that input, volume will be controlled by the AVR. All other direct connections to the Rotel (such as CD player) will be controlled by the Rotel buttons.

Hope this helps.
 
Thanks everyone for all the information.
What kind of speakers you have @punctilio?

Also when I add a subwoofer, should I connect this to the Rotel or to my AV receiver? If I connect the sub to the Rotel then will I still be able to use the sub when using the AV receiver?
 
I have Kef Q700's as my front left and right speakers.

I run the Kef's full range for music, and just use my subwoofer with my AVR. If you use a stereo amp with a dedicated subwoofer output, (which I don't think the Rotel RA1570 has?) then I guess you could use an RCA switch to switch the subwoofer between the AVR and the stereo amplifier.

I understand that there are other methods of connecting a sub using the speaker outputs / inputs, if your sub has them. I have never tried this, so maybe ask in the subwoofer forum about that one?
 
The Rotel manual states that, via the Settings Menu, any of the line inputs can be designated "fixed gain". Extract below:-

FIXED GAIN: Configures a Fixed Volume level for a specified input. To enable this feature press the +/- buttons to select the desired fixed volume level for Aux 1, Coax 1, Coax 2, Optical 1, Optical 2, PC-USB or Bluetooth. When enabled and the input with a Fixed Volume is selected, the Volume level will immediately be set to the specified level. Valid settings include: VARIABLE, FIXED 01-95, FIXED MAX

Just connect your AVR pre-outs to the input on the Rotel you have designated as fixed gain and when switching to that input, volume will be controlled by the AVR. All other direct connections to the Rotel (such as CD player) will be controlled by the Rotel buttons.

Hope this helps.

Hi,

Sorry to revive this thread but I am also looking into a Rotel 1592 integrated amp and trying to understand exactly how the HT bypass should work before getting one.

My questions are:
- For the fixed gain settings, what volume level should it be set to? Seems it can be from 1 to 95
- I also have a Marantz AVR 7012, I suppose I will run audyssey again once the fixed volume is set in the Rotel?
- I see that it should be connected to one of the inputs (Possibly Aux1), I suppose the main-in Left and Right should not be used in this case? What is the difference between main-in and using one of the inputs?

Thanks in advance.
 
Hello all,
I have an Marantz SR7011 AV receiver and B&W CM9S2 speakers with CM5 as surrounds. I heard these speakers this week combined with a Rotel RA-1570 Integrated amp and they sounded much better this way in stereo when playing music than when I drive them with my Marantz.
Can I add this to my setup and still use the Marantz for playing movies with surround sound and can I use the Rotel to drive my front 2 speakers for playing music?
I know the Marantz has "pre outs" for the front speakers but since I am a noob to this I am not sure if that is the correct way to set this up?
Also can the Marantz deliver the source to the Rotel (Spotify or Airplay)?
Any help is appreciated.
You should buy a integrated stereo amp that has HT by pass. I have found it to be very inconvenient using pre-outs from Marantz AVR into stereo amp with HT bypass, as when wanting to use the integrated amp for other functions, eg, separate, FM tuner or phono, it is necessary to remove the lead from the Marantz AVR to the integrated stereo amp, otherwise you get hum or other issues despite the AVR being switched off at the mains. I had to return the Marantz 6011 for a refund.
 
I am not familiar with the Rotel RA1570 integrated amp, so I can't help you with setting up the HT bypass function on that. But, I have used the HT bypass function on my Musical Fidelity m3i with both a Marantz SR7011 and a Denon 4400 with no issues at all.
 
I am not familiar with the Rotel RA1570 integrated amp, so I can't help you with setting up the HT bypass function on that. But, I have used the HT bypass function on my Musical Fidelity m3i with both a Marantz SR7011 and a Denon 4400 with no issues at all.
No problem with Yamaha Aventage 1070.
 
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