I Want Better Sound...

Well , you've bought a better power amp with the Rotel RB-03 than the Behringers ..{in your other post / query} and its probably a better amp than those Marantz use in the Receiver - indeed it seems so as you notice the improvement ! Now you have a component that is worth keeping , if you decide something more is lacking in your system . Still hear a better CD player one day , best wishes , Chris . [INDENT] P.S. Frenchmon - thete is very little audible difference between 70 watts and 90 watts , but a lot of audible difference between some types of power amplifier circuits , and / or , how well the designs are implemented .

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Originally Posted by GMichael

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The receiver will only drive 7 speakers at a time. But sometimes it sounds better to have the extra 2 fronts speakers on instead of the rears. I like them for live music DVD's. It keeps the sound on the stage. My wife likes them for kareoke as they are used for the echo effect of a large concert hall.
When I watch football it keeps the imaging in front of me more. You can hear the fans in the crowd swearing.

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Hello! I'm curious about this. Do you have 2 pairs of 7.1 surrounds that you control with a switch or do you just reposition your 7.1 surrounds up to the front? Where do you place them in relation to your mains? I've got a pair of Paradigm MiniMonitors and ADP350s that I'm alternating between for 7.1 (I really don't seem to get a lot of benefit from the 7.1) but am curious about the front presence idea. The ADPS (dipole) radiate a more diffuse soundfield but I wonder if with the MiniMons the cursing would be more fun- i.e. it might be more localized and I'd be able to point to the disgruntled fan...

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Originally Posted by frenchmon

Hi Accastil...Glad you did what you wanted to do. You beat me to the punch, I have not gotten me an external amp as of yet. I see you got the Rotel. I hear they are good amps. I did listen to a Marantz paired with a Rotel amp at 125 watts per channel last week. Tell me something. IF the Marantz is 90 watts and the Rotel is 70 watts, what does the Rotel do at 70 watts that the Marantz at 90 watts can not do.

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hi frenchmon, the 70wpc rotel sounds a lot like 100Wpc or more. i believe this is due to better amplifier design and component parts quality as those found in receivers. receivers are like everything else put in one box as compared to a dedicated amplifier doing nothing else but its sole purpose of amplification. not only will your system get louder, but the main selling point of improvement that youll be noticing is the big change in sonic reproduction quality. its gonna be more detailed, more balanced, and the bass a lot tighter.

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Originally Posted by 2bluechris

Well , you've bought a better power amp with the Rotel RB-03 than the Behringers ..{in your other post / query} and its probably a better amp than those Marantz use in the Receiver - indeed it seems so as you notice the improvement ! Now you have a component that is worth keeping , if you decide something more is lacking in your system . Still hear a better CD player one day , best wishes , Chris . [INDENT] P.S. Frenchmon - thete is very little audible difference between 70 watts and 90 watts , but a lot of audible difference between some types of power amplifier circuits , and / or , how well the designs are implemented .

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hi bluechris, yes, i believe a better CD player would make things even better than as it is already today. do you have any suggested CD player in mind? would a good CD player be better in music reproduction than good universal players? or do you suggest that i must have separate players for music and movies? right now i am using a pioneer 655 universal DVD player...

I listed the CD players that I think are good value in the low to mid price ranges in my post above :- 12-24-2005 , 12:18 AM ------------ #110 . I recommend you take your Pioneer to the shop and compare it through the same amp and speakers with some of those CD players . Use the most challanging music CDs that you have - ones that you think are critical to reproduce well . As you have written you understand about design and parts , etc ... for Receivers versus dedicated Amplifiers , apply the same thinking to Universal players versus dedicated separates . Most people trust their eyes more than their ears , and Manufacturers know this , thus for lower priced Universal players most of the design and components budget is spent on the picture quality ; next is spent on "new technology" such as any included DVD-A or SACD , and least is spent on "old technology" CD audio . Denon ; Marantz : Pioneer : Sony : Teac , and some others , can make good Universals with good CD audio if they want to , but any such will be very expensive - for both the extra parts ; design ; assembley costs , and that only a small number of these will sell , because most people do not care , or know about such as better for CD audio . seriously , Chris . .................................................. ..................... P.S. :- as well as the Marantz's and NAD CD players I have heard and recommend in #110 above , listen also to the Rotel RCD-02 . I compared it to the NAD 542 and heard both got equal detail from my CDs and both played equally well in terms of rhythm and timing , but each had a different "timbre" {presentation of tone of instruments and voices} - both were equally good , but simply "different" in that aspect . The Marantz 6000oseLE version got more detail off the CDs than the NAD and Rotel , and replayed the lowest pitched bass notes with less of their "fundamental" filtered off than occurred with the NAD and Rotel-02 . You have wide-bandwidth speakers , so you may wish to consider these aspects , so chose your test CDs carefully and compare all the CD players through the best quality amp and speakers that the shop will allow you . If you can afford one , listen also to the more expensive Rotel RCD-1072 . I have not heard it , but some Rotel enthusiasts say it is better than the RCD-02 , and it should be at its price !

i can see that these dedicated CD players have better designs and performance to music as compared to universal players. now i am thinking if its worth the cost...is it gonna be that much difference? well of course ill be considering to buy one in the future but i guess not know..thanks a lot bluechris!