2. amps-preamps
  3. 1282920630

Adcom Vs Rotel

Which one you guys prefer? i have B&W 802, i'm not sure which amp that i should go for. i know Mcintosh is the answer, but i dont have that money for it yet.
tzuo168
krell1's avatar
krell1
250 posts
 
You will never know or hear the potential of your B&W's with either. Back in the day (early 90's) so many sold their 801's and were driven by entry level high end components. The B&W's will sound good with most gear but will excel and reach their full potential with McIntosh or may I say Krell. I have been using my Krell/B&W match and have not worried about upgrading. If you stretch a little to make it a great match it will pay off two or three times by not getting into the upgrading "buy and try" cycle. Been there, done that, take my word. Get Krell, Levinson or McIntosh whichever is your cup of tea ten enjoy the music.
tzuo168 OP
1 posts
 
I can't spend that much money on audio now. bought a house and making mortage payment. I bought the 802 while i was still rent out. What you guys think about the MC502 with the 802?
stanwal's avatar
stanwal
3,147 posts
 
I was a former B&W dealer[and Krell], I do not think Mac is a good match. B&W need an amp that really get hold of a speaker and the transformers that Mac uses don't help. A friend was using a 402 with matching Mac pre on Wilson Sasha speakers, which is another speaker that makes strong demands on amps. After hearing my Musical Fidelity M3 on them he sold the Macs, the big Musical Fidelity integrated amps are bargains, there was one like mine on here for $2200 recently, may still be. Will out power any Mac I have ever heard, weighs 90lb and will put out way over its rating into low inpeadences a la Krell. The new Krell 300 integrated is another very good amp at a very reasonable price.
Post removed 
lewinskih01
912 posts
 
Tzuo,

I can certainly understand budget constraints as I do have them too. Yet the advice you are getting is sound. I used to have B&W CM4 and an all-Rotel stereo setup, including the RB1080 200Wpc amp. Great amp, BTW. I was happy.

Then I upgraded to 804S and to make a long story short I replaced the RB1080 for a McIntosh MC275 (75 tube Watts per channel). Even though it's rated at 75W vs 200W, it sounds more powerful and sounds a lot better. The trebble was particularly bothersome to me with the Rotel. Tubes and the aluminum tweeter work well, too. I kept the Rotel pre (RC1070) and CD player (RCD1072), and now I'm in the process of upgrading the RC1070 for a $5k pre.

So here are my suggestions/takeaways: don't cut yourself short on the amp. The RC1070 and RCD1072 are great for the money and relatively cheap. If you end up buying Rotel amp, don't buy RB1080 (too small for you, despite rated power). Maybe the RB1090 would do. I would stretch my budget and buy used McIntosh MC275 or MC252, or Classe, or Bryston.

I hope this helps.
More to discover