I wasn't going to ask. But since it is SOOOOO Slow here, I'll ask anyway.
So when you say, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, are you talking about SOUND QUALITY? or just your choice of preference in terms of everything - Reliability, HDMI Compatibility, Network compatibility, WiFi Remote App, Music Streaming, Automatic Room EQ, etc.?
I think many audiophiles who are into SEPARATES (not AVR) would rank Rotel pre-pro DEAD LAST since it doesn't even have XLR Balanced connectors. When an "AVR" and "Cheap Pre-pro" can manage to have XLR Balanced Connectors, there is absolutely no excuse for Rotel not to have XLR, especially when MOST amps have XLR. No excuse. So it's LAST.
Now if you're talking about sound quality, there is no point arguing that since everyone has a different opinion - so it's purely your word against their word.