Connecting Rotel amp to Yamaha Receiver pre-amp

[jc1carter829@ho]

I have already connected the Rotel RB-985 THX to the receiver rxv-1600 and just used the front channels to power my Paradigm Studio 20's and have the yamaha power the center and the rest of the speakers. The sound outputted by the Rotel amp seemed under powered and I thought it would be more powerfull than the yammy. I don't know if I had missed a step somewhere. My questions are??
A) Should I connect all my speakers to the Rotel amp?
B) I read somewhere about the two components had to be somewhat same tonal qualities.

I had just thought the Rotel amp would make my system sound better and then some, + it's just collecting dust anyway.....
C) I am just fooling myself??

Thanks for your help in advance

P.S Is Blue Ray taking the lead over HD-DVD.. Is the PS3 unit a better buy to get into the Blue-Ray than X-box 360?

 

[MDS]

Option C. If the Yamaha receiver already has enough power to power the front speakers, adding an external amp will do next to nothing.

 

[jc1carter829@ho]

Or How about if I just use the Rotel amp for Bi-wiring or Bi-amping (not sure which is the best) All I want to do is make my system the best it can be with the items I already own..

 

[Nick250]

Sound quality is all about speaker choice and room acoustics, amplification has very little to do with it Like MDS said, if your speaker is already getting the power it needs, adding more power does nothing. If you want the best sound quality you can, investigate room treatments, rather than amps.

Nick

 

[mike c]

while the benefits of an external amp is always debated. I find it unlikely that the Rotel will lose to the yammy in terms of power:

you might have indeed:
1) missed something in the setup
2) have a defective rotel amp
3) not run YPAO again after connecting the amp.

can you take a pic of how you wired the front speakers and both the rotel and yamaha? (wiring portion at the back)

 

[Seth=L]

while the benefits of an external amp is always debated. I find it unlikely that the Rotel will lose to the yammy in terms of power:

you might have indeed:
1) missed something in the setup
2) have a defective rotel amp
3) not run YPAO again after connecting the amp.

can you take a pic of how you wired the front speakers and both the rotel and yamaha? (wiring portion at the back)

I concur, I think he should adjust the levels on the receiver so they match.

To the OP, do you have a SPL meter? If not, it may be a good idea to get one.

 

[markw]

The Rotel PA might not have as high a gain as the ones in the Yammie.

Go through the the speaker/level setup again and realize that even with twice* the power of the internal amp, the only time you'll realize any improvement is on peaks, and even then it'll be quite subtle.

* I'm just using this as an example. If it's less than 2x, it'll be even more subtle.

 

[jc1carter829@ho]

Thanks for all your inputs guys, There is sure lot's of knowledge in this forum!!!!!!! And the by the way I do have a radio shack meter. To make sure I have the right configuration for my connections are:
* Connect Rotel through pre-amp of the yahama
* Connect my left, Right and center of Rotel amp to pre-amp of receiver left, right and center
* So the next step is to run my manual setup and run through all the channels for 75dbs and probably run the center speaker + 2 to make it 77db

How does this sound guys and thanks for all your help again.

P.S Should I pick up the PS3 for the Blue ray format for Dvd's or do I still wait and see what HD-DVD does?

 

[Seth=L]

I would wait on the format war to reach a conclusion. I wouldn't invest in either system based on the format war, but rather the games. The 360 holds an advantage in most opinions about the games.

 

[mike c]

* Connect Rotel through pre-amp of the yahama

does this mean the Rotel is plugged into the Yamaha? (power cord)

edit:

PLUG the rotel and yamaha to the wall outlet (or your voltage regulator)
connect the Yamaha FRONT LEFT, CENTER, FRONT RIGHT pre-outs to the inputs of the Rotel
connect the speakers to the speaker binding posts on the Rotel
level match all your speakers using the yamaha test tones.

was this what you did?

 

[PENG]

Since I couldn't find any test data for the 985, I took a look of some available lab measurements of the more powerful 1075. Based on those numbers my guess is that the 985 is not more powerful than the RX-V1600 in terms of dynamic power. The 985 will certainly be more powerful in terms of all channel driven power output but that doesn't help much in H.T. stuff. You should still go ahead and calibrate your system with a SPL meter.

 

[zumbo]

Not gonna sound different. The Yamaha is the pre-amp. Gonna sound the same as it did. It's still a Yamaha. The only way to change that, is to take the Yamaha out of the picture.

 

[wire]

does this mean the Rotel is plugged into the Yamaha? (power cord)

edit:

PLUG the rotel and yamaha to the wall outlet (or your voltage regulator)
connect the Yamaha FRONT LEFT, CENTER, FRONT RIGHT pre-outs to the inputs of the Rotel

was this what you did?

Agreed

The amp ( Rotel ) will not get the power it wants .

 

[wire]

Not gonna sound different. The Yamaha is the pre-amp. Gonna sound the same as it did. It's still a Yamaha. The only way to change that, is to take the Yamaha out of the picture.

It's True swap the Yammy for a Sunfire and see what you get ( something musical ) .

 

[wire]

while the benefits of an external amp is always debated. I find it unlikely that the Rotel will lose to the yammy in terms of power:

you might have indeed:
1) missed something in the setup
2) have a defective rotel amp
3) not run YPAO again after connecting the amp.

Agreed again
The Rotel should out power the Yammy . I like Mike suggestion on the other post and Plug that amp into your line condtioner or wall socket and it should come to life .

 

[Jey Jockey]

Guys, I believe an amp that has a big transformer should not be plugged into a power conditioner unless it is not current limiting, i.e..most surge protectors do limit current.

My EMO has inline fuses which are there to protect it in the event of power surges, the manual states quite clearly, plug the power cord into a wall socket directly. It also states that it must have its own dedicated 15 amp circuit with no other equipment using it. Guess my MPS1 with its 5 -350kv transformers really suck the juice.

 

[jc1carter829@ho]

So to get this straight I should just plug in the Rotel amp into the wall socket and not use the monster surge protector (or is the surge protector not that good) Buy the way the amp was plugged into the yahama receiver and the connections are going from the yammy pre-outs. I have a day off tomorrow and will go thru my setup and see what happens, will keep you guys posted!!!!! Thanks again and have a blessed day.

 

[markw]

you should never plug in a high current device into a receiver's convenience AC outle

So to get this straight I should just plug in the Rotel amp into the wall socket and not use the monster surge protector (or is the surge protector not that good) Buy the way the amp was plugged into the yahama receiver and the connections are going from the yammy pre-outs. I have a day off tomorrow and will go thru my setup and see what happens, will keep you guys posted!!!!! Thanks again and have a blessed day.

Those outlets are for low draw devices like DVD players and such, not humunga power amps.

I doubt it affected the sound to the degree you hope, but it's just not wise to subject the circuitry inside the receiver to the demands that a hich power five channel amp can put on it.

 

[zumbo]

Buy the way the amp was plugged into the yahama receiver and the connections are going from the yammy pre-outs.

NO! NO! NO!

I agree with the other guys. Wow, can't believe I missed that one. Plug the amp into it's own dedicated circuit. That should be in your manual.

READ OWNERS MANUAL.

Just like the signs on the side of the road, they are there for you to read.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Just like the signs on the side of the road, they are there for you to read.

And all this time I thought they were to keep people employed and bleed the poor folk

But, on the serious side, there are a number of cities in several countries that are eliminating all signs, or almost all to see what happens.
Yep, so far things are for the better