That's a good idea to trial the Rotel in my theater
Yes, at first glance you'd think so.
However... the human biases we're all subject to, that are inherent in a sighted, informal trial will mean you'll almost certainly "experience" some level of improved sound quality. In other words, this result has more to do with (say) the effect of the exciting prospect of new gear ownership and your heightened senses and nothing to do with actual superior performance of the amp.
Remember, despite what the subjective reviews in glossy magazines claim, there is no magical "synergy" between particular solid state amps and speakers. It's all just boring physics really... if amps have sufficient power to drive your particular speakers to your preferred maximum SPL's, measurable differences between them (if any) are several orders of magnitude below what the human hearing system can distinguish. For example, here is an indicator common to the Rotel and the Yamaha: claimed Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR). SNR is a measure of the "distance" between the audio signal and the noise of the unit.
- Rotel RMB-1585: SNR (IHF A network) .... 116dB
- Yamaha RX-A3010: SNR (IHF A network) Audio2 etc. to SP OUT (Pure Direct, Input shorted 250mV) .... 100dB or more
This appears to be a fair difference. In reality though, the Rotel's 116dB means the noise is a factor of
2.5 E-12 below the signal. The Yamaha's 100dB+ means the noise is at least a factor of
1.0 E-10 below the signal. Both these numbers are so tiny that they are way, way below what the human hearing system can discern and the difference is purely academic.
