Cyborg

I had a Rotel 1056 for 2 years,sold it on ebay,lost $100.I sold my 3802/03/05 for 1/2 of what I paid.Something to consider also.The buying public must be somewhat informed on Rotel.

TechBoy

just curious have you ever owned a Rotel and compared it directly against a similar priced Denon/Yamaha/???

In a former life I set up and used to moderate Club Rotel over on another board and I can say from first hand experience that there's an awful lot of former Denon owners on that board that feel the Rotel sounds better for music. Now that said having chased better 2 channel sound from AV receivers and pre amp's I've come to the conclusion that its cheaper to use a true 2 channel pre with a HT bypass mode for music and just use a feature laden receiver for HT duty.

Semona

Well at least at Home Theater Store, the markup is higher (ALL Rotel stuff is 40 points markup to MSRP, whereas Denon is 35 points) AND they pay a higher percentage commission on the margin because Rotel/B&W/Classe are the store's "push lines".

But like I said before, listen to both and compare the features (there's pros and cons to both models). Then, buy the one that suits your needs the best. If you're still torn between these two models, I'd pick the Rotel if you think you'll be listen to music on a regular basis along with watching movies. If the large percentage of your listening will be home theater, the Denon is a no-brainer from the standpoint of its superior feature set.

Another model from Denon to really consider is the AVR-2807. It's $200 cheaper and aside from having a little less amplifier power (it's really not enough to notice a significant difference), the 2807 is in many ways better than the 3806, which will soon be replaced with the 3807. The 2807 has newer processors, iPod link capability, and it has better HDMI switching.

There's some food for thought. Good luck with your decision.

ITRocks

Yes, I've heard both. It was in a dealer's show room where he kept pushing the Rotel because it "sounded better." Please understand that I'm not saying Rotel isn't a good piece of equipment. It is.

An editorial in this month's Stereophile discusses an audition of a playback system with a room full of well versed audiophiles. The response people gave of their impression of the system were varied and diverse. Some even contradicted the others. Most of this hobby especially the audio side is based on preferences. What I like and what you like are going to be different, and what I call musical is probably going to different from what you call musical. I'm the only one who can say what, "sounds better" to me.

FWIW, I'd be saying the same thing if someone said a Krell amp was more musical than a Rotel amp.

To the original poster, please go audition both and buy the one you like. Do some research, go listen, and search for the best price.

BTW, I'm working towards a separates system, and there is a very good chance a Rotel amp and prepro will be part of the system.

Cyborg

This has been a lively debate. Since looking over the forums and listening...I'm actually going with the Denon 2807. Given the upgrades in the features and the fact that music will rarely be listened to in my room, it seems to fit the budget better (price match at OneCall).

Thanks for the all the info. My gear should be here by the end of the week!

TechBoy

Will do. Everything is coming in waves, so once I get everything set up and calibrated, I'll respond.

Thanks again for all advice and input

ITRocks

As I mentioned above, I decided on the Denon 2807 mainly because the room is intended to be a HT room. Little if any music listening will occur. I finally set everything up thie weekend and am waiting on the ceiling mount for my projector so at the moment it's sitting on a table in the back center of the room. The Denon took a while to set up, but that auto eq is greatness! Takes all the guesswork out of it. Once you dive into the manual and figure out all it has to offer, it doesn't take a genius to get it set up.

Final analysis....AWESOME! I went with the HTD speakers (level 3). At some point I'll upgrade the HTD sub to a HSU or SVS, but $$ was scarce by the time I bought everything else. I would highly recommend the Denon 2807 if you are in the $900 range for a receiver.

Thanks again for all your input. I'm having fun now!

Cyborg

Awesome - sounds like a great setup.

Desiree

Whats the difference between these sound systems and dolby digital?