About 8 years ago, I bought a new Rotel 1067 avr but it apparently now has a couple of burned out inputs such that the front speakers no longer play when the TV or blueray is on. (The ancient CD player still plays sound through the speakers so they aren't dead.)
In putting together the home theater system back then, I went with all Vandersteen speakers. The front speakers are 2Ce's, which are 86db, 7 ohm nominal/4 ohm minimum, the rear speakers are bookshelf sized, the subwoofer is a tank (the V2W - 300 watts, class B), and the center channel is also 86db. (I got the Vandies at clearance prices when a local shop went out of business.)
The Rotel was one of those midlife purchases, as in, what the heck. But I don't think the Mrs will let me spend much more than $1200, if that, for a replacement.
The home theater system is in a large room (combo family room/sunroom) maybe 15' by 30'.
Zone 2 goes to the kitchen.
My wife and I listen to music, but not real critically, and watch movies from time to time. We are in our 50s. And we are very tech challenged.
Today, I've done a fair amount of reading and am pretty confused about what my best options are given the tight budget. Plus, I don't understand 99% of the tech speak.
I can call a Rotel authorized repair company to come out and take a look at the Rotel but doubt I'll be able to get a reliable estimate. It's a shame it apparently shot craps but I have noticed that if gets hot. Sometimes very hot. If we play it for more than 2 hours, especially if zone 2 is also being used, the Rotel's fan will come on, although I haven't heard it lately (maybe it died). It sits on the top shelf of a cabinet with less than an inch clearance on the sides but 5" clearance above and a hole in the back. I know, not enough.....
Maybe 3 years ago, the same issue happened (no front speaker sound), and a nephew fixed the problem by plugging the wire into a different input, but there aren't any more to use now.
If the Rotel will cost more than $300 to repair, I probably need to move on and, if so, I've been looking at possibly getting an amp like the Emotiva XPA 5 and pairing that with a mid range Yamaha or Denon if the Emotiva would lead to less heat issues with a new avr receiver and drive the speakers better than an avr alone?
If I got the Emotiva for $900 and last year's midrange Yamaha or Denon receiver on clearance for $400, do you think that would work out well?
Or would I be better off spending $1000-1200 on the best avr available, whatever that might be, and foregoing the amp, hoping the avr power alone is enough to drive the Vandies and won't cause serious heat issues if I give the new receiver more breathing room? The Rotel is 100 watt per channel continuous, but to get any sound out of the speakers while watching TV, we have to turn the volume up to 55 and go from there. For movies, the starting point is around 68, if any of that helps.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
In putting together the home theater system back then, I went with all Vandersteen speakers. The front speakers are 2Ce's, which are 86db, 7 ohm nominal/4 ohm minimum, the rear speakers are bookshelf sized, the subwoofer is a tank (the V2W - 300 watts, class B), and the center channel is also 86db. (I got the Vandies at clearance prices when a local shop went out of business.)
The Rotel was one of those midlife purchases, as in, what the heck. But I don't think the Mrs will let me spend much more than $1200, if that, for a replacement.
The home theater system is in a large room (combo family room/sunroom) maybe 15' by 30'.
Zone 2 goes to the kitchen.
My wife and I listen to music, but not real critically, and watch movies from time to time. We are in our 50s. And we are very tech challenged.
Today, I've done a fair amount of reading and am pretty confused about what my best options are given the tight budget. Plus, I don't understand 99% of the tech speak.
I can call a Rotel authorized repair company to come out and take a look at the Rotel but doubt I'll be able to get a reliable estimate. It's a shame it apparently shot craps but I have noticed that if gets hot. Sometimes very hot. If we play it for more than 2 hours, especially if zone 2 is also being used, the Rotel's fan will come on, although I haven't heard it lately (maybe it died). It sits on the top shelf of a cabinet with less than an inch clearance on the sides but 5" clearance above and a hole in the back. I know, not enough.....
Maybe 3 years ago, the same issue happened (no front speaker sound), and a nephew fixed the problem by plugging the wire into a different input, but there aren't any more to use now.
If the Rotel will cost more than $300 to repair, I probably need to move on and, if so, I've been looking at possibly getting an amp like the Emotiva XPA 5 and pairing that with a mid range Yamaha or Denon if the Emotiva would lead to less heat issues with a new avr receiver and drive the speakers better than an avr alone?
If I got the Emotiva for $900 and last year's midrange Yamaha or Denon receiver on clearance for $400, do you think that would work out well?
Or would I be better off spending $1000-1200 on the best avr available, whatever that might be, and foregoing the amp, hoping the avr power alone is enough to drive the Vandies and won't cause serious heat issues if I give the new receiver more breathing room? The Rotel is 100 watt per channel continuous, but to get any sound out of the speakers while watching TV, we have to turn the volume up to 55 and go from there. For movies, the starting point is around 68, if any of that helps.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
