Customer Reviews

Geezer friendly

Arrived on time and in good shape. Instructions for set up clear. Sounds great to me (and my aging ears).

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Good amp for the price

Perfect pair with Rotel preamp RC 1572. Not a audiophile myself but seems perfect for my taste.

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Scratch & Dent - Not Really

This item was sold as a "Scratch & Dent"; I could not find any scratches, dents, or blemishes of any kind. I bought a Rotel RB-1582 two years ago aside from the obvious model differences, the only difference that I could see between the factory new RB-1582 and the "scratch & dent" RB-1552 is the outer packaging box. I have noticed that the power button is a little bit sticky but this minor issue is improving. All in all this is an excellent amplifier at an excellent price.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

This amp is beautiful, powerful and clean. The moment I hooked it into my system, I knew that it was the best fit for me. I am hearing detail in old music like I've never experienced before. With that said, I cannot say enough about the Crutchfield staff that helped me. Patience, kindness, and expertise were the best I've experienced. The tech experts and customer service agents made sure that I got the right fit for my system and they nailed it. This Rotel is everything all the 5 star reviews describe and more!

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Follow up from 6 months ago. Excellent amp for the money. Rediscovering older CDs, especially well recorded ones. Running tv thru D/A converter in pre-amp to amp. Netflix movies, though not surround sound are very revealing. Plenty of power. Good job Crutchfield.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

I bought a Rotel preamp years ago, now I have this amp and it is quiet and clean and a great sounding 130 clean watts! Love this amp!!

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Awesome Amp!

Awesome Amp! Plenty of power for my Elac 2B62's Clear and with warm full body

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Very accurate

This is a great sounding amp. No hype, no BS. I tried a couple of others that were Tweezed and offensive. This is tight and accurate. Very solid bottom and even throughout the spectrum. I've mixed four songs with this amp and I and my client are very pleased. I don't think you can go wrong with this.

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The music is alive.

What can I say.It go from outstandig to supreme extasis. Dont take my word you got to hear this piece of equipment.

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Rotel Amp

Replaced a 30 something year old Adcom 5400 amp along with Monster speaker cables for Audio Quest cables and the Rotel. Other equipment includes Martin Logan Preface speakers,Emotiva preamp and Z series Parasound CD player. First thing I played was Robert Plants Now and Zen CD which has changing dynamics from song to song. I guess the Amplifier upgrade was long overdue! Soundstage was awesome. Separation and balance was immediately noticed as improved. Some talk of a break in period,and since I bought "open box" it might have had some hours of play. Whatever the case may be, I'm a happy camper looking forward to years of good listening pleasure with a excellent amp.

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Exceeded my expectations.

I recently added the Rotel RB-1552 MkII to my setup alongside the RC-1572 MKII preamp and RCD-1572 MKII CD player, and I'm really impressed. The amp's build quality is solid, and I love its sleek design. One thing that really stands out is how quiet it is, especially when I'm using it with my Focal Aria 926 speakers. The sound is powerful and clear, with a nice balance that suits all kinds of music. Overall, the Rotel RB-1552 MkII has totally exceeded my expectations in terms of both performance and design.

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Consistent performer

I've had this amp for a few years and a couple of times I tried chasing something that could be even better and both times I ended up sending the newcomer back. This Rotel is that good. The dual mono design is hard to beat, providing excellent channel separation and sound stage, while running cool (a benefit in my small office room). The sound is neutral (which is perhaps why I wanted to get something more "special") but that's really a blessing in disguise. Without the power amp adding any color to the sound, you're free to experiment with cables, or tube rolling on the preamp, consistently achieving whatever results you're after. In my current setup, it's connected to Schiit Freya pre, feeding a pair of ProAc Tab speakers, and sounding bonkers! Just make sure to run it in a balanced configuration, this is where its dual mono design really shines and if your preamp is not balanced, an upgrade is highly recommended.

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SYKESVILLE

I love it when a electronics company pays attention to detail. No pops on turning the amp on or off. And it is dead silent when not playing music. No hiss! Very well done. The amp is a very high quality build and is definitely low distortion. It is also quite powerful at 130 watts but if you are trying to drive low sensitivity bookshelfs like the Kef LS50 i would go for the 1582MKII .Im driving Focal Chora 826 Floorstanders at 91.5 sensitivity. This is a very very good amp.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

I recently added this amp to my system. It's paired with a Rotel pre-amp and powers PSB-Gold speakers. My system has never sounded better, whether it's a full-on rock album, acoustic guitar, solo piano or classical chamber music. Spectacular!

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Wonderful!

This will be a very unscientific three-way review, as I just replaced all of the electronics in my two-channel stereo system at once and therefore am reluctant to review them individually with no reference. My beloved B&W CDM 7SE's are now being driven by the Rotlel RB 1552MKII power amp, Rotel RC 1572MKII preamp, and Rotel CD 14MKII CD player, replacing my very old Adcom GFA 5400 amp with Adcom preamp, and a newer NAD CD player. The sound upgrade was stunning from the start. The stereo imaging in my challenging environment is stronger, with more definition and depth. It is crisp and clear, increasingly warm and full of space as it breaks in, and the bass is really outstanding. It is fully present, crisp, solid and dense, but not at all exaggerated or boomy. You can almost feel the plucking or bowing of a string on a bass guitar or string bass. It's the best I've ever heard by far. As to the digital controls and such, I have little to say as I'm still getting used to the whole idea (I was a knobs and switches guy). But I will say I like the preamp's feature that makes settings changes (tone, bypass, balance) on the remote temporary, defaulting to the ones on the unit's control panel when turned off. I'll also say the CD player is slow as cold molasses to load, and, yes, those stupid lights, but never mind that, this is fantastic equipment that even features a simple, clean, and businesslike appearance. Well done, Rotel, and thank you as always, Crutchfield!

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Solid

Plenty of power. Barely warm playing rock at 90dB for an hour thru PSB Platinum towers. A great value amplifier.

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One great amp

For one of Rotel's smallest stand alone amps its pretty powerfull. I'm using it to power my Denton 85's which are 4 ohm speakers. This amp didn't come with a 4 ohm power rating but it must be around 200 watts. I usually listen to my music at about 85 db and it has more then enough power to do that. mt volume knob on the preamp never goes muuh past the 10 oclock position and in my 10 by 12 room its loud and very very clean. I was going to get the next amp up in the line but that would just have been overkill. This is the best power amp I have ever had! Sound field, clarity, and not being to bright or to warm, I've got to say I'm very happy with my purchase. This is an end game amp for me. I used a rca splitter cable x2 , one male to two females off the preamp outs to run my Rel subs and it sound fantastic.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Trivial setup. Warm, clear sound through B&W speakers & NAD pre-amp/streamer. All the power I need. Heavy, but sturdy, looks like it's been built to last the entire 5 yr warranty, even in the salt air. Replaces NAD amp that died in less than 3 yrs (I guess their quality is not what it used to be).

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Full sound with lots of detail. I am suddenly hearing things I didn't hear with my old amplifier.

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Good choice for the money

I am using a Rotel 1590 preamp, designed to work with the more powerful Rotel 1582 power amp. I am listening through a pair of KEF LS50s and a KEF subwoofer. The overall sound of the combo is warm, a bit bassy, and a bit reticent in the treble, problems easily remedied if the pre-amp has tone controls like the Rotel preamp. My previous power amp was a Musical Fidelity A3cr power amp from 2001 or so. Compared to the Musical Fidelity amp, the Rotel is a bit meatier. As far as detail is concerned, the Rotel sounds a very slightly less detailed than the MF amp. The meatiness of the Rotel makes up for this: The music is more solid. Soundstaging is fine. Timbre, speed, and dynamics (macro- and micro-) are excellent. I can hear into the subtleties of the music. I am using the tape out line to power a separate pre-amp which I connect to the KEF subwoofer. I do not feel confident that the Rotel can power both the main speakers and the subwoofer. I find this gives me added flexibility because I can adjust the bass output of the Rotel into the main speakers independently of the bass output of the subwoofer. This amp, like most amps, needed about 300 hours of break-in to sound its best. There was a period when the transformer buzzed softly, but it no longer does. I am happy with the pre-power amp combo. For the price, it is among the best power amps, provided the preamp has tone controls. Four stars are based on all amps, not just amps in t

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Nice clean piwer.

Great clarity but it doesn't have any more power than my old harman kardon hk870 that had 100 wpc. I had to move my speakers closer to their respective walls to get my stage as wide as with the hk870. I believe fine tuning things like that will result in this amp sounding much better than the hk. It's very clear.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Outstanding!

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Great, as advertised

I have the Rotel 1552 paired with Focal Chora speakers. I probably need to step up in speakers or at least get a powered sub. I noticed a better clearer soundstage with this amp. Plenty of clear volume for my space.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Great sounding amp. Enjoying it partnered with the Rotel RC 1572 MKII Preamp. Can't get wrong with this combo, streaming music or playing CDs.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Looks and sounds great.

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Incredible

I bought a scratch and dent piece. it came double boxed in all original packing with all accessories and everything packaged appropriately Just like "brand spanking new" I couldn't find a mark on it. I haven't played it yet but I am excited

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Good unit, but not enough power. I chatted with one of your experts and according to my speaker specs he talked me out of the 1590 because I didn't need it. When I hooked it up and used it, my speakers are evidentially rated low because I can turn it to full volume and not run the dogs out of the room. Crisp and clear, just not enough volume like I wanted.

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Great power amp

Excellent sound, great power, paired with a Luxman L 509x using it for biamping and driving B & W's 705signature and Paradigm studios 60's, definitively an improvement in overall sound quality, picked among other power amps due to ability to drive 2 pair of speakers and prior reviews

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

I ordered this amp for a specific purpose: to power a pair of floor-standing speakers and connect directly to a Bluesound NODE (although you could do it with any other preamp streamer, like a Sonos Port, HEOS amp, etc.). In short, it worked great. My initial problem was that I wanted phone volume control over my streaming music since my integrated amp (a PS Audio Sprout 100) doesn't have any Wi-Fi features. And since I was connecting to an integrated amp, I had to use the NODE in fixed output mode and control volume with the Sprout. With this amp (and to be fair, pretty much any decent amp), I can set the NODE in variable mode and control it with my phone. It's a super-simple setup: NODE>Rotel RB-1552 MkII>Martin Logan Motion 40 speakers. The Rotel delivers nimble and substantial audio, some of the best I've heard coming out of these speakers. It has super-sturdy build-quality and simple operation, and it just feels good having such an uncomplicated setup for hi-fi streaming. A side benefit is that it made me explore the Bluesound app a little more instead of just relying on AirPlay 2. Even though the app isn't the most intuitive of all the streaming apps I've tried, once I figured out the basics, its reaction time was faster and its connection to my gear (which includes other BluOS stuff) was way more stable than with AirPlay 2. I could leave the house and come back hours later and the connection would still be just as I left it. Great amp, and love it in this configuration.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Very nice, clean sounding amplifier for the price. This paired with the Rotel 1572 mkII preamp, made my 30 yr old boston acoustics speakers sound better than they ever have. Speaker upgrade is absolutely next on list.

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Front channel upgrade.

Very nice improvement to my system.

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A Music Lovers Amp

Over the years I have owned several products by Rotel and to date none have been disappointing. The 1552 amp is being used with my Macintosh C2300 tube preamp to power a pair of Harbeth 30.2 , 40th anniversary speakers. It is a wonderful combo and the amp drives the 6ohm speakers with so little effort. Very musical sounding amp compared to the Pass Labs XA25 I was using.The sound is detailed and smooth when listening to CD's and vinyl is fantastic. I have my 1552 sideways on an amp stand so the blue power light is a non issue but I agree with others that it should be off when the amp is not in use. If you are a music lover, Rotel is the way to go. The new 1552MKII is very highly recommended. Compact, powerful and affordable and sounds well above it's price point. It well definitely put a smile on your face.

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Clean, confident sound, but annoying blue light

I have a 7.1 channel setup in my basement with a Yamaha RX V6A, Polk R600 fronts and a couple of different Polk speakers for the surrounds. I have it set up for HiRes audio from Amazon Music. Up in my study, I have the much smaller Polk ES20 bookshelves driven by my previous Yamaha receiver from 12 years ago, also with HiRes audio. The sound in my study with the smaller speakers was actually more impactful than the basement with the bigger speaker setup. I read / watched a bunch of floor-standing speaker reviews and many of them mentioned that it was important to use separate amps for the fronts at least, and chatted with Crutchfield sales person Bo. I picked the Rotel because its specs indicated the highest frequency response and the lowest noise levels of the ~1K price range amps with around 150 W power. The Rotel is easy to setup. It has no remote, no volume control and no configurations (except when connecting the input, you pick balanced or unbalanced based on the receiver preamp output). The volume level was 7 Db less than before according to YPAO, which compensated for it. There is no delay at all. The funny thing is - the sound initially seems exactly the same. It isn't louder. The timbre of the sound is the same. I was wondering if I forgot to connect the speakers to the amp. But the sound is more confident and less harsh. Its like OLED vs LED TVs. The only annoying thing is the bright blue light which stays even when triggered off - hen

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Clean and plenty of power.

Such a great amp! This amp powers my BW 702 S2 speakers. True, those speakers can handle 300 watts, but that's BLASTING volume. at 130 watts per channel, this amp pushes them confidently near 100 DB, which is far more than enough. Clean, clear highs, deep bass. It'll faithfully reproduce whatever you put into it.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

the rótel en-1552 is a very good amplifier with good sound reproduction and nice power

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On or Off?

If sound quality was the only parameter of this unit then it would be a 7 out of 5. I power my front L/R channel B&W CDM 7NT speakers in and 11 channel system using the Yamaha RX-A6A receiver. The ON / OFF switch is a complete and total disaster! You must leave the front on/off switch depressed with the very bright blue light on in order to use use the 12V trigger on/off switch. Is the amplifier ON or is it OFF? The blue light and the position of the front panel on/off switch says the unit is on. The 12V trigger switch is in the on position. Supposedly you are hoping the "bright" blue light is only as a standby light in so far as your receiver is off when there is no 12V signal to the unit. This unit is at my lake house so I like to know things are off when I leave. For now I am turning the unit off manually, which is not what I was paying for. When I return to the lake I will unplug the 12V trigger wire (supplied with the unit) from my receiver and see if music plays or not. If there is no 12V signal (i.e. no wire connection) and a music source playing and no sound, then the 12V trigger switch (in the on position) does have the unit off. But the blue light will still be on. How was this approved with no explanation of a stand bye mode controlled by the 12V trigger switch? Just to make things worse Rotel included a self adhesive paper ring to cover the brightness of the blue light. I guess you flip a coin to see if the unit is on or off when you leave the house.

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Rotel RB 1552 MII amplifier

It would be hard to do better than the Total RB 1552 MII amplifer. Very clean plenty of power. I'm powering Share dale EVO 4.4 flowers and could not be happier. Crutch field is always the best to deal with.

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Very Nice

tight bass and nice detail, easy on the pocketbook!

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

I am really pleased with this unit. To my ears, it has provided the single largest improvement in sound quality I've experienced to date. Fed by an Oppo player and Marantz 5015 out to SVS Prime Pinnacles in a 18 x 12 room. Initially, it sounded good, but a bit on the thin and brittle side. As I put more hours (TV. movies, music) on it, the sound has improved notably. The sound does trend slightly to the warmer side of the spectrum. The qualities that stand out are full, rich sound with a good soundstage and outstanding clarity and separation. It really fills my somewhat modest space with music without becoming fatiguing at increased volume. To me it sounds like it puts out more than the stated 130 WPC. I initially considered the larger 1582, but after speaking with Maddie, decided that may be more than I needed (which apparently was spot on). I have it housed in a well ventilated area and it simply does not get hot, even after hours of use at volume. I'm really enjoying this Rotel and would recommend it. In fact, I feel it's good enough at this price point that I might consider it a bargain.

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Found what I've been missing

I've been putting my new Rotel RB-1552 Mkll through the paces streaming all genres of hi-res Tidal MA and Apple Music via my Node and towers. Trying to find a track this amp doesn't excel in - revealing mid range I've never noticed in musical selections I have listened to for years. Simple connect and I was off and enjoying. The unit is packaged with a decal to cover the light that encircles the power light, which is always on when the unit is on, just in case the light is too bright. I utilized it and it did the trick. I am a very satisfied customer.

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An amp with some balls, grace, and nuance

I have had several amplifiers through the years and I have to say this is one of the best. I have some gain issues with my current preamp so that is where you need to do your homework if you seek synergy. I am about to try another amplifier that cost more or may end up buying one of Rotel's preamps to mate with their power amplifier for the synergy.

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Great amp with a lovely warm side of neutral tone.

So, I bought this amp to pair with the Cambridge Evo150. As much as I love that thing as a streamer and even more as a preamp....yeah, class D is not my thing. I have Focal speakers and boy did they sound hollow and thin with the EVO's class D amp. I ended up using it with a DBX BX3 from the early 90's. Sounded amazing in every way. But, I wanted trigger control and sooner or later the caps are going to go in the DBX. I did a lot of reading to find a sound that was on the warm side of neutral. Basically, not sterile, cold, or thin. This Rotel does NOT disappoint. It sounds amazing and comes very close to the DBX and that has way way more power. The sound warm and it has the midrange I missed with the Evo. The power is fine for my needs. I won't need more. These 120 watts provide far more power than the Evo's 150. Amperage? Maybe. Anyway, if you are like me and prefer a more tube like sound without going full tube amp, I fully recommend this amp. It's my first Rotel and I am pleased. Trigger works as expected except....please note the bright blue ring stays on all of the time, standby or not. That said, super happy with Rotel and with Crutchfield. I'd buy everything from these guys if they offered a few more brands that I use...like Rega.

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Great stereo amp

When you pick up this Rotel amp, you can tell it's well-built right away. I paired the RB-1552 MkII with a pair of ELAC Vela BS 403 bookshelf speakers, which aren't super-efficient, and this thing didn't even break a sweat. Barely warm to the touch, the Rotel powered these speakers extremely well over long stretches of time. It also brought out a lot of detail from my music library, as well as the music I streamed from Qobuz and Spotify. The light ring around the power button is quite bright. Rotel includes stickers to apply over this ring to tone it down, but I would've preferred they simply give us options to turn it off or adjust the brightness. That's a small thing for me though, considering how powerful and clearly beautiful the sound is. I recommend it.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Awesome! Sounds fantastic. Operates perfectly compatible with my other Rotel components to form a complete, cohesive surround sound system.

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Superb Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Upgraded from a Schiit Audio Vidar, which pales in comparison. Using with Sonus faber Lumina III tower speakers, this Rotel RB-1552 MkII has noticeably tighter and cleaner bass, as well as a warmer top end. The Rotel presents a non-fatiguing, enjoyable, and exciting sound with a wide soundstage. I can hear specific instruments with its exceptional spatial depth. Very satisfied with this exemplary amplifier and Crutchfield's service. Thank you!

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Powerful and clean!

I have the NAD Masters M33 integrated amp. Running it with Wharfedale Denton 85 bookshelfs, and two SB 1000 SVS subs. System sounds great (very quiet SNR 120) even at loud volumes. But, I want more slam and punch in my mids.. So I tried the Rotel RB 1552 MKII. (Using the M33 as a pre-amp) I am very impressed. So much so, I had to upgrade my Dentons to PSB Imagine X1T (small) towers. It was too much power for the Dentons. Funny thing is my M33 is rated 200 watts pers channel, the RB 1552 is only rated 130 watts per, and it is much stronger! Great thing too, is the RB 1552 has the same SNR (120) as the M33. What a great match up. Excellent build quality and beautiful aesthetics. This Amp is AWESOME! As always a pleasure doing business with Crutchfield! (best in the industry!!!!)

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Nice little amp

Very nice amp. It runs cool even under heavy load. Best suited for high efficiency speakers or bookshelves speakers. I auditioned the amp for about a month and decided it wasn't right for my particular room/setup. I was driving Boston acoustics VR3 in a large living room. The amp struggled a bit when pushed under these conditions. Moving up to the the RB 1582mkii. Better dynamics and sound quality under load.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Very happy with selection.

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Best Amplifier for B&W

Made my front left and right Bowers and Wilkins speakers sound significantly better than my Yamaha RX-A3080 ever did. This amplifier has plenty of power and I think the 130x2 rating is very conservative. One of the best upgrades that I have ever done.

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Rotel RB-1552 MkII

Like the amplifier and would recommend it to a friend.

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