"Modestly priced audio products may not be able to produce the "absolute sound," but the best of them can fully deliver the heart of the high end. Rotel's 1570/1552 stack falls decisively into this category, forming an incredibly affordable, versatile system that conveys all the music you could want - and more - with very few trade-offs. Rotel is back, my friends. And it is good."
Three sleek new additions to our 15 series proved impressive to The Absolute Sound in their latest issue. The RCD-1570 CD player, built around a high-end Wolfson DAC, features as the source of this complete setup. From CDs to mp3s to high-res digital sources, the RCD-1570 is designed to elicit the most from any audio.
Serving as a full-functioned control unit, the RC-1570 pre-amp has support for all your analogue and digital inputs, with four analogue in, a balanced analogue, an inbuilt phono stage, two coax, two optical and two USB inputs. It also incorporates the same Wolfson DAC for a flawless digital performance.
The backbone of the trio is the RB-1552 Mk II 120 Watt per channel power amplifier. This slab of electronics is a snug fit, both aesthetically and performance-wise, contributing an engaging level of dynamism - subtlety is elegantly evoked, with the power to provide a weighty, detailed and rhythmic performance in more demanding passages. And thanks to the gutsy power rating, the performance is impressive with virtually any speaker.