Tips for warming up Rotel + B&W system?


I recently purchased Rotel Integrated amp and B&W 703's to pair with my broken-in Rotel 1072 DC player. I've only had the system for 2 weeks, but I can't notice any improvent, The broken-in system sounded very good in the store but at home it sounds cold, dry, sterile, with harsh highs. I find the more I listen, the less I want to listen, which only slows doen the breaking-in process. Are there any audiogoners who've had experience with taming overly trebly B&W's?
stuartk

Showing 5 responses by stuartk

I tried upgrading power cords and speaker wire. Sound is now somewhat warmer and fuller but still emotionally uninvolving. Dr. Lou, I haven't heard anyone describe the 1072 as you have. It was the first piece of upgraded gear I added to my old Nakamichi RE-1 and B&W P5 setup, and it was definitely a very musical addition to my ears-- certainly not hard or coarse. So, I tend to believe, that for my ears, at least, that's not where the problem likely resides. I'm going to try some different, more powerful amps. When I listen to the Rotel amp and cd player through Grados, the sound is still on the chilly side for me, which would seem to suggest the amp is contributing the coolness. Thanks for all the suggestions!
Goatwus, I'm not at all convinced that B&W 703's are "bad gear". I may yet arrive at such an opinion, but I heard a pair of 804's with classe SS amplification that sounded very rich and musical-- I just wasn't contemplating spending $10,000. at that time. The salesman I'm working with insists the 804 is not an inherently richer (or "less-bright", for you folks who don't like B&W) speaker than the 703, so I'm inclined to believe the Rotel amp and perhaps, as DR. Lou suggests, the Rotel cd player is/are to blame. Unfortunately, Sacramento CA is not blessed with many high-end audio dealers. Most folks around here don't seem to care about audio unless it's coming outta their television, so consequently, dealers sell "home theater" increasingly, while two channel audio has been pushed further and further into the background. I'm going to demo some classe amplification next. Anyway, thanks for the input!
OK, Dr. Lou, as you clearly have much more experience than I, (I'm obviously no audiophile-- just a passionate music-lover who's currently in over his head re: acquiring gear)-- I will bring up this issue with the salesman. I thought the Rotel was a very well-thought-of piece of gear, but it could be that it is outclassed by the speakers, which have been described by more than one person as "revealing". If what they are revealing is in fact the shortcomings of the
digital source, then of course it makes perfect sense to address this part of the system.
JTgofish, Hammergjh: thanks for your comments. I hadn't thought to check whether the speakers are wired in or out of phase. Will do. As far as cd's go, my ears are painfully aware that cd's vary ridiculously in terms of quality. IMO, there's no excuse for labels to release crap!