The preamplifiers Rotel RC-1572MKII and RC-1590MKII have received an upgrade similar to the one recently received by the integrated A14, RA-1592 and RA-1572.
Here, Rotel has used the knowledge they have gained in the development of the high-end amplifiers in the Michi series, and upgraded the preamplifiers with new components and a new digital converter (DAC).
According to Rotel, they have managed to lower the noise and reduce the distortion, and the new 32 bit / 384 kHz DAC from Texas Instruments supports MQA and MQA Studio files via the USB input.
Rotel is – like McIntosh – one of the few manufacturers making their own transformers, and they are used here. New capacitors, new resistors, better filtering in the power supply and separate power for DAC and analog circuits should give the preamplifiers better sound and performance.
The two preamps also have turntable input for MM pickups and support wireless streaming via Bluetooth with AAC and aptX.
The larger RC-1590MKII has more inputs and a slightly larger power supply, but is otherwise similar to the smaller RC-1572MKII. Like the integrated versions and power amplifiers in the 1500 series, they are available in black or silver gray, and the new MKII versions will be available in late summer.
