Rotel has upgraded some of their most affordable hi-fi components to mkII versions. These are the slim A10 and A11, now called A10MKII and A11MKII, and we also get the CD player CD11MKII.
The products have been updated on the component side and we are promised better sound than their predecessors as well as new features.
The previous products were made in collaboration with Ken Ishiwata, and the company has now decided to further improve the products as a tribute to the late legend.
Rotel A10MKII integrated amplifier
The A10MKII is a standard class AB amplifier with a nominal output power of 2 x 50 watts (8 ohms). It has a built-in MM turntable input and three RCA line inputs.
The transformer is of the toroidal type and we are promised well-dimensioned capacitors. No less than 67 components have been upgraded, both in the pre- and power amplifier stages. The result, according to Rotel, is improved resolution and detail.
On the front panel, you will find controls for bass and treble, as well as balance. In addition, there is a 3.5 mm headphone output. On the other hand, the 3.5 mm AUX input on the front has been removed, which is not a loss when most mobile phones no longer have a headphone jack and instead typically use Bluetooth for this purpose. Not that there is Bluetooth built-in, you’ll have to connect a receiver or a music streamer yourself.
Rotel A10MKII integrated amplifier
One step up we find the A11MKII. An improvement of the A11 in the Tribute series, here too we are talking about 2 x 50 watts in class A/B.
Unlike the A10MKII, the 11 has a built-in Bluetooth receiver. With both aptX and AAC codecs, it ensures good sound from both Apple and Android devices. In addition, it has both coaxial and optical digital inputs that support signals up to 24-bit/192 kHz. The DAC itself uses a PCM5102A chip from Texas Instruments with 32-bit/384 kHz resolution. At the time of writing, there is no information on whether the input signal is sampled up to this.
Like the A10MKII, the amplifier has a simple tone and balance control and a 3.5 mm headphone output.
Rotel CD11MKII CD player
The new CD11MKII features 10 major component upgrades from the CD11 Tribute model. It uses the same DAC as its predecessors, a PCM5102A from Texas Instruments, with 32-bit/384 kHz resolution.
We are promised a smooth sliding CD drawer, a clear LCD display on the front and an “intuitive front panel”. In other words, the boring controls you would always expect to find on a CD player.
In addition to the RCA output, the CD player has a coaxial digital output if you want to connect it to an external DAC.
Availability and price
The Rotel A10MKII, A11MKII and CD11MKII are available now in black or silver. Prices in euros:
- Rotel A10MKII: 599 EUR
- Rotel A11MKII: 799 EUR
- Rotel CD11MKII: 599 EUR
More info: rotel.com