Rotel Support
We are here to help you with any questions you might have about your Rotel products and devices, or we can offer insight into the world of sound and sound quality.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are assignable triggers?
Assignable 12-volt triggers allow you the option to tell the receiver or preamplifier what other components to turn on depending upon the source selection chosen.
Applicable Models:
RAP-1580 | RSP-1068 | RSP-1069 | RSP-1098 | RSP-1570 | RSP-1572 | RSP-1576 | RSP-1582 | RSX-1056 | RSX-1057 | RSX-1058 | RSX-1067 | RSX-1550 | RSX-1560 | RSX-1562
What are DVD-Audio discs?
DVD-Audio (also abbreviated as DVD-A) is a digital format designed to provide high-resolution audio on a DVD disc. DVD-Audio is not the same as a standard DVD-Video disc and generally DVD-Audio discs have very limited video content.
DVD-Audio discs can support from mono up to 6 channels of audio. Mono and Stereo audio tracks are supported up to 24-bit/192kHz, and 5.1 surround tracks are supported up to 24-bit/96kHz. Discs can have multiple tracks, so for example a DVD-A disc can contain both a 24-bit/192kHz stereo audio track as well as a 24-bit/96kHz 5.1 surround audio track.
The high-resolution audio on DVD-A discs is stored on the disc in Linear PCM format. The audio may be stored on the disc either in an uncompressed format, or compressed using Meridian Lossless Packing (MLP). Depending on the amount of audio tracks on the disc, compression may be necessary.
While a DVD-Audio player is required in order to access and play the high-resolution audio on a DVD-A disc, most DVD-A discs are also backwards compatible and will play on a standard DVD-Video player as well. Most DVD-A discs contain DVD-Video compatible data with a standard Dolby Digital 5.1 or Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack that can be played on a standard DVD player. Some DVD-A discs even contained DTS 96/24 audio tracks.
The most typical connection to an audio system for a DVD-A player is via 6-channel analog connections, thus allowing the DVD-A player to decode the high resolution audio in the player and stream it to the audio system in an analog format. All current Rotel surround receivers and processors provide an analog multichannel input that would allow connection of a DVD-Audio player.
Due to the large bandwidth required to transmit HD audio, the only digital cable with sufficient bandwidth to allow digital streaming of the high-resolution audio tracks on a DVD-A disc is HDMI. As DVD-A discs use Linear PCM for the audio format any HDMI device that supports audio over HDMI should be able to play back audio from a DVD-A disc via HDMI.
Applicable Models:
RDV-1040 | RDV-1045 | RDV-1050 | RDV-1060 | RDV-1080 | RDV-1092 | RDV-1093
What are those black bars on the top and bottom of the screen?
DVD movies come either pan and scan (4:3) or letterbox (widescreen) (16:9). Although pan and scan movies fill the entire TV screen, you're actually missing some of the picture. This is because pan and scan presentations are "cropped", meaning either side is cut out in order to fill the screen. Whenever you watch a videotape or TV movie that says "this film has been edited to fit your television", that's a nice way of saying they've chopped off the sides of the picture. Widescreen films, on the other hand, show the entire picture with nothing cropped. Doing so requires black bars at the top and bottom of the film. Some viewers find these black bars too distracting, but they mean you're seeing the whole film as it was originally shown in movie theatres. Thanks to the capacity of the DVD, many discs contain BOTH pan and scan and letterbox versions, so you can choose which format you prefer. With most television manufacturers producing widescreen 16:9 sets, some DVDs are being released in anamorphic widescreen. This format provides the full frame without any black bars, insuring all available lines of resolution are used on the picture. However, you must have a 16:9 set to take advantage of this. If you have a standard 4:3 screen and you want to play an anamorphic disc, you'll need to be sure your DVD player's menu is set to 4:3, otherwise, the picture won't look right.
Applicable Models:
RDV-1040 | RDV-1045 | RDV-1050 | RDV-1060 | RDV-1080 | RDV-1092 | RDV-1093
What audio formats/file types will play on the RA-11 or RA-12?
The RA-11 and RA-12 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ Bluetooth Dongle): Any format supported by the sending device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ USB Flash Drive): MP3, WAV, WMA, Ogg Vorbis (48kHz 16-bit maximum)
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
Applicable Models:
RA-11 | RA-12
What audio formats/file types will play on the RA-1570 or RC-1570?
The RA-1570 and RC-1570 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ Bluetooth Dongle): Any format supported by the sending device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ USB Flash Drive): MP3, WAV, WMA, Ogg Vorbis (48kHz 16-bit maximum)
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
- PC-USB: Any supported format by the PC software (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
Applicable Models:
RA-1570 | RC-1570
What audio formats/file types will play on the RA-1572?
The RA-1572 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- aptX Bluetooth Input: Any format supported by the sending device.
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
- PC-USB: Any supported format by the PC software (384kHz 32-bit maximum), DSD64, DSD128
Applicable Models:
RA-1592
What audio formats/file types will play on the RA-1592?
The RA-1592 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- aptX Bluetooth Input: Any format supported by the sending device.
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
- PC-USB: Any supported format by the PC software (384kHz 32-bit maximum), DSD64, DSD128
Applicable Models:
RA-1592
What audio formats/file types will play on the RC-1590?
The RC-1590 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- aptX Bluetooth Input: Any format supported by the sending device.
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
- PC-USB: Any supported format by the PC software (192kHz 24-bit maximum), DSD64, DSD128
Applicable Models:
RC-1590
What audio formats/file types will play on the RDD-1580?
The RDD-1580 will play a wide variety of popular audio file formats, depending upon the type of connection being used. The list below details what files will play with each connection type:
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ iPod or iPhone): Any format supported by the Apple device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ Bluetooth Dongle): Any format supported by the sending device.
- Front Panel USB Input (w/ USB Flash Drive): MP3, WAV, WMA, Ogg Vorbis (48kHz 16-bit maximum)
- Coax/Optical Digital Inputs: LPCM (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
- PC-USB: Any supported format by the PC software (192kHz 24-bit maximum)
Applicable Models:
RDD-1580
