I am a classical musician and performing artist. I have owned many players over the years and have come to the conclusion that the real key to audio nirvana is to EAT LESS CHEESE! The digital realm is 1&0's. D-A conversion has been very good for at least 20yrs or so now. Current players and sellers claim great differences, improvements, etc. I say that 99% of the differences only your dog can hear. The Rotel 991AE if used with the balanced outs and a good cables into to a good amp with balance inputs will yield a result that is as satisfying as you will ever need. Spending hrs buying into the myth that there is always something better can become not only nerve racking but a complete distraction. Get a good set of speakers and EAT LESS CHEESE! This is a great player that if set up correctly not only competes with but even betters many on the current upscale Market. Use common sense and start enjoying music instead of being over analytical. If you can find a nice one in good condition it is still not only a great player but great value as well. SPEAKERS are the place to spend your $$. ENJOY!!

I bought the Rotel RCD-991 sometime around 99/2000 as a demo unit for AUS$1k. As I found CD playback very ordinary around that period I was reluctant to spend much on a player. It was passable at the time although my Sota Star T/T was much better, so it was vinyl for more serious listening and CD for more casual listening.

When I decided to get back into some serious listening around 2011 I bought a new player and could no longer listen to the Rotel. It sounded anaemic, flat, undynamic and one dimensional. It sat there for 2 years unused. After reading positive reports on the Burson upgrades I decided for $350 it was worth the risk. They upgraded the OP-Amps, clock/crystal.

Well, what a difference! The RCD-991 has gone from unlistenable to having dynamics, soundstage and less fatigue. It has upgraded the player many times in sound, (dollar wise I would estimate about $1.5k improvement) although it stll sits behind my three best players I've heard for the money. In order Unison Research CDE, Vincent CD-S8 & Vincent CD7-DAC.

So if you have the RCD-991 or can pick one up cheap the Burson upgrades are mandatory.

As is the Rotel struggles to get 2 stars, upgraded it is 4 star.

I was using a bench DAC1 and wanted something that was warmer and more musical. I had a California Audio Labs transport which I loved so thought...I'll get a better DAC. Research took my to Burson Audio who had excellent reviews and stellar reputation for reliability. I called them to discuss a direct purchase and to my complete surprise they asked a lot of questions and determined my best option was not a DAC but a CD player upgraded with some of their discrete opamps.... a much less expensive option than their DAC! I asked which CD player they'd recommend upgrading and they said an exceptionally well built CD player that sounds fantastic with upgraded opamps and is very reasonable to buy on the used market is.....wait for it......the Rotel RCD991. I found one and decided to listen for a while before doing upgrades. I never did the upgrades! With a good power cord, interconnects and line conditioning this unit was rich, deep and musical. I realized that in my quest for perfection I had gone to more and more analytical equipment and further from the music. The RCD991 struck such a perfect balance between detail retrieval and organic presentation that I didn't want to mess with the opamps in case I took it back to the analytical side. Not to contradict others on this forum; we all have different ears, rooms, systems etc. but I found the bass deep and tight bringing out the best in the Gallo Reference 3's 10" drivers, the mid band transparent but with enough warmth to not sound thin and the treble like a crisp mountain stream. I sold it with the rest of my kit when the fruit of my loins commandeered my life and started throwing balls at my tube amp! If you get a chance to pick one of these up follow this advice. Do not treat it as a piece of midfi, it is far more than that. I would also look into the Burson opamp upgrade...looking back I regret not trying that.

I use the Rotel 991-AE since 10 years. It is still the best cd player I have heard in my system. After bying it and connecting with my stereo system, I was first very dissapointed because it sounded terrible (harsh, not musical, not clear, no space). But the sound was getting better and better after some months (!); it seems to have a very long burn-in time. The strengths are resolution, speed, space, bass control, dynamics, natural voices and instruments. But the sound may be over-analytic in a system that already sounds thin and analytic by itsself.

I experimented of course with some cables, placement and so on: I now use a pair of balanced Straight Wire Virtuoso R - interconnect cables, Straight Wire Megalink II Digital cable (to CD recorder), XLO ER-10 power cable and a Lovan Classic II base. The Cardas Crosslink cable does not completely reach the performance of the Virtuoso, but was the best of the "cheaper" cables (Kimber PBJ, van den Hul 102, Clearaudio Trident, AVM Bi-Coax...) I had tested and is a good alternative, if the Virtuoso is too expensive. Like the components, the cables connected with the Rotel better should have a slightly warm then an over-analytic tendency.

I compared the Rotel with some other CD-players, for example the Audio Analogue Paganini, which is a little more expensive. It looks nicer and sounds a little "nicer" (softer) than the Rotel, but had no chance in all other hifi criterias (speed, resolution, dynamics, bass control, clearness...).

If you find a used 991 AE in good condition, it should not be so expensive and is still a cd-player, which is a good source in an audiophile system. There was no defect in between 10 years.

I rated it in the "overall rating" with only 4 stars, because I think 5 stars should be reserved for absolutely "State of the art"-components. Many people here in audioreview give 5 stars to beginner or mid class components in "overall rating". Perhaps they had never heard really top components...

Comparing against a Rotel 971 and 975:
Cymbal decay, MF and HF vocals were not grainy in comparison
Detail was probably 40% improved
LF tighter and deeper
Very big difference from soundstage, detail, smoothness and instruments were more naturally presented
Definitely a pleasure to listen to for hours with no ear fatigue
The player has excellent balanced outputs.
Plain looking attributes to better placed costs into sound.
Built well and was reliable.

A little murky and blurred presentation, not as much air or as deep soundstage or resolving when compared to high end players.
Only glitch that ever developed was a sensitive loading tray that would close while trying to put a CD on it.
An out-board dac would improve presentation at additional costs or just upgrade.

This is a follow-up review. I originally reviewed this in 1999 and purchased in 2000. See review far below.

I had the unit for 5 years and enjoyed it for many years but I did eventually upgrade to a Classé player. Rotels RCD991 is a high resolution unit that gives a taste of high-end sound with the use of 2x 20bit processors that are strong in retrieving details. Totally walked over lower-end units ie Rotel 971, 975 and even their new units of today.
The only glitch that ever developed was a sensitive loading tray that would close while trying to put a CD on it. This unit did play better once tweaked; using setting 3 of dither, better power cords, AC conditioning and balanced wires. The largest improvement in performance I could remember was when I upgraded the preamp from the Rotel 1090 to a Classé cp-500. This brought out the best performance ever. The presentation and realism of instruments and vocals were completely better. So much so, that it seamed as if a different version of the same recording was played. Goes to show you a preamp really makes a diffence.
This player is an over achiever and was a good investment in the old Rotel catalogue especially for its price and I had to be really convinced to let it go. Yet its in a different class when comparing to a Classé player.

Customer Service

excellent

Similar Products Used:

Rotel 951, 971, 975, 1072, Marantz, Harmon Kardon, Pioneer Elite

Great sound quality with a good aftermarket power cord (mid level PS Audio newer versions) and interconnects (King Cobras).

Price/valure can't be beat imo.

Finding a original owner AE edition in great shape is getting mreo difficut to find due to what I think is a better cd player than Rotel's current models.

Power cord.

I have the 991AE edition which I think makes a difference over the 991 edition. I am not technical enough to write and extensive review but am completely satisfied with this CD player.

Using a better aftermaket powercord does make the sound better as does good interconnects. I like the dither settings and they do make a difference in sound and can also be defeated should you choose. I listen to it on the 3 dither setting.

I had been thinking about upgrading to the 1072 but I find after listening to each of them, I like the 991AE better.

I don't remember the price I paid but it was about 20% below retail.

At this my components are all rotel including the RB-1090, RMB-1075, RSP-1068 and RT-1080 tuner (although it would be nice to have an RT-990BX tuner). My speakers are B&W.

Customer Service

I've been very satisfied with Rotel/B& W's customer service and tech support. They will do anything they can to help you on issues including sending the unit back to them for testing for free if you think or do have a problem under their 5 year warranty.

Similar Products Used:

Adcom, Sony ES.

Great sound

Optical reader has broken down three times!

Sound is excellent. Warm, responsive, gorgeous transparency. Fabulous bass. Put on "Also Sprach Zarathustra", turn up the volume, and you'll vault into space just like the astronaut in "2001: A Space Odyssey." Since everyone else has described the sound of the Rotel 991 fairly accurately (although I certainly don't agree with anyone who thinks it has a muddled mid-range or some such opinion), nothing I add in this department will be very meaningful.

What I want to talk about is reliability. When I got this device from New Paltz Audio (now defunct, since there wasn't much of a market upriver for real hifi), it was unable to read discs. Put in a disc, and the display would say "no disc." Hmmm. Must be something wrong with the optical reader, I thought. So I took it back and the proprietor, Fred, exchanged it for one he was keeping for himself (he only had two.) Worked fine until January 2006, when suddenly it said "No disc" when a disc was put in. OK. It's an expensive unit, and it's under warranty, so I figure I'll fix it. Just costs the Fedex charge after all. It is now a year later and the same thing has happened. "No disc." I'm not sure what I'll do, but I may junk it, believe it or not. It's not under warranty any more, and the inconvenience is more than I can tolerate. The audiophiles among you will scream. I find nothing more useless than a piece of equipment that needs repetitive repair for the same problem.

Customer Service

Good and fast. But I don't want to deal with customer service. I want the thing to work until I throw it out.

Similar Products Used:

Adcom, other Rotel units like the 971, NAD, and California Audio Labs -- another high end CD player, and the only other unit I've ever had whose drive has broken.

Sounds detailed overall, but also "warm". Never tires my ears, even after hours of listening. Good build quality.

Murky mid-range, sounds laid-back and uninvolving. Bass lacks punch. Too pricy for what it offers.

In terms of sonic performance, it's hard to find fault with this player. It sounds well-balanced and detailed. I don't like its very laid-back sound, though. I sounds uninvolving and, therefore, uninteresting - I find that although it reproduces the music in great detail, it's not much fun listening to it. Some tones just don't sound "right". That's why, after several months of trying to get used to this player, I finally decided to sell it and buy an NAD C542 instead. I'm even willing to put up with NADs sub-par build quality. Objectively, the Rotel sounds better - subjectively, the NAD is more fun listening to. The latter is more important to me.

Similar Products Used:

NAD C541/C542

Musical, natural sounding and easy on the senses

None

This review is for Rotel RCD 1072, the current top of the line model that replaced RCD 1070, which received very good reviews last year. The 1072, out of the box, showed great potential as a good player. After about 30 hrs use, the sound has become more refined, smoother and more detailed. A longer warmup would even be more beneficial specially when it breaches the 100 hr mark as one reviewer would have it. The 1072 complements very well my setup of Quicksilver 8417 mono amps, Audio Research SP 9 MkII preamp and Sonus Faber Concerto Grand Piano. The sound is musical, natural and devoid of harshness that I can breeze thru a minimum of 4 hours listening to a variety of genres without suffering from fatigue during the warmup. The soundstage, imaging and details all combine to create an aural scenario that is easy on the senses. What more can you ask for from the latest model with refinements of the previous models to be had at the same price point as those of the old models 1070 and 971. Kudos to Rotel for a job well done!

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood 7060 , auditioned Rotel RCD 971, 1070, 02, Arcam CD72 and NAD 521a

Balanced outputs, dual 20 bit Burr Brown dac's,

Can sound bright if you don't partner with quality interconnects and associated components.

Smooth even handed very musical sounding player. This player communicates timmimg and pitch very well for this price point. Rubustly built and dither setting adjustments when used sparingly enhance performance. With the available balanced outputs, it's a great choice if you can find it on the used market. The unit sounds better after full warm up, leave it on, you need to be able to smell your components!