Price Paid:  $275.00 from used

Summary:
I just compared to Adcom GFA 555II and the Rotel blew it away as far as sound quality. This is a great sounding amp. I use it for mains and center in bridged mode. For the price it can't be beat. Check out my review of Adcom GFA 555II to see how I compared the two. This amp is half the price of the Adcom, what a great deal.

Strengths:
versitility

Weaknesses:
not for power hungry speakers

Similar Products Used:
Adcom

Price Paid:  $300.00 from Madrid HiFI

Summary:
This product is excellent, very good sound for the price.

Strengths:
Very versatile, you can hook a complete AV system for a small to medium room, or you can use it to power various zones or rooms in you house. I use to power two stereo systems in different rooms for my sons (teen agers)with very good results and sound quality, so they can develop good sense of hifi sound.

Weaknesses:
None if you use it for the intended purpose, not big rooms and speakers.

Summary:
I decided to purchase this amp to replace my creek 4140 which did'nt have the power to inspire my goodmans maxim spkrs not to say it was not capable, it was, it had a beautiful ability to dispaly it highs and lows in what can only be described as holographic integrity, but lacked just a little bit of umph!!
So I part exchanged it at a well known rip off merchant (CC) in Woolwich SE18, (Dont get me wrong I love Woolwich, you find the nicest people there, but you'll get those punters who'll take advantage of those gullible folk...anyway, saw this monster Rotel, thought it was the dogs b----x, they did'nt even test it, so I went on looks as I usually do to be shocked to find out it was almost the same as the creek in sound quality BUT it was 10 times heavier and 20 times larger...Power in normal stereo was OK but was really on par with the little Creek...So not much difference really. The moral of the story...Buy a Kenwood with 2 x 100W if you want sound & power.

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Summary:
This is an excellent amp for the dollar. I got a demo model for $250, including mid-fi (but quality) interconnects. It is a six channel amp, but can be bridged to 3 90 watt mono outputs. I use it in the latter arrangement to power my surround and center speakers. The sound is rich, and this amp shines in midrange performance. This makes it ideal for vocal - lovers and surround purposes. Again, quality per dollar - sonic, build and power - is very high. I rate the sound quality as almost equal to my other rotel amp, the 985bx. Bass isn't quite as tight, I think.

Here is my system for reference:

Pre: Marantz AV 600
Amp 1: Rotel 985BX
Amp 2: Rotel 956AX
CD: Rotel 855
DAC / jitter : various Audio Alchemy boxes
Speakers: Platinum Audio Solos -L-R-C- plus a pair of bipolar rear speakers.

I rate the 956AX as four stars, given value and quality of sound.

Summary:
Another product for the cash conscious listener, this rotel offers an unusual amount of musical peformance at a bargain price. This amplifier has won a spot in my dedicated music system outperforming a top flight Sony ES reciever to drive a pair of 5.2 Klispch monitors. I had intended it to be used in my theatre downstairs, but never found a reason to remove it from the musical system due to its ability to tame the top end and keep the bass under absolute control at any reasonable level. I recommend using it in a bridged mode for a dual zone system.