I've had the TRC 970, the RB976 6 channel amp and the DD decoder that came with these two pieces as a set since June 98. I am very happy with the amp...the reciever is good and I agree with others that the dolby surround processer is very good, the tuner is average and the remote sucks. I haven't used the DD unit yet as I don't have a DVD player. I'm running B&W 602's front and rear and a B&W 2000 sub.

I auditioned the RTC 970 for 2 weeks, and found it to be of very good quality. I did have some minor problems with the remote, but it was nothing that could not be corrected. Overall in this price range the preamp is a 5. It is highly unfair to even start to compare this to a High End pre/pro. This is not, nor does Rotel claim it is.
What separates this from other preamps in THIS PRICE RANGE is that it does well for both music and theater. Too often the mid range units perform for only one medium, and sometimes none at all.
As for not having 6 channel outputs as stated in the previous review. What the heck are you talking about? This unit has the 6 outs you connect to the amp. The decoder you select to plug in the 6 channel inputs on the RTC 970 should have 6 channel inputs also ...That is how daisy-chaining works. If you're going to flog a unit for a poor remote and a lack of something that makes no sense, then you should try and have the facts right.
For this preamp it is a 5 star amp within its price range. The remote could have definitely been better designed, but if you want to buy a unit for its remote, then go right ahead. I buy the units that sound the best within my budget.
In the end I found a Rotel RSP 980 for a good price, and could not resist buying it. If I had not found the deal on the 980, I would be more than happy with the 970

I read Steve's review and I laughed, then I read on and I laughed some more. I can take criticism of my review no problem, in fact I encourage for anyone to show me something I have over looked about this product. Sounds tests after all is said and done is a matter of personal opinion (although their are clear cut cases). That said, when someone knows what they are talking about, and contributes to this news group with an intelligent comment or critique, I'm all for that. However, when you make an arrogant, un-educated, stupid comments without being sure, then at that point you're just an idiot. Steve, just do us all a favor and shut up, if you don't know what you are talking about. Let me educate you on the Rotel RTC970 pre-amp as I have owned mine for over a year now. First, yes I compared the RTC-970 to other high end preamps to establish that fact that in it's price range the RTC-970 is among the best pre-amps in it's price range, but it's not as good as the higher end units, I know it's not's supposed to be, but I compared unlike you!! I also own a CAL audio labs DX-2 cd player I bought for $500 and compared it to the Krell top of the line CD-Player and thought it was very close IN MY OPINION. Second, the 6 channel output is referring to the DB25 output as you have on your RSP-980 which the RTC-970 doesn't have, it only has a DB-25 input for an outboard decoder or to daisy change 2 out board decoders such as Rotel's DTS and DD combo, yes I know what daisy chaining means IDIOT! Since you don't know, newer pre-amps such as the Rotel RB-985, RB-985 MXII, ADCOM GFA6000 and 7000 units have DB25 inputs besides the normal 5 channel RCA connectors, which makes for a much cleaner install. Third, what part of my review doesn't make sense about the remote? That I can't turn on the tone buttons from the remote? That I can't select the 5.1 channel input on the remote? That other's such as myself had the remote die? THESE ARE FACTS, but you wouldn't know, because you don't have the RTC-970 and at least were not smart enough to research the produce before making stupid remarks!