At Rotel, we make no secret of what is “under the hood”. A close inspection reveals that Rotel components are designed and built to a standard associated with “cost is no object” brands. Our long experience and in-house manufacturing allows us to deliver unique value.

Consider the transformer. The transformer is the fundamental building block of a solid power supply. It needs to deliver clean, unrestricted voltage and current so that the output signal is never distorted under dynamic conditions when peaks can often be a multiple of the average signal level.  

The transformer converts higher voltages from the wall outlet to lower voltages useful in audio components and, most importantly in an amplifier, provides a reservoir of power. The amplifier’s output stage – the circuit that actually makes a larger copy of the incoming signal in order to power your speakers - uses the music signal to control the power supply, like a faucet controls the flow from a water tank.    

We make all our transformers in house so that we have much more control over the quality of this critical component. The transformer core is made of banded high quality, clean steel wound to extreme tolerances to ensure the most efficient energy transfer. It undergoes several processes to further improve performance including baking, pressure soaking in an oil bath and curing just to name a few.

We purchase the copper for our windings from suppliers that we have trusted for years. This copper wire is free from many impurities that can often be found in off-the-shelf parts used by other manufacturers. Our transformer winding equipment evenly distributes the copper wire around the core in symmetrical patterns to reduce spurious, unwanted emissions that may affect other areas of the circuit. This lowers the noise floor and reduces distortion in the audio signal.

Every transformer is bench tested to ensure it meets the highest standards of quality required to be included in a Rotel products. The result of these processes is low noise and superior energy storage, characteristics necessary for optimum audio performance under real world conditions.