Seeing as you probably solved your problem, let us know how it sounds on the Rotel/Tannoy setup.

I've had the opportunity to compare the Empeg against the Ah!Toejb 4000 (tube based CD player) via A/B tests and found it to be essentially on par quality wise. Without going into too much detail, the empeg is slightly over-analytical to the point of harshness, but makes it back up with its tremendously near blank noise floor. In comparison, the tubed CD player has a large noise floor, due to the tubes, but a sweeter high end. Midrange is actually about equivalent to each other. The tube amped CD player has a 5V out, and the empeg has a 1V out (in home mode). The tube guys I've talked to indicated that the tremendously higher noise floor would not be as apparant if the tube player was recalibrated to 1V in fairness. This does leave me wondering how much dynamic detail has been sacraficed by running the empeg in 1V mode. *shrug*

I also had the opportunity to run the empeg through the paces on a SET (single ended tube) amp hooked up to a set of ESD electrostatic speakers. In this configuration I was able to compare the empeg with a nice vinyl record player. If you guys ever have the opportunity to do this, DO NOT DO IT. The empeg sounds like utter garbage. You'll be bowled over by how weak and unrealistic the empeg sounds compared to a record. A vinyl record with pops and hisses but presence so real that you give up and turn the empeg off.

So without going into immense detail, I'd say the empeg is audiophile quality in the price range of $500-$1500 source equipment.

Calvin "musings"