The first time I saw Rotel’s RSP-1098 surround sound processor/pre amp I thought it was some high-tech media storage playback unit. It turned being a high-end surround sound processor… you may be asking yourself, why would one need a 7″ widescreen LCD panel on the front of a processor? I came up with these three reasons… 1) it looks very cool 2) if you have it in a A/V equipment room, you can use it as a video monitor to cue up movies 3) you can see all the settings for the processor on one easy to read screen. Rotel’s philosophy is that balanced design is better… “Instead of a jumbled array of controls
and arcane symbols, you’ll find an integral LCD color monitor
flanked by just a power switch, two knobs, and six miniature
pushbuttons. These elements let the technophobes enjoy the RSP-1098’s exceptional performance, yet allow more sophisticated users a level of control, system customization,
and convenience simply beyond the capabilities of lesser processors.”

The RSP-1098 has all the standard inputs and outputs as well as HD video switching. It employs a full 32-bit digital signal processor, decodes surround formats like Dolby Digital, Dolby EX, Dolby Pro Logic II, DTS, DTS ES, DTS ES Discrete, DTS Neo:6, DTS 24/96, HDCD. They didn’t bother licensing THX Ultra 2 for this processor. For a full review of this processor click here. MSRP: $2,999