With the latest firmware, my RS151 has lost some of its clarity and bass. I have checked all the output settings, and I even performed a factory reset.
I asked you for firmware version 5.11.03, which you kindly sent me. However, the installation instructions did not match the file provided. In any case, I believe that modifying firmware is a serious matter, and I am not comfortable installing it myself via USB. In the end, I decided not to proceed.
I trust Rose, so I will wait for a new firmware release. I have confidence in you, and I am sure I will get back that wonderful sound my RS151 used to deliver.
This is an absolute disaster! It just keeps getting worse. There’s no way I’m updating my RS151. With the software version I’m running now, it flies like a fighter jet!
I’d suggest going back to ROSE 5.9.08 - ROSE MAIN 5.9.08.1 - ROSE SERVICE 5.9.08.1. It really brings out the best in the RS151. The only downside is having to enter that stupid code every time you want to change something in the settings. Other than that, it works great.
Honestly, it’s shameful. And to make matters worse, they still haven’t answered the questions I’ve asked them several times!
I also recieved a zipfile from Hifi-Rose for downgrading. I formatted my USB-drive to FAT32 and drag and drop the zipfile into it. I placed the USB into my RS151 but i dont receive a prompt for downgrading.
I’m not going to install anything I receive by email using a USB stick. Modifying firmware is a serious matter, and any failure could render a €5,000 device unusable.
Given everything that has been discussed on this forum, I believe there are more than sufficient reasons to release a new version promptly to resolve these issues.
You are so right. If they can’t give me a trustworthy zipfile received by email its way better to leave it as it is and wait for the next firmware. Too much €€€€€ to high risk.
Bonte, first you need to understand the physics.
Second. Even if there is something that is actual physics… it could be negligible.
So while the science and physics is real, using it to market a product makes it snake oil.
But then there’s something else.
Understanding the measurements and what they mean.
You can take two capacitors that measure the same.
For example two different 3.3uF capacitors from two different manufacturers.
While they measure the same, they will impact the sound differently.
Its like saying that you have two different musical instruments. Because they can play the same note, they should sound the same. When in fact they don’t.
Just to make it crystal clear for you once again—especially for someone who apparently feels the need to type a reply to every single post…
Why are you suddenly deflecting from the topic and switching to speakers? We were talking about operational amplifiers (op-amps) inside the amplifier. Your pivot to crossovers (XOs) is a classic distraction tactic because physically and measurement-wise, they are in completely different leagues. There is absolutely no relation here.
Let’s straighten this out on a physical, measurement, and biological level:
1. The crossover (XO) is a completely different ballpark
Nobody is denying that old electrolytic capacitors in a 30-year-old speaker crossover dry out, lose capacitance, and alter the sound. But if you replace them with fresh, properly selected capacitors that sit tightly within a clean tolerance range, it simply ensures that both speakers play exactly the same way and precisely how the developer intended. Anyone putting overpriced “super-selected” voodoo components in there is wasting money—at that point, you won’t hear a difference anymore as long as the specs are right.
2. The relation to swapping op-amps
A modern, high-quality op-amp in an amplifier has a distortion factor (THD) in the fractions of a percent (e.g., 0.0001%). A speaker driver, on the other hand, distorts the signal by a multiple of that even under the best conditions (often 0.5% to 3% or more). Anyone who believes they can double-blind test the swap of an already measurement-perfect op-amp in an amplifier is falling for the classic traps of psychoacoustics:
Tiny volume differences (as little as 0.1 dB) are not perceived by the brain as “louder,” but mistakenly interpreted as “better, more spacious, or clearer.”
Acoustic short-term memory is simply not long enough to objectively compare the sound before and after the modification (opening the chassis, desoldering, soldering, and hooking it back up).
Confirmation Bias: When you invest time and hard work, you want to hear an improvement to justify your effort and conscience. This is the exact same phenomenon as buying a $4,000 power cable (Snake Oil).
3. The most critical factor in the system: The human ear
Before we start philosophizing over the nuances of electronic components, we should look at the biology of our own bodies. Our ears simply don’t get any younger.
By the time you reach 55 or 60, it is completely normal if your upper frequency limit drops to around 12 or 13 kHz during a regular hearing test (which I take very seriously due to my job)—it naturally decreases over the years. Anyone claiming they can still hear the tiny grass growing between two op-amps in that ultra-high frequency range is lying to themselves.
On top of that, our hearing depends heavily on daily physical form. Health, high blood pressure, lack of sleep, or working with loud machinery like leaf blowers and brush cutters drastically change your hearing from day to day. Even when wearing hearing protection while working, a negative pressure builds up that the ear reacts to as a defense mechanism. Anyone who has ever done a pressure equalization by “yawning” or swallowing (just like divers do) knows how the ears suddenly “pop” back open and clear up afterward.
Bottom line:
Your comparison with grass-fed cattle completely misses the mark here, and you totally missed the topic. You shouldn’t blindly rely on “YouTube Academy” videos, but rather look into actual physics, measurements, and the biology of our hearing. An op-amp swap in an amplifier remains pure wishful thinking to soothe one’s conscience under realistic conditions—especially at our age.
Just to clarify before you start splitting hairs again…
Yes, I wrote “desoldering/soldering,” but I already know your next move will be to lecture me about DIP8 sockets and chip seats where you can just plug and unplug op-amps without a soldering iron. We all know they exist—whether it’s on Violectric, Burson, or various Chinese DACs and amps where you can easily swap them out.
But guess what? Sockets or not, it changes absolutely nothing about the facts:
The time factor remains: Even with a socket, by the time you power off the device, pull the plug, open the chassis, swap the op-amp, put it all back together, and boot it back up, your acoustic short-term memory is already gone. A real, objective direct comparison is impossible without a specialized instantaneous AB-switch box.
Quality is a baseline, not a miracle: We are obviously talking about high-quality, properly implemented op-amps and speaker components here, not cheap junk. That is the baseline expectation. But switching from one high-quality, spec-perfect chip to another premium chip doesn’t miraculously alter the laws of physics or biology.
So save yourself the technical nitpicking just to have the last word. Sockets make swapping easier, but they don’t magically grant you “golden ears” or beat the psychoacoustic traps we just talked about.
