The Hi-Fi Rose 250A sounds flat and lifeless after the update, compared to the internal DAC of the Rotel 1592 MK2. The Rotel uses a Texas Instruments DAC, and the difference between them has never been this big before. I’ve owned both for a year now and even changed the single-ended cables. The Rotel is connected via a coaxial cable.
Has anyone else noticed a change in sound quality after the update? Any suggestions on how to fix it?
OS 5.9.09
Best,
I updated my RS250A in late September of 2025 to 5.9.09. At that time, there were already a number of complaints about degraded sound quality after the update, so I listened very carefully after doing so. I could not hear any change in sound quality after the update. My only comparison is my Cambridge Audio CXN100 Streamer/DAC. These sounded very similar after the update. Sorry to not be able to help. Good luck with resolving the issue.
I also own a rs-250a and for me i even find the sound is better than before.
Try maybe to change the phase filter in the output parameters :
O few of the recent updates had wiped out filter settings and a few other things from the setup.
When set back to how it was, 250 sounds exactly like it did before. This being an off the shelf DAC chip in there it would take much more software expertise than anyone at Rose has to make firmware that actually could make the sound “flat and lifeless”.
Sound is built in our brains.
Our ears are only a transmitter from outside to inside.
Psychologically it could well be that your expectations re. the updates sound processing and delivery to the speakers and further were to high.
Please check the FIR settings and adjust them to your liking. Don’t forget to confirm your changes!
Dear all
Thank you for your input and for thinking along — much appreciated.
After several hours of trying, I decided to perform a software reset and return the system to its default settings. The system kept the latest update version, so there was no need to reinstall any updates.
This solved the issue with the flatness and lifeless sound. I’m not exactly sure what caused the problem, but it seems that something in the corner of the previous settings or filters might have been changed or updated incorrectly.
