One is a streaming all-in-one and the other is an amplifier. Judge them on how many boxes you want and what you already own, not on the spec sheet alone.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Power | evenly matched | Effectively the same output - 60W against 60W into 8 ohms is under 1dB, which is not an audible difference in loudness. |
| Built-in DAC | evenly matched | Both have a DAC on board with much the same capability. |
| Streaming | A | Only Technics SA-C600 has AirPlay 2 and Chromecast. |
| Analogue inputs | B | Rotel A12 MKII takes more analogue sources - 4 against 2. |
| Built-in sources | depends | Technics SA-C600 has a CD player built in. That is one less box if you still play discs or listen to radio, and dead weight if you do not. |
| Amplifier class | depends | Technics SA-C600 is Class D and Rotel A12 MKII is Class A/B. Class D runs cool and draws almost nothing at idle; Class A/B runs warm and is the long-established mainstream choice. Modern examples of both measure well - judge by the rest of the page. |
| Shelf space | depends | Technics SA-C600 takes up about 29% less shelf area (1161cm² against 1633cm²), and it is 37mm shallower, which is the measurement that decides whether a rack door shuts. |
| Price | B | Rotel A12 MKII costs less - $1,100 against $1,300 at list. |
A Technics SA-C600 B Rotel A12 MKII
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, your system or how you will use them. Only specs published for both amplifiers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.
Which should you choose?
Neither runs away with it - they trade advantages. Let the "depends" rows and the speakers you already own settle it.
What a spec sheet cannot show: how either sounds with your speakers, how the controls feel day to day, and what the app is like to live with - which is where most all-in-one amplifiers are actually won or lost. Power figures are the manufacturers' own and are not measured to a common standard, so treat small differences as noise. If you can hear both, that will tell you more than any row above.