Should I have to turn my Rotel up this high?

[alderash]

Hi,

I hope I can get some feedback or advice. I have an RSX-1055 driving a pair of Dynaudio Focus 110s, a Dynaudio center, and Rythmik sub. The max volume on the 1055 is 90 and I routinely run it at about 75 ... sometimes higher. I realize that Dynaudios are notoriously difficult to drive, but I thought the 1055 was a fairly capable amp ... yet I'm practically maxing it out just to get a comfortable volume level. This is also the case when I'm just running the two front speakers for 2-channel music.

Should this be happening, or is there something I don't have set correctly?

If this is understandable considering the inefficiency of the speakers, could you recommend a solution such as a 2-channel power amp just to drive the two front channels?

Any advice is very much appreciated.


Thank you,

Brad

[alderash]

So I just spoke with a guy at the local audio store (which carries Rotel) and he said that they also customarily run their Rotel units at about 75 to hit that sweet spot.

He said it wasn't so much the speakers, as it is the amp itself.

Any other Rotel owners experience this?

[chanlon]

I'm using a Rotel 1077 amp with PSB Synchrony One 4 ohm speakers.
My 1570 is usually around the 75 mark as well. Personally I don't worry about it since the 1077 can actually handle 2 ohm loads safely.

[RoMan]

My Rotel setup runs around 71-73 for movies. Music is around 65-70 and same for tv listening. I don't have a large space. I'm running an RB 1090 for mains and RMB 1095 for the rest(7.1 setup) connected to a Rotel RSP 1570. Depends on the source material I find as well but all in all I'm happy with the volume. I'm getting full range and the sound is beautiful. All in all clean undistorted power is my goal at the end of the day.

[Glen B]

Should this be happening, or is there something I don't have set correctly?

Sounds like just the taper of the volume control, totally normal. A volume control potentiometer only attenuates or cuts the incoming signal. At the "zero" point the control is applying its maximum attenuation. As you turn it clockwise, it allows more and more of the incoming signal to pass. In your receiver, the volume control is applying the greater percentage of its attenuation over most of its range. Only when its starts getting nearer the end of its operating range does it start letting more of the incoming signal through. This is called a logarithmic taper ("log" for short). Human hearing is also logarithmic in nature. A log taper is actually beneficial in that it allows better fine-tuning of volume level.

[RoMan]

Good stuff. Thats useful information to know Glen B. Awesome. Forums are a great place to learn for sure.

RoMan

[Frank Helmling]

I've opened a thread some time ago, dealing with that thing:

http://www.htguide.com/forum/showthread.php4?t=37461&highlight=prefered+volume