channels volume imbalance

[janul]

You need to have a mono recording to judge whether there is a difference between the left and right channels.
There may be more reasons, from the mentioned difference in potentiometer values, to the difference in the recording itself.
In any case, balance control would help.

Well, yes I understand it, to judge you realy need either mono recording or very good stereo recording and on the top of that you need to know the song how it has to sound because it is not rule that the singer voice for example has to be right in the middle. So thats why I prefere to get amplifier which is well killed in that regard, reliable one, I do not trust my self quite enaugh and I do not think anybody should to judge this, just based on listening. So I need rely on my system. If there are any recomendations I will apreciate. We already named some schiit and other chineese brands which do use stepping atenuators which in theory should be good, I am also going to find out my self the companies which pay attention to this. Namely I am going to check Parrasound, Anthem, japaneese brands, still Electrocmpaniet which I have maybee is good, they claim they use all components inside eci 80d inhouse made so I will ask them namely about this. I can notice that using kef ls50 meta does change the image positioning when you move your head sidevise 3 inches, if you move more than the impact becomes obvious quite a bit. Now, I do not plan to listen my music the way that I cant move, and I am ok with the fact that it simply is like that and it is understandable, however I want my amplifier to do l/r good.
I have found that gato amplifiers do have some improved tech also, so still looking for other possibilities. Gato 150 amp is not the cheapest option considering you need some DAC and in this case it should be something starting at 1K as the amp seems to deserve it.
If Any other recomendations to check very apreciated.
At this point I have to say that with brands like anthem, parrasound, gatto I am going vell over my budget, of course there would be no problem if I could afford amps for 10K+ but this is not the case. So thats what I would be happy for an preamp or amp for about 2 - 3K.

 

[Golf]

There may be more reasons, from the mentioned difference in potentiometer values, to the difference in the recording itself.

Main reason in most cases may be the »imbalance« of your listening room situation. I’d say that almost every average private listening room is not designed for a any proper left/right symmetrical sound behaviour.

Which is where software solutions like MathAudio Room EQ can lead to some noticeable improvements. They not only enhance the frequency response separately for each speaker but can also serve as a »multi-band balance knob« – in a way that they are able to control the l/r balance individually on any given frequency.

 

[gwing]

A perfect l/r playback balance is probably the most underrated factor in order to enjoy recorded music throughout the universe.

Well, yes, I do get a bit frustrated when the stereo balance is way off. I'm probably more sensitive to this than I should be.

But also ,no, live music is what it is and instruments aren't always precisely positioned on stage for perfect balance so that balance. And I really don't want everything close miked with perfect artificial stereo balance and a 20 foot wide piano stretching between the speakers.

 

[somebodyelse]

My old valve pre-amp, not that I use it much these days except for an occasional bit of vinyl, has these separate volume controls for each channel

Croft?

 

[wwenze]

It depends on the source of imbalance

If the source is acoustic e.g. one of your speaker is next to a sidewall, the frequency response of the difference wouldn't be flat either. This is what I added for one side after measuring

 

[gwing]

Croft?

Oooh, good guess

Croft supermicro 4a, and a series4 power amp to go with it as well - but I can't easily afford the running costs to keep that going.

 

[PCR]

I know alps blue velvet is not step , Thank you for the reply. so here my answer to yor question, I am not sure I am using kef ls50 meta and I am experiencing slight shifts but sometimes more so, in imaging from left to right, am I crazy or is it possible? So i do not know, but I find my self, I do not want any amplifier that is not able to attenuate volume to unaudiable difference/mistake between the channels, yeah thats me :!

Hello. You are not crazy, at least for this reason. I sense the same lefto to right shift. Moreover, not only from my record player(s), also from my digital souces. On the other hand, when I stand up from my main listening position and get closer to the center of the speakers, the imbalance gets less. Maybe left-right imbalance not only stems from equipments but also from our ears. But, for many years, I always sen the shift from left to right. Sometimes very heavily almost no sound from the left in some recordings (analog). In digital sources, the right shift is about 2 db which I can equailze from the digital player software (Roon, Audirvana, etc.)