my_ears_are_up_here
Member
Hello! First time poster, long time objectivist...
I've spent most of my life appreciating flat response, spent most of my time, money, and energy towards that in as thrifty way as reasonable.
Recently I stumbled onto these fora, Amir's reviews and videos, and was transformed from "flat is gold" to "distortion free is gold". (I had tolerated "it's okay" distortion, previously, thinking flat was most important.)
Using the guidance of all the resources here, I built my first very low distortion setup for the bedroom:
- Elac B6.2
- Aiyima A07
- Lavaudio DS200Pro LDAC BT receiver
I'll grab a proper DAC, EQ, etc shortly, but wanted to see, first, if I enjoyed the low distortion optimization target.
Herein lies the rub: historically, I've just gotten "good enough" integrated amps that handle everything. Fine for convenience, but obviously not ideal. So my experience with separate components is totally zilch.
I understand the digital side of audio quite intimately, but the analog side is very foreign to me. Which brings me to my question: (sorry for all the preamble)
One thing I cannot seem to unpack is the role and positioning of volume control in the chain. Maybe I missed it, but a search of these fora didn't reveal anything, and advice on the internet at large is all over the map.
I understand that a power amp is not *technically* a power amp if it has volume control (at which point it's an "integrated amp"), but where is that volume control in the chain, exactly?
In my setup, for example, my amp has a volume control. The (mediocre) preamp in my BT receiver *also* has volume control. (By way of changing the BT volume, which I *assume* either raises/lowers the gain of the preamp, or more likely, changes the shape of the digital signal before it's amplified.)
So which do I use for actual volume control? (In respect to quality.) Do I keep the amp volume up at whatever maximum level I'd ever want, then control the volume with the Bluetooth controls? Or do I keep the Bluetooth at/near maximum and adjust the listening level with the amp volume knob?
In short:
- What is the specific role of the volume knob in a simple integrated amp such as mine?
- Is it better to attenuate the input signal digitally (before preamp) or after/analog?
And I guess, fundamentally, my question is:
- Is amplification fixed/continuous and we're just attenuating the input signal? Or does it attenuate the output power? (I guess that wouldn't make sense, would it? Be very hot and wasteful.)
(I may have answered my own last question, just thinking through the practicality of it, but still confused where the best place to attenuate the signal is.)
Sorry this is so long and verbose! I guess (over) clarity is a feature of objectivism! Glad to join the community!
I've spent most of my life appreciating flat response, spent most of my time, money, and energy towards that in as thrifty way as reasonable.
Recently I stumbled onto these fora, Amir's reviews and videos, and was transformed from "flat is gold" to "distortion free is gold". (I had tolerated "it's okay" distortion, previously, thinking flat was most important.)
Using the guidance of all the resources here, I built my first very low distortion setup for the bedroom:
- Elac B6.2
- Aiyima A07
- Lavaudio DS200Pro LDAC BT receiver
I'll grab a proper DAC, EQ, etc shortly, but wanted to see, first, if I enjoyed the low distortion optimization target.
Herein lies the rub: historically, I've just gotten "good enough" integrated amps that handle everything. Fine for convenience, but obviously not ideal. So my experience with separate components is totally zilch.
I understand the digital side of audio quite intimately, but the analog side is very foreign to me. Which brings me to my question: (sorry for all the preamble)
One thing I cannot seem to unpack is the role and positioning of volume control in the chain. Maybe I missed it, but a search of these fora didn't reveal anything, and advice on the internet at large is all over the map.
I understand that a power amp is not *technically* a power amp if it has volume control (at which point it's an "integrated amp"), but where is that volume control in the chain, exactly?
In my setup, for example, my amp has a volume control. The (mediocre) preamp in my BT receiver *also* has volume control. (By way of changing the BT volume, which I *assume* either raises/lowers the gain of the preamp, or more likely, changes the shape of the digital signal before it's amplified.)
So which do I use for actual volume control? (In respect to quality.) Do I keep the amp volume up at whatever maximum level I'd ever want, then control the volume with the Bluetooth controls? Or do I keep the Bluetooth at/near maximum and adjust the listening level with the amp volume knob?
In short:
- What is the specific role of the volume knob in a simple integrated amp such as mine?
- Is it better to attenuate the input signal digitally (before preamp) or after/analog?
And I guess, fundamentally, my question is:
- Is amplification fixed/continuous and we're just attenuating the input signal? Or does it attenuate the output power? (I guess that wouldn't make sense, would it? Be very hot and wasteful.)
(I may have answered my own last question, just thinking through the practicality of it, but still confused where the best place to attenuate the signal is.)
Sorry this is so long and verbose! I guess (over) clarity is a feature of objectivism! Glad to join the community!