Roughly about as shown in the table you got from Gemini. As I posted before, the only thing I said was wrong was about the 1.2 V at volume 82.5, it should be 2 V as per Amir’s measurements. Gemini’s calculations is correct.
ASR uses 2V as a nominal 0dBFS as that's more or less the de facto reference level for HiFi - because HiFi doesn't have a standardised reference level. More often than not they end up pretty close to that level, though we find a few capable of a bit more or less. AV kit is different - they have defined standard levels (although there are some minor differences between the standards they generally follow). There are also cases where manufacturers decide it's worth exceeding the relevant standards - like accepting HiFi DACs might produce higher output levels, so making sure your analog inputs can handle that level as well as the lower AV standard levels.
Of course, also, the 2 V at volume 82.5, 0dBFS input is what Amir found for the D+M AVP/AVRs, other brands could well be different.
Because in your current configuration, the 'Cinema 70s -> Speakers' chain has 8dB more gain than the 'Cinema 70s Pre out -> 3e Audio A5 -> Speakers' chain.
The signal gain of your chain is made up of DAC gain (how much Line voltage your DAC puts out for a given input signal) and Amp gain (how much your Amp amplifies the Line signal).
If you go with rca into the A5 and set it to high gain (26dB) the input sensitivity of the A5 is 1.75V. That’s pretty high. Even if you set the MV at 80/80 (and get blown out of your room), it’s not enough; look at pengs helpful table. My hearing level is max. 65 MV = only 0.267V. That’s why I have a little ADC/DAC between my Denon and my Fosi/3eaudio amps, for a hotter signal.
Yes, in fact, I also have Klipsch speakers that are efficient and the volume can even be at 50 at times... can you link me to these objects that you use to increase the voltage? (if I understood their purpose correctly)
Yes, with the gain set to high, I get a significantly lower volume with the 3e audio A5, while it should be more or less the same. In my ignorance, I thought this difference was due to the low voltage supplied by the Marantz pre-out (1.2V) compared to the sensitivity of the 3e audio A5 of 1.75V.
No, if it is then you will have the same issue with the speakers connected directly to the Marantz. Again, you should not be getting 8 dB difference, should only be 3 dB, may be +/- 0.5 dB. Double check everything, and you will find the culprit.
the a5 is 23/26; the a7 is 26/29 in both cases single-end. with xlr it’s 17dB (a5) and 20dB (a7)
Thanks, that was just a typo, I know it is 26, that's why I told him the difference should only be 3 dB vs the Marantz build in power amps, edited now.
You are not the only one, lots of people would take the 1.2 V as the maximum and worry about nothing. Reality is, the maximum is much higher, at least that is the case for D+M AVRs/AVPs, and also the fact is, in many cases even 1.0 V could be high enough. Not everyone has low gain power amps, and/or low sensitivity speakers, long seating distance, listen to close to reference level. Obviously higher voltage capability is typically preferred, wouldn't hurt anyway, even if one does not need more than 1 V.
