Super-sensitive volume controls - remedy?


I'm getting real tired of preamps with a volume control that does everything from a faint whisper to way too loud all in the 8:00 to 10:00 position on the dial. My old Rotel RC-995 was like that, and now my new Parasound 2100; both with remote volume that becomes useless with that level of sensitivity. Of course, I noticed a big change when I switched from Maggie MG12's to Tekton Lore Reference, even with my old Luxman CX-100.

My question is not about searching for preamps that don't do that, but whether there is a transparent method of attenuation, either externally or internally, that would allow a more gradual and precise volume adjustment.
minkwelder

Showing 2 responses by swampwalker

The Rothwell attenuators work well but if you have that problem consistently you might consider that you've got too much overall gain in your system and look for an amp or a pre-amp w less gain. Also, some pre-amps have an internal jumper that allows you to reduce it's gain.
Mink- Are you running the Denon into the MM or the MC phono stage? W 1.6 mV output, the KAB calculator shows you only need 43 dB gain. The Parasound will give you 52 dB gain through the MM input and a whopping 82 dB through the MC input. So you should probably use the MM input, and even then you've got more than enough gain. I cannot find any specs for your amp for input sensitivity or gain, but your speakers are very high efficiency (98 dB/w/m), so they can be driven to very high spls w just a few watts.