Does loudness play a part in your appreciation?

@jsalerno277 

+1

I had season tickets to the symphony for over ten years, 7th row center. I agree, sound levels of 70 - 90 were most common with crescendos well over a hundred. 

I find every album has a volume level that just "sounds right" on my system. Some albums require 85-90, others no more than 75. But overall my system sounds best at an80db average with peaks at 90. That's where everything sounds real but not overwhelming. 

@komono

Peter Walker, the brains behind Quad amplifiers and electrostatic speakers, said that the volume knob should be treated like the focus control on a camera.  Use it to bring the music into focus, which I interpret to mean place yourself at the volume level intended by the recording engineer, where the balance of instruments best approaches reality.

His byline was "the closest approach to the original sound" and he targeted classical music, which has a much bigger dynamic range than most other genres.  He recognised that it was practically impossible to reproduce typical front-row sound levels, and instead described reproduced music as listening through an open window into a concert hall.

I am pretty sure most people instinctively keep turning the volume up until distortion raises its ugly head, at which point the volume is still way below the peak levels of un-amplified orchestral instruments.  I know that applies to me and I probably play far too loud to not be damaging my hearing.

Completely agree with your comments on how meaningless db 'measurements' can be without further details.

Richard, distortion is likely an issue for lots of people, especially those who use traditional dynamic speakers. That’s one reason I’ve mostly been attracted to planars, either Magnepans or, for the least 15 years, Quad 63s. I would think horns would also exhibit low distortion, but my experience with them is very limited. In any event, it seems possible that some of the folks who are listening at what seem to be low levels do so because it sounds better to them due to increased distortion at higher levels. Just a hypothesis. 

@kokomo 

I have used Quad electrostatics for about 40 years, first the 63s then the bigger 2905s.  They have a built-in volume limit, in that at signal voltages over about 40-Volts they deliberately compress the signal, ultimately presenting as a short-circuit at about 57-Volts.

I have found that newer recordings on SACD and Blu-ray tend to have ever higher peak outputs, as measured by the point at which my Krell power amp trips because the Quads have clamped!

Almost by accident, I recently bought a pair of KEF Reference 1 speakers which also try to emulate a point source of sound.  They can play far louder than the Quads!

My own hypothesis is that many people are looking for a ’smooth’ or ’warm’ sound so are attracted to the pleasant harmonic distortions of some valve equipment and seek an ’analogue’ resonant sound from digital.  I am looking for a realistic experience judged against live (non-amplified) music.  Much of the orchestral music I listen to really is discordant and edgy, as in his time was Beethoven.  (There is apparently no evidence his deafness was caused by playing too loud)