Question - Volume vs. Media

stretchl
stretchl Posts: 1,334
edited September 2012 in 2 Channel Audio
Should there be a difference in the effective volume of sound that originates with different media?

For instance - To get the same speaker volume, I have to turn the volume knob on my pre-amp significantly higher when the source is vinyl than I do when the source is a digital file streamed though my SBTouch.

Thanks.
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Post edited by stretchl on

Comments

  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
    edited September 2012
    Yes this seems to be normal with different media, and it is also the case even with digital media. I find that I have to turn up the volume on some of my older cd's but when I put in a newer cd I then have to scramble to turn the volume down. Basically it all comes down to how it was orignally mastered.
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  • stretchl
    stretchl Posts: 1,334
    edited September 2012
    Thanks, cfrizz.
    “Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'
    - Isaac Asimov

    Hi-Fi
    Apple Lossless --> Squeezebox Touch --> Joule Electra LA-100 Mark iii --> Odyssey Khartargo Mono Plus --> LSiM-705's
    Cabling by Groneberg
    Visuals
    https://media.illinois.edu/journalism/ledford-charles-stretch
    bit.ly/stretchonphotojournalism
    http://Vimeo.com/channels/stretchphoto
  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited September 2012
    cfrizz wrote: »
    ...I have to turn up the volume on some of my older cd's but when I put in a newer cd I then have to scramble to turn the volume down. Basically it all comes down to how it was orignally mastered.

    On a lot of my stuff, I find that the "quieter" cd's, that I have to turn up, sound better. Like The Cars; Shake it Up, for instance.
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  • stretchl
    stretchl Posts: 1,334
    edited September 2012
    Interesting.

    I still think vinyl sounds better, minus the cracks and pops, and that's what I have to turn up.
    “Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'
    - Isaac Asimov

    Hi-Fi
    Apple Lossless --> Squeezebox Touch --> Joule Electra LA-100 Mark iii --> Odyssey Khartargo Mono Plus --> LSiM-705's
    Cabling by Groneberg
    Visuals
    https://media.illinois.edu/journalism/ledford-charles-stretch
    bit.ly/stretchonphotojournalism
    http://Vimeo.com/channels/stretchphoto
  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,965
    edited September 2012
    Aside from differences in recorded material, each piece of gear has different impedence, or mismatched in a way, that accounts for different volume levels. You need more/less gain to get the same volume level between gear because of it.
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  • stretchl
    stretchl Posts: 1,334
    edited September 2012
    Just came across this insert to a MFSL version of Quadrophenia. Seems to answer my question -

    DynamicRange.jpg
    “Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'
    - Isaac Asimov

    Hi-Fi
    Apple Lossless --> Squeezebox Touch --> Joule Electra LA-100 Mark iii --> Odyssey Khartargo Mono Plus --> LSiM-705's
    Cabling by Groneberg
    Visuals
    https://media.illinois.edu/journalism/ledford-charles-stretch
    bit.ly/stretchonphotojournalism
    http://Vimeo.com/channels/stretchphoto
  • brgman
    brgman Posts: 2,859
    edited September 2012
    stretchl wrote: »
    Interesting.

    I still think vinyl sounds better, minus the cracks and pops, and that's what I have to turn up.


    what phono pre do you use? that can play a huge part of vinyl needing more on the volume "button"
    any media affects this for me.i have many going thru the SB that vary in how the original recording was done.some need to be at 4 and some at 6.
    it's when you need 11 that it becomes an issue.
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  • newrival
    newrival Posts: 2,017
    edited September 2012
    As Tony stated impedance can be a cause. Also, if I'm not mistaken, Squeezeboxes utilize quite a bit of gain wide open. Phono pres can be all over the map on gain, but I would bet they are quite a bit lower than a SB.
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