1) I have a new Marantz 7200 A/V Receiver with psb Alpha speakers. The readout for the volume control goes from -75dB to +15dB. In order to get comfortable volume levels out of it I have to crank it to about -15dB!! My retailer tells me this is perfectly normal...can anyone explain this?
2) I would like to make my own cables...everything from speaker to power. Any suggestions on where to buy raw materials?
3) Love this fourm, you guys really know your stuff!!!
Thanks,
Jeff

Jeff, to answer your first question, let me ask: What's wrong with having to crank the volume knob that far? Unless you can't get it as loud as you'll ever want it, it sounds like it's exactly where it should be. Max useable loudness should fall right around the 0db mark.

I have a total of 2200 cont. watts in my system, and I can just hit 0db with some program material, but I usually have it between -10 and -20. Believe me, I can't imagine it being louder than that.

As for making your own cables, once again, why? (Don't take that wrong; I'm a confirmed do-it-myselfer.) Except for speaker wires, I use pre-made cables. Sure, I could buy a spool of shielded cable and a bag of RCA plugs, but the time, and possibly even the cost, would not be worth it to me.

For speakerconnections, I got a spool of decent grade 12ga. wire, and then tinned (soldered), bent hooks, and flattened the ends.

Some people here recommend against tinning, as it makes the wire stiffer, but I believe that the solder flowing into the insulation strengthens the ends against breaking and fraying, and flattening the hook increases the surface contact area.

We love you, too. Keep the compliments coming! : - )

Larry
www.fineelectricco.com



This message was edited by Larry Fine on 03/01/02 02:49.42.

Larry's right, but I should add that when I went from my Sony DB930 to my Onkyo, I thought there was something wrong with the volume, because I had to turn it WAY up, compared to the Sony. But as I soon discovered, the volume thing is all relative. My Sony displayed volume; my Onkyo displays gain. So your dB level sounds just about right. ... Mike

Actually a volume control displays the amount of attenuation of the signal, not gain nor 'volume' whatever that is.

But yeah, if your not a good with an iron, I would just buy some decent cables.

As others have said, the reading on the dial is almost irrelevant. Every receiver is different. My Yamaha goes from -60 to 0. "Normal" volume for me is about -25 or -30, "very loud" is about -15. My ears bleed at -8.

Also the scale is not linear on many systems (mine included). For example. mine has a scale of 60. If it was linear -10 would only be 10/60ths (1/6)louder than -20. It's not. If I remember correctly from my last SL meter check it's almost 25% louder.

Matt is correct. I stand corrected. I was on drugs that day... ... Mike

"Some people here recommend against tinning, as it makes the wire stiffer, but I believe that the solder flowing into the insulation strengthens the ends against breaking and fraying, and flattening the hook increases the surface contact area."

Tinning is not a good idea, for the same reason that crimped on fork, spade or ring terminals should never be soldered. The solder wicks up the cable, creating a flexable to non flexable junction, which is where the wire will break after some movement. Kind of the opposite to what you would think.
Flattening the tinned section is a good idea, but unless you can get it perfectly flat, you'll probably have less contact area then with untinned cable.

While I am more a fan of crimping than soldering, I must say this:

If your solder point breaks, you didn't do a good job of soldering. Or if the wire breaks, then you should try wire with larger strands.

Besides, I haven't moved any of my speaker wires since I hooked them up. 12 ga. wire is pretty strong, and the wire inside the insulation where the solder ends is stiff enough. How often do your connections get flexed, anyway?

Larry
www.fineelectricco.com

I guess that's my point, if your speakers never move, why do you need to solder them to make them stronger. You get a far better 'bite' and surface contact with bare wires.