The "amplifier stage" is your amp, preamp, and source put together. The more gain your preamp contributes, the less your amp does for the same volume level. So if you turn the gain up on your preamp, the amps won't clip till further up the volume level. It is additive.
The source gain works the same way but adds a twist. If you take CD for instance, you get 2V to start with (roughly) but then very often your preamp won't output that much for your chosen volume level! Many times, a preamp will only attenuate the signal at the volume control and the gain stage won't contribute to anything. Hence the reason passive preamps exist.
This is assuming the volume stage is at the input. When this is the case, you need to have your preamp's volume control work in its "sweet spot." For your preamp, the sweet spot is at the top of its potentiometer (when it's nearly out of the circuit). This is the typical sweet spot location whether you are in the digital or analog domain and is why your instructions say to use low gain and high volume to get the best performance.
Arthur
The source gain works the same way but adds a twist. If you take CD for instance, you get 2V to start with (roughly) but then very often your preamp won't output that much for your chosen volume level! Many times, a preamp will only attenuate the signal at the volume control and the gain stage won't contribute to anything. Hence the reason passive preamps exist.
This is assuming the volume stage is at the input. When this is the case, you need to have your preamp's volume control work in its "sweet spot." For your preamp, the sweet spot is at the top of its potentiometer (when it's nearly out of the circuit). This is the typical sweet spot location whether you are in the digital or analog domain and is why your instructions say to use low gain and high volume to get the best performance.
Arthur
