Please alleviate my fears


I have a Cambridge Audio Azur 840A v2 integrated driving a pair of Usher Dancer Mini 1 speakers. It sounds great, but I have concerns (hopefully unfounded). When the volume is all the way down, the digital readout is 95. This number decreases as the volume increases. I have to turn the volume control all the way from 95 to 50 before I hear anything from the speakers. At that point the music gets substantially louder quickly. When the readout reaches 8 the system is playing pretty close to concert levels (in fact, as loud as I've ever played it). But, it appears that I'm having to turn the amp up 85 to 90% of the way to achieve this volume (way more than my old Yamaha amp). Is this amp approaching it's clipping point (full power)? Is the visual representation showing the actual percentage of power this amp can produce? Or, is there headroom left between the 8 mark and 0? It has never sounded distressed. Thanks in advance for your shared knowledge and insight.
danoroo
Also, it states that you can change the volume display from decibels (-95 to 0dB) to arbitrary volume units (0 to 96) units.
Read page 11 of the manual here. There are setting to change the inputs level. Hopefully this will solve your problem.
Stated power means little, I'll bet 120 Yamaha amps will drive just about anything .
Dano -

agreed as above, there is something amiss w/ the amps volume potientiometer.
Have you tried playing a different source such as a CD to confirm this problem? If a CDP has the same volume range then the amp is the culprit.
I owned a Cambridge 840, can't recall whether it was v1 or v2, but definitely don't remember having to turn it up like you're doing.
Sounds to me as if you have a volume setting on your pc set too low. I'd check all of those settings.
@ Martykl

Thank you sir. I suspected that was the case. To determine it's limits I guess I'll just turn the amp up until it starts to distort. That will tell me what I want to know.
The numbers mean virtually nothing. From what I was taught, these are a logarithmic function of resistance to full volume. The smaller the negative number, the less the amplifier is "holding back" from its full volume. If it drives your speakers without distorting then just learn to ignore the volume numbers.
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There are a lot of volume pots/readouts that work that way - a long span of inaudible, highly attenuated output and a digital indication of how far down the listening level is from unity gain. It doesn't necessarily mean anything at all regarding available headroom.

Marty
@ Willland

My apologies Willland. The display does in fact say -95 etc. I just forgot to add the minus sign. I'm also thinking that maybe the reason why there is so much dead space before there is sound is because the input signal from the DacMagic is weak.
Maybe the digital display should read -95, -65, -50, -8, etc. Maybe the LCD screen where the - or + should be is burned out.

My NAD T175HD pre/pro does not really get audible until around -50 on the display and I am using 200w Acurus amps in a 5.3 channel configuration. From -40 to -20 the volume really increases rapidly.

On the other hand, my older Luxman R-117 receiver jumps very quickly with a small turn of the knob with speakers of the same sensitivity.

Your "issue" could just be a voltage or volume gain difference between your Yamaha and your 840A.

Bill
@ Schubert

Yes. The Yamaha AS-2000 looks like an awesome piece, but it's even less powerful than the 840A. The only objection I have to the 840A is that apparently it lacks the muscle necessary to drive these speakers and maintain a level of headroom I'm comfortable with. What do you guys think of the Wyred 4 Sound STI line?
Oh yeah, the top Yamaha integrated is about that , A-2000, I think, has got some of the best reviews I've ever seen.

A LOT to be be said for sleeping well at night knowing you bought quality construction from a company that ain't going anywhere as well.
@ Zd542

My source is a PC utilizing JRiver Media Center is ASIO mode. I play exclusively flac and wav files. My DAC is a DacMagic 100.
It seems this amp is just barely adequate for listening at the volume I sometimes want. Any suggestions on a nice 200W+ integrated that pairs well with the Dancer Mini 1? I can spend about 2K.
Personally, while the CA CD players are excellent, I've had and heard of more trouble with their amps than any other brand.
There seems to be something wrong with the volume pot and/or whatever it's driving. You should have linear volume control or life simply is not worth living.