[villekille]

I'm building a portable pimeta where I can't fit the alps blue velvet pot. I've tried the small alps that Tangent sells, but I find it hard to control the volume level because my ETYMOTIC ER-6i headphones are so sensitive.

Would a digital potentiometer be a good option for a high quality amp? I've looked at some Analog Devices digital pots and they can be controlled by push buttons. Will it affect sound quality? It should be a better way to control the volume because one step means 1 dB in sound level.

 

[kipman725]

The problem is the gain is set to high not your volume controller. Digital volume controls aren't often used in DIY as they add complexity for no audio quality benefit. They are mostly used by consumer electronics to save money on a decent pot and to make things apear more up to date.

 

[villekille]

Well the gain is set at 1.5! The sensitivity of these phones is ridiculous. 108dB at 0.1V..once I accidentally plugged them to the line out of my cd-player and I'm lucky that I still hear something after that!

 

[Calroth]

You can lower the gain further. See this post. But first I'd question whether you need the amp at all. Do you hear a clear improvement in sound?