[Bob_McBob]

I received my PA2 on Monday, but my ram din only just showed up, so I hadn't tried it out with the iPod line-out yet. I got it all set up with my er6is, and the audio quality is definitely improved. However, as I turn up the volume from the lowest setting, the balance seems to shift from ear to ear. At the setting my iPod sounds best on, the balance is to the left. If I turn it up a little more, it correct itself, but is too loud for comfort.

I suppose it could be my mind playing tricks on me, but I noticed it as soon as I turned on the amp. Is this a normal amp issue, or what?

 

[Bob_McBob]

I should note that even with my library replaygained down to 89dB, I can still only use around 5-10% of the range of the volume knob before the sound becomes unbearably loud. The issue I'm talking about is literally at the bottom end of this range. Also, the balance is never 100% to one side, it just seems quite biased.

 

[gratefulshrink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob_McBob I received my PA2 on Monday, but my ram din only just showed up, so I hadn't tried it out with the iPod line-out yet. I got it all set up with my er6is, and the audio quality is definitely improved. However, as I turn up the volume from the lowest setting, the balance seems to shift from ear to ear. At the setting my iPod sounds best on, the balance is to the left. If I turn it up a little more, it correct itself, but is too loud for comfort. I suppose it could be my mind playing tricks on me, but I noticed it as soon as I turned on the amp. Is this a normal amp issue, or what?

Thsi doesn't sound right to me. The simplest thing would be to test your PAV2 with another set of phones. IF you still have a balance issue, I would e-mail Gary right away to trouble shoot.

 

[Bob_McBob]

I do hear the same thing with other headphones. I think part of the problem is simply the loudness of the signal my iPod/ram din outputs. I can hear an audible signal with the volume at minimum, and the useable range on the PA2's volume knob is tiny. I did a bit of searching and found an old thread on the PA2. There's an interesting quote...
Quote:

Originally Posted by sumone I can't use my PA2 to attenuate; anything less than 6'o clock, and the left side is louder than the right & the right side is staticy.

...followed by a suggestion to return it for repair, and possibly have the gain changed. Also:
Quote:

Originally Posted by jordanr Speaking of volumes, the PA2 uses a rather cheap volume adjusting mechanism (god knows what it's really called). The result is an uneven L-R channel reproduction at various volume levels (mostly on the lower end).

I'll definitely e-mail Gary and see what he has to say, but I was just wondering if anyone else had the issue (obviously a couple have).

 

[fatp3nguin]

I've gotten the impression from these parts that cheap pots (volume knobs) tend to have channel balance problems at extreme ends of the vol range. I'm not sure if there's too much Gary can do about the pot itself.

Gain tweaking might let you use more of the middle volume range. I don't think there's much that can be done besides that.

 

[Bob_McBob]

I've e-mailed Gary about it, so I'll wait and see what he has to say. The most surprising thing for me is how loud the iPod/ram din combination is. It's easily at the same level as setting the iPod headphone output to 100%. I'm really pleased with the PA2, so I hope Gary will come through in some way that allows me to use it with the ram din.

 

[Bob_McBob]

Well, he offered to adjust the gain to anything I want for free, so I'll probably go that route. I guess it's worth waiting for my MS-1s to arrive before I decide on a specific level.