[mantis]

I have an Odyssey amp & Tempest pre & its the best I have ever owned. What setting do other Tempest owners listen at (x o"clock?), for maximum distortion free sound?

[Haoleb]

There is really no right answer to this question since its not like at one position you get more distortion than in another, and its entirely dependent on the level your source is putting out and how much power you need to say what position works best for you.

In basic terms there is no "best position", You could say that the higher the better because that means less signal you are throwing away from the source but we know that is not realistic because it would be too loud.

Just enjoy the music and dont worry if you have your volume knob set at the right position for the cleanest sound 

[djbnh]

There is really no right answer to this question since its not like at one position you get more distortion than in another, and its entirely dependent on the level your source is putting out and how much power you need to say what position works best for you.

In basic terms there is no "best position", You could say that the higher the better because that means less signal you are throwing away from the source but we know that is not realistic because it would be too loud.

Just enjoy the music and dont worry if you have your volume knob set at the right position for the cleanest sound 

I agree. However, when I moved to high efficiency speakers I had way too much gain using Odyssey Extreme Monos and the Tempest. I could only move the Tempest's knob up to 9:30 or so - I think you want more range on a volume knob than that. So, what you've got in your system can affect what your volume range is.

[mantis]

Thanks for the answers. Does anyone have the newer ALPS volume controls or the original Tempest contols & what's the difference?

[Haoleb]

Not sure what different pots Klaus uses in the tempest. I have an "older" Maybe 2004 ish? tempest with the remote option and its just a standard alps motorized pot.

[teetee]

Thanks for the answers. Does anyone have the newer ALPS volume controls or the original Tempest contols & what's the difference?

Not sure, I like to know too.
I have Tempest and dual mono, for normal listening I never go pass 11:30
Speaker is 88 db

[stereo5]

That is perfectly normal.

[mantis]

I'm working on this now with Mike & he's being most helpful. I'll let you know what happens.

[pfradale]

I've very efficient speakers (~112dB/W/m) and cannot go above 9:30, but also live in Japan where neighboring houses are near.   I'd asked Claus about having stepped attenuators used instead of pots back when I had the Tempest/Mono Extremes built in 2004 but he declined at that time.  Whether he'd be open to it now I do not know.  I've been toying with the idea of trading in my current rig for a custom Kismet solution...

[cheap-Jack]

Hi.

There is really no right answer to this.In basic terms, Just enjoy the music and dont worry if you have your volume knob set at the right position for the cleanest sound.

I agree. I could only move the Tempest's knob up to 9:30 or so ..

Agreed - volume knob setting depends on the GAIN of the amp. LESS gain   HIGER volume knob setting.

But to get the best sound & performance of the music, , higher volume setting the BETTER, IME. So volume knob set at 2:00 o'clock sounds much much better than at 9:00 o'clock.

Why? Too much gain of the preamp will overload the preamp & mess up the sound. The music sounds like compressed particularly at high level dynamics.
Plus setting the volume too low, say 9:00 o'clock, the music signal has to go thru too much series resistance inside the volume control. This will affect the music in case it was a lousy volume pot.

So many many get the wrong idea that volume knob setting lower, the music will be better. They just don't understand the function of a volume control - to reduce the volume in order NOT to overload the amp & to blow the loudspeakers. 

Given the gain of amp not too HIGH, less volume reduction is needed & less restriction will be applied to the music signals, better will the music will sound & better performance will be perceived byour ears. This is my years of listening experience high vs low volume knob setting at the SAME SPLs.

When the volume knob is set too low, it only shows the gain of the amp is too high. Not a good sign at all, musically.

FYI, I purposedly design/built a tube phonostage+passive linestage of LOWEST gain possible (ALL brandname phono-preamps get way too much gain for best musc effect, IME). For LP playing, the volume setting is around 1:00 o'clock for pop/rock musics & around 3:00-4:00 o'clock for clasical music.

Read my lips, my friends. The music sounds so open so dynamic so airy, proving the iea of lower gain better music is right. It puts many many  brandname phono-preamps, regardless of price, to shame, musically.

c-J