Help--SACD volume too low

Don't know about the Sony units, but the output of the Philips SACD 1000 is about 25% lower on SACD than what it outputs on redbook CD. As such, you'll have to increase the gain to obtain the same AVERAGE spl levels. With that in mind, i really don't think that SACD is very suitable for most folks running passive line stages.

To top the lower output of the machine off, my personal thoughts are that SACD's are being recorded at a slightly lower level with less compression being applied. This means that low volume passages are quieter and there is an increase in dynamic range. While this leads to better sonics, one must turn up the gain to actually hear all that is going on. As such, the potential for system overload is increased and the lack of "average" volume that we are used to hearing has not been maintained.

With that in mind, if your system is NOT "built like a tank" and capable of very high SPL, i would proceed with caution when initially adjusting volume levels. It is possible that you could adjust the gain for what is a quiet passage and when the dynamics kick in, you could stress the amplifier and / or speakers. Sean
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I know of someone that had problems with their Lexicon MC-12 and the tech's could not figure out what was causing it. This person was not alone with the problem that they had as i've seen others mentioning it on various HT audio sites. After going round and round with the problem and Lexicon, he finally gave up and went back to using the processor in a less than optimum configuration. He was forced to do this to get around the problem. Needless to say, he wasn't happy about spending $10K+ to get a run-around and not be able to take full advantage of what was supposed to be a "world class" product. Sean
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