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Good Inline Volume Control?

X

XacTactX

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Dec 13, 2010
Messages
4,137
It's pretty well known that if you set the digital volume to less than 100% you might not be getting 16 bits of resolution, and you might have less dynamic range. I'm about to receive a sound card in the mail, so I was looking up inline volume controls, and I found the Koss VC20, but then I read the reviews and some reviewers said that it would have an uneven effect on the final output sound, and it would lower the the highs relative to the other frequencies. This is a problem, and it might not be exclusive to the VC20.

So what inline volume control do you guys use? I'm not looking for anything extravagant, just something that will do the job right. Thank you. :)
 
I use a TC Electronic Level Pilot with my monitors. Its motion is very smooth, and it does not appear to color the sound.

The Pilot, however, is XLR only, and it is not cheap ($80).

The SM Pro Audio Nano Patch + is also a very good unit, and the new ones have unbalanced I/O. At $60, it is cheaper than the Pilot, but it is still more than you may be looking for.

What sound card do you have in the mail? Do you use headphones or speakers?

You may not need an inline volume control at all. (I did not need one myself as my DAC has lossless attenuation, but I wanted a quick and tactile way to change the volume of my monitors rather than reaching for the DAC.)
 
Thank you for the quick response. Yes, $60 to $80 is too rich for my blood, I was thinking along the lines of $10. (Cheapass... I know :D)

This is what I'm getting: X-Fi XtremeAudio (going to add LM4562 op-amp and Nichicon KG 2200 uF capacitor)
Headphones: Audio-Technica AD500 (66 ohms impedance)
 
Honestly, I would not bother with one at that price.

Inline volume controls generally are only made for three market segments: pro audio monitoring, enthusiast audio, and portable audio. Pro audio monitoring and enthusiast audio solutions come with price tags well above what you want to spend. This leaves portable audio solutions.

Unfortunately, the portable audio solutions, such as the one you linked, are more about convenience than sound.

You are likely better off without one in your situation.
 
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