Ok I have had the 976 for about 6 months now. I had a home remodel and reinstalled my equipment a few months back. My audio volume is way off. I have to turn the volume knob way up in order to get loud audio. What have I done wrong?

I am thinking it is the HDMI cables.

Make sure you're hearing sound from all the speakers, especially the center channel if you're talking about movie sound. I wouldn't think it's the HDMI cables. If you're getting picture and sound, the cables/connections should be good.

Put it in all stereo mode and try the radio source which eliminates external connections. if the sound improves check the amp and its connections. If not check the audio settings.

I removed my XLR cables and that resolved the issue.

So, you had both XLR and RCA cables hooked up at the same time? and this lead to the low volume?

I am having a similar issue with MAX volume. Not sure if it is the source or 976 setup. The volume is lower from a DVR DirecTV table top box. Also different volumes playing cd's. There is 0 headroom using outlaw 976>7000x, 4k DirecTV and Sony X800M2 player..
Does different sources and/or formats have any effect on MAX volume?

Yes various sources can affect max volume because different components output different source signals to your 976. Make sure you are using high quality interconnects which should have very low signal loss.

Thanks X for that...the interconnects are XLR Monoprice. Still, just on the edge of my perfect volume @ max volume...
It was stated previously, switching to RCA interconnects has better volume. The manual indicates it is available to mix the connects.
If the interconnects are mixed, would there be a different volume level with each connection?

Agree that volume from different source devices are not the same, however is the media (cd-dvd-DirecTV) disregarding the specific mix?

DirecTV is the main concern. For lack of a better word DirecTV is the most "clumsy" service ever.
4K Concerts or musical presentations are the most suspect for low volume. What could cause this?

In past processor specs the XLR connectors had a 6db advantage vice the RCA connectors. I would steer away from mixing them since you want them all to be the same so the response form the volume control is consistent. If you go back into the 976 threads especially the earlier ones you will see that the low volume issue has been identified and is not a problem.