Jeff

The volume knob sounds like it functions very similarly to the 1050 -- I also had a Yamaha with a motorized volume control, and I've actually found that I prefer the 1050's knob (which just acts as "up" and "down" buttons combined into a wheel). For one thing, the 1050/950 approach gives better control than the Yamaha's motorized dial did (using the remote on the Yamaha, a brief tap of the button would cause the motor to crank briefly, moving the dial 10 degrees or so -- which was often more of an increase or decrease than I wanted).

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Gonk

Per Jeff, the volume knob does not physically ‘move’ with the remote? In addition spinning the volume knob while power is off does not change volume setting?
This appears bizarre to me, how do you stop from blowing the room out of the water on power up?
I assume my old JVC has a motorized volume, (although I’ve never heard the motor). The knob rotates with remote send, extremely smoothly in any increment needed.

I rarely physically move my volume. Yet a quick visual check is part of my power up preflight routine. Across the room, I can see the ‘mark’ in lighted conditions, and when the unit is powered, in darkened conditions, there is a tiny display dot that shows me exactly where I lay.
On a few occasions, the knob has visually looked dangerously high for startup, I go over and physically turn it down, (with power off), realizing that my volume down, through the remote, will not rotate counterclockwise fast enough on powerup, before the processing delay hits the speakers.

So on the 1050/950 the knob if moved with power off, and/or by the remote, leaves you with no line of sight clues as to volume level setting!

How do you who live without this keep from giving yourself, the neighbors, and the pets a dangerously riveting wake up call?
This one doesn’t seem at all simpatico with my normal system routines.

Lena,

Does your TV have a volume knob? If not, then how do you keep it from coming on too loudly on power up?

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Sanjay

I haven't had any trouble with that. Think of it as not having a volume knob at all, just "up" and "down" buttons. Nobody can walk by and turn it all the way up while it's off. It stays at whatever volume it was when you turned it off, so unless you had it really cranked up when you shut it off you don't get blasted when you turn it back on (it doesn't hurt that nearly all of my sources are quiet when first turned on -- CD, VCR, and DVD are quiet until I hit "play" or at least until a menu loads, and the cable box defaults to channel 1, which is a silent and static display).

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Gonk

Don’t mean to sound nitpicky, as was well proven on the other forum, it is almost hilarious how one factor
“gets someone’s goat”, that another operator finds a complete non-issue. There are some other larger “tweak” limitations, that don’t bother me a bit.

Sanjay, Yes it does, but never does the TV volume level get placed where simply powering up would make you jump out your skin. When my guys were 3 & 5 they could occasionally fool me like that, but being teenagers when they crank it, its always through the receiver now.

Gonk, I think you & I have the same remote and I love my macros!
I have 3 main choices, and we live by them, (the coming and going crowd I’ve trained to 3 buttons, since my remote is a bunch of incomprehensible paths to them.) If I leave even one step out for them on the 3 mains, (such as engage play) they tend to start turning my system upside down punching any ole button on screen.
1) Powers up Satellite & TV, with audio thru TV, (we never push the volume on that). If its something good, I add the reciever through the separates section.
2) (This is a problem) is set to power up DVD. Correct Video Feed, Audio thru receiver, DVD & Play all at once. Usually the DVD just defaults to the menu screen which can have a quite loud audio loop playing right away.
3) Video off, powers up the CD and the receiver, with play engaged.

The problem for me is I have learned & so have the kids, on 2 & 3 to do that quick ‘visual’ to the receiver knob if you don’t want a nasty surprise. If I cant ‘see’ it, in countless scenarios I can ‘hear” us getting burned.
I could be safe, and step over the BIG dog whose ‘spot’ is always right in front of these controls, hit power and immediately spin the knob down, (since its not engaged with power off). And then go back across the room and back to my macros.
When its gonna hurt, Is watching ‘The Sixth Sense” basically a dialogue movie, and having volume up, Pop around the corner to answer a call/knock; hit mute, and come around the corner and engage, during the staircase birthday party screaming scene etc. We have all trained to “visual” before hitting macros on, mute, etc.

And yes Sanjay, (I can see you thinking) , I do have to step over the dog to load the DVD’s, CD’s any way. But I usually have 2 CD’s loaded that stay put for days and weeks at a time, As I breeze around I’ll engage them if alone, at any given time day & evening, with the remote.

Just a major speed bump for me individually, prob. not for anyone else.

Very good. That's exactly what I was thinking! (I'm that predictable? Doh!)

The 'having to step over the dog anyway' thing illustrates the point I was getting at originally; i.e., the 950's volume control behaves like something you already deal with anyway. If you do end up getting the 950 you'll have to use the volume control the way you do on the TV. I'm sure you'll figure out something. It might be a minor problem, but it shouldn't be a deal breaker.

BTW, before your post I hadn't given the volume interface a second thought because it operates exactly like what I've been used to (on pre/pros I've had) over the last 6 years.

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Sanjay

I, too, prefer the motorized kind, for several reasons, mostly because I think they're easier to use. I know, I know, how can a volume knob be hard to use? Well, it just seems more intuitive that every possible volume should have a unique position on the knob. I know they don't last as long, most of them being potentiometers (sp?) but there's just a coolness there that the fake knobs don't have. In my mind, rather than doing the Outlaw kind of knob, you'd do just as well to put two buttons on there. Same effect.

This doesn't bother me as much now that I've become a couch potato and accustomed to using the remote for all volume changes. And it's most certainly not a reason to buy something else over the 950.

BTW, every receiver I've used in the past 20 years had this kind of knob. Unmotorized for some of them, of course, but they lacked a remote of any kind.

Sanjay, …aren’t men always!………

eeeek, I’m ducking, I’m running (I really didn’t mean it, giggle)

For you, I will cover up my volume and see what’s/what. And Matthew, -“just a coolness there”. That why I’m kicking and screaming (or just being ‘whiny’, if you prefer). I took SO MUCH flax around here when I came in with my remote a year ago. (Too complicated, never work, HOW much did you pay for that, da/da/da). I’m the only one who can program it; they all love it now and treat it with great reverence. And for the first time in years, I have one control, that does EVERYTHING, regardless of brand or age. And it was a cool factor to see that big ole knob scrolling up and down all by itself, and with a visual stop past a certain level that clearly tells me: - Warning, if you attempt to power up now you WILL break the sound barrier! (And I try really hard to step over the dog, 50 times a day instead of 100)

I don't have a motorized volume control on my receiver (I won't tell you what it is because I am embarrased), and I have never had an issue with it for a couple reasons. First of all, I never leave it cranked when I power down. Secondly, when I power down my receiver, I also power everything else down. Therefore, when I power back up, there is nothing running, no CD's, DVD's, LD's, or anything. I guess that if I left it on the radio (which I never listen to because there is nothing good on), I could run into an issue. Again, though, I think that the first point is good enough.

Funny! Now get you head out of Cosmo and back into Guide to Home Theater (where it belongs).

For moi? How nice. All kidding aside though, do you really rely on visual confirmation of the volume knob enough that you would seriously reconsider getting the the 950? I ask because there isn't much (if any) alternative at the 950's price point; at least not in pre/pros.

Better than trying really hard to step ON the dog even once a day.

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Sanjay