What you are hearing is totally normal. Try it with your last receiver and I guarantee it will do the same thing. For your peace of mind I just turned my 950 to +10 and got a loud hiss as well (it completely disappears around -2), but that is not the hiss problem you have read about. I used to hear hissing at -40, but that was corrected with the blue dot. Like SH says, there is no way you will ever be listening to anything at that level, and if you do, I doubt you will ever hear the hiss again, along with anything else.

Edit: I just went and turned my Rotel Preamp to full gain, and guess what, hissing.

[This message has been edited by Jed M (edited March 10, 2004).]