dual volume controls?

Yeah, it's my opinion you can listen how you want.

Rwwear, you are absolutely correct when you say that a balance control is an additional filter between the music and the listener. To put that in perspective you should do the following thought experiment. Starting at the microphone in the recording studio and ending with your ears at the listening chair, count the number of switches and knobs in the recording/playback chain. Even in the most simplified chain you're going to have at least 20 such "filters". If that's the case, then why have a problem with filer #21, particularly if it does something positive?

You are correct but that's part of the recording. When I play it back I want it to be as close to what the engineer envisioned as possible.

I see people using hot shot power cords all the time knowing full well the AC is going through hundreds of feet of wire before it reaches the power cord and then through another hundreds of feet in the transformer before it reaches the amp.

Trelga, Excuse my ignorance, but why does dual volume controls have nothing to do with dual mono design? Presumably you could have a dual Mono amp, with a single volume control at the end of the signal path, but I am not sure how you could have dual volume controls, without a dual mono design. In which case, dual mono is a prerequisit, for dual volume controls. Perhaps there is a fault in my logic somewhere.

I have just aquired on Dem, an Emille K40L, integrated, which does have dual controls. I do'nt find it a bind at all to balance the 2 sides and it does allow for assymetry in the room, without adding a further step in the signal path, which a balance control represents.