Thanks everyone for the replies and thoughts...
cat,
I was hardly using much of the dial at all, in fact, the only source I was using was my turntable with ortofon 2m black. Phono preamp set at 45db of gain, and then dialed back to 42db of gain. With that, it didn't take much of a clockwise turn at all to get loud. For example, the vol dial marker starts "off" at approximate "7 o'clock" and by "9" it was loud... and yes, the PL 400 preamp only has 10db of gain.
tuberist,
I'm glad you are not experiencing this, but I did exactly as you said...just a very light tap to move the vol up/down. However, it was not a smooth increase/decrease, it was a considerable jump/change in volume. As I said, I could get it more precise by manually adjusting, but then that defeats the purpose of the remote--at least for me. And I totally agree... The build and beauty (to me) of this preamp is really excellent and I had wanted a PL for several years now. I really wanted to love this amp, and I tried. The initial listening was impressive especially how it tightened up the bass, but in the end I couldn't get past the annoyance of the volume control for me. So I'm not slamming PL at all, it just didn't work for me.
Maybe it was just my modest system and the lack of synergy between components? My phono stage is the Gold Note PH-10 with external PSU-10 unit. TT is rega rp6 with upgraded delrin platter and groovemaster subplatter with the above mentioned ortofon. Cables are balanced Morrow MA4. Power amp is a humble emotiva xpa-5 gen 2, also with balanced interconnects.