The Low Volume Loudness Dilemma

@trivema You are welcome. I have tried the RC / PEQ with Wiim Pro Plus several times in different listening space at home for three systems and utimately revert back to GEQ as well. Maybe to do with microphone?

@baylinor Not sure what is considered low volume.

YMMV but, for me when listening music at night, I turn the volume down to 45-50dB range which is really a tester for bass. My background (ambience) noise with AC on/off is around 30-35dB.  I need to boost which frequency (60-80hz) up by +8 / +9 dB and normalize them to bring back the articulation and balance of the low-end notes.

I own 3 Schiit EQs and all of them work brilliantly. I use a Loki in my video rig, and another for a headphone EQ running into a Schiit Vali 3 tube amp. The third is a Loki Max remote EQ in my main hifi pile...this thing is brilliant. 4 Presets, amazingly well designed EQ curves in a remote controllable ultra quiet hip design. No noise, built like no other EQ I've ever come across in decades of audio geekdom and professional musician work. Will utterly cure Fletcher Munson issues with zero negative impact on your groovy ARC amps...or any other amp. I don't use DSP anywhere as I'm too much of a snob.

bdp has it right.  Less sensitive speakers need a little more volume to reach their potential.  Wilsons Magnepans etc.

@bdp24 speaks the truth about efficiency

Speakers are calibrated at 1 watt @ 1 meter at the factory. Marketing materials are printed and distributed using this standard spec. So far, so good.

A "medium efficiency" speaker, say 85db (@ 1 watt) produces, duh, 85 decibels at 1 watt. When producing 75 db, this drops to 1/10 watt. Things are quite different inside that speaker box at those minuscule power levels. And, the sound will altered considerably.

Case in point:

We were a dealer with a wide range of speakers of various sizes and efficiencies. I decided to do a low listening level listening test with a (very) high efficiency speaker vs a medium efficiency (highly regarded) model. Somewhere north of 10 db difference in their efficiencies.

First, the medium efficiency: With volume starting at zero and slowly working our way up to just above the threshold of hearing, the sound was pretty much as we expected. Nicely rendered. But, a strong departure from its full volume levels.

Then, the (very) high efficiency speaker: Volume starting at zero, as before. Then slowly raising the volume to the same "just above the threshold of hearing" level. The music was dynamic, with some subtle characteristics of a live performance. Bandwidth was greatly improved. Yes, real bass. And, high end extension. Micro-dynamics, absent in the other example, were audible and engaging. This was simply a comparison that was no comparison.

This is not a "pitch" for high efficiency speakers, but merely a statement that low energy applied to a high efficiency driver can move things around in a more energetic (and musically satisfying) way.  At low listening levels, we're experiencing the "perfect storm" of flaws in human hearing PLUS mechanical/electrical limitations of the speaker.  

As far as enhancement devices (EQs, loudness contours, etc) are concerned, it would be nice if they could be placed in a tape or accessory loop so they can be switch in/out of the signal path at normal listening levels.

"As far as enhancement devices (EQs, loudness contours, etc) are concerned, it would be nice if they could be placed in a tape or accessory loop so they can be switch in/out of the signal path at normal listening levels."

Yes, this. The ARC SP3 preamp had a tone defeat button. Along with the usual treble and bass controls, it had a knob for something they called "Contour", aka loudness. I rarely used them but when I did I was quite happy to have them.

I'm all for the 'straight wire with gain' philosophy but in the real world, a bit of help is not a bad thing IMHO.

Happy listening.