I use the "continuously variable loudness contour" on the CX-1000U driving a pair of MX-1000Us in the bedroom--for TV only, and then, only turning about 20% down, and then only sometimes, later at night. It allows the volume to be turned up to give the bass theatre-style gravity without the mids becoming tiresome and penetrating walls, as a courtesy to my sleeping disabled sister up the hall (set that way, even at substantial volume, no sound carries outside my door). No tonal controls otherwise. But daytime, no contour either.
In the living room, for music, I never use the contour at all for the two CX-1000Us driving four MX-1000Us, nor tone controls, using the line direct button. There, I set the volume level at the power amp for each pair of speakers each amp drives singly and that gets me the "flat", "neutral" or "transparent" tonal curve I want out of four large Magnepans and four JBL 4311s, with each pair driven by its own amp. There, I run the amps running the Magnepans about 3 o'clock, the amps running the JBLs one tick back from that at 2 o'clock, and the preamps both about 9 o'clock to 10 o'clock, with a Sansui 1000-A running a fifth pair of speakers at high noon. On it, I *do* use that "presence" button engaged and on the rare event I'm listening at lower volume, the loudness button engaged. The old Mach I's the Sansui runs seem rather tough to drive, but those buttons seem to get them right where they ought to be, bringing those 15-inch woofers to life with the horns singing.
awprint:
