B&w 685s seem quiet when at full power

[otakii901]

Need some advice guys, currently running a pair of 685s and an arcam a85. Also the input is an aux connected to my phone. (investing in a DAC soon) but the problem I'm facing is that the speakers just seem too quiet for max output.

Balance, bass, treble etc are set to neutral and the internal eq on my phone is turned off however when I turn the volume up max on my phone and almost to the max on the amp it just seems so quieter than what I belive it could be.
The thing that makes me think something is wrong is that when the volume is 1/4 on both the amp and phone the speakers are barely audible. I don't know if the speakers need to be run In a bit more or because the amp only is 85w for 2 channels?

Any advice guys would be appreciated

 

[paulkebab]

another source? The output on your phone may be the issue.

 

[stevee1966]

I've connected mp3 players (ipod and Fiio) to an amp before and always need to turn the volume far higher than from a source such as cd player, dvd player etc, so it may not be an issue with the speakers.

 

[Vladimir]

Your phone is just not loud enough to output full 2Vrms like a CDP can.

 

[jiggyjoe]

Push the select button 4 times, "customise settings" then push volume up to get "input trims" then set input trim to +8.

 

[hybridauth_Facebook_100004211376004]

I've had arcam a85 driving a pair of 685's and it definitely isn't a problem.as stated you can set the input trims on the amp but I think the phones own output is the problem and an external dac is the cure for the issue.

 

[otakii901]

Push the select button 4 times,  "customise settings"  then push volume up to get "input trims"  then set input trim to +8.

Will definately try this, and yeah the phone could be the problem, will try a different input

 

[jiggyjoe]

There is nothing wrong with your phone, its just the output voltage is low. This is why you need to adjust your input trim to a higher level. On the A85 you can set each input at a different trim level to adjust the sensitivity so it matches the different output levels of other sources. eg use trim level +8 on the aux input for your phone, and use trim level 0 when using cd on the cd input.

I suggest you download the manual for the A85, you can customise a lot of settings for it.