yeah i agree-- having your primary volume control (computer volume) maxed out and then tweaking the final output on monitors, or through a soundcard or mixer definitely gives the best sound...at least as far as I can detect. one of my roommates has the opposite opinion; that it's best to have primary volume at ~50% or lower, then crank up the amp, monitors, whatever, because doing so lets the speakers work better as they are capable of handling more power/producing higher volumes than when the final out is lower.
it makes sense in a way, but i dunno. I usually have my primary between 75 - 100%, which then runs to a preamp/mixer, then to my stereo receiver, as I don't have powered monitors.
so i guess my volume and amplification setup goes like this:
primary (100%) -> mixer (defeat) - > stereo amp (~25%)
---------- Post added at 03:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:10 PM ----------
also i realize it might sound redundant for me to have a mixer in the middle there, but my setup is weird and a bit unconventional