Stax SR-009 BLK (80th anniversary) / SRM 727 II / SMSL SU-9 - Volume setting

[Deleted member 4708]

For awhile I was looking to replace my speakers - and I worn myself out without being able to decide which ones I want. However, I remembered I always wanted the Stax SR-009 BLK so I bought them.
Just received them and now I am listening to the new setup.
I noticed the volume on the Stax amp (727II) is 2 out of 10 and it seems loud enough for me (actually kind of loud). The volume on the SMSL SU-9 is 99 (max) and set so by using "Volume Fixed".
Question:
What produces a cleaner signal: lower DAC setting for volume and higher on the Amp or reverse?

 

[Jimmy]

Digital attenuation may carry a certain amount of bit loss, but I don't think it should be noticeable at all, and less with a 32bit DAC. Anyway, probably the best setup would be to use the DAC in fixed output mode (not preamp) and control the volume in the analog domain.