Pro-Ject Debut III USB Preamp Advice Options

[Engelsstaub]

I have the turntable mentioned in the title. I suppose it's no big news that the USB-out is sometimes too loud (no gain adjustment) with some vinyl (which results in clipping,) especially nearly every double-LP I own. Much to my dismay it also happens with a few regular ones like my mint original-pressing Black Sabbath "Mob Rules." For about 70% of my LPs it's fine, though "limited" to 16-bit resolution for recording.

My questions are these:

Would it be feasible to use something like the M-Audio Firewire Solo Amazon to record my needledrops from the preamp's RCA-outs to my Macintosh? (I'm using VinylStudio and it's pretty great IME.) If so, would I be able to effectively do so at 24-bit? (I don't imagine I hear any difference, but would like to do so for editing purposes.)

Any recommendations/good advice is greatly appreciated. (I wish I had researched this TT before I bought it. I'm considering trading it in later and getting a regular Debut III or something else in their line-up for under 800 USD...that's just not going to happen anytime really soon. I'm otherwise pleased with this TT's performance, so I wouldn't mind coming up with a good workaround. I get great results with many records and the hardware/software combingation.)

Pretty new to digitizing vinyl, so please forgive my ignorance.

[AndyH-ha]

"I adjusted the volume to max out at around 92%"

"Presumably, your software has gain controls that can be used to adjust recording levels"

That you turned down the level via the on-board sound card's control panel volume control, making the recording level less than 0dB, does not mean that the audio wasn't clipping. In most cases that adjustment is in the digital domain, after the ADC, so it can't effect the input signal level, no matter where you set it. If it is indeed adjusting in the digital domain, all you are doing is losing resolution by setting it at less than maximum. No recording software can do anything about it either.

I don't know what your audio software is like, but if it allows you to zoom in to see the individual samples, you can look at the highest peaks to see if they are actual audio peaks or flat, clipped off peaks.