Hello pastorK and everyone.
Sampling volume level on the Fantoms and the MC synths has always been a hot topic for users. The primary reason there are issues is because Roland chose to implement a 16-bit sampling system on synthesizers that use a 24-bit DAC. A 16-bit audio signal has about 65,000 possible levels at which the audio signal can be at any one time (from valley to peak). A 24-bit audio signal has about 16,700,000 possible levels at any one time (from valley to peak). As you can see, a 24-bit audio signal has a much wider potential dynamic range than a 16-bit signal (about 120 dB vs. about 90 dB respectively). Even if a 16-bit audio signal was fully "hot" at 90 dB on input, it would sound quiet when piped through a 24-bit DAC.
Roland has a number of methods for compensating for the volume differences when putting a 16-bit audio signal through a 24-bit DAC. Each sample has an associated gain value which can be increased to improve signal level whenever the sample is played. If the sample is going to be used in a patch, each Tone of the Patch has a Wave Gain parameter which can further boost the samples played by the Wave Generator for that Tone.
As for the differences between that level you hear when recording and when playing back a sample, this is likely due to the fact that after you record a sample, the Fantom-X is automatically assigning a sample gain to the sample you just recorded. The addition of a "sample gain" parameter per sample was introduced in OS 2.00 in an apparent attempt to address frequent user complaints about quiet samples. I haven't yet experienced the level difference addressed in this thread myself, but I don't use the Audio Tracks feature often. This may indeed be a result of MFX routing for recording purposes. Try recording your samples dry rather than wet and see if that makes a difference, then route the audio track through an MFX after recording.
Regards,
Nathan Sheldon
http://www.nathansheldon.com/
