Calling all hi-fi geeks
Discussion
I have a problem with a hifi setup and I can't believe I'm the only person who's ever had this problem...
I have a good 2-channel amp for listening to music and a decent AV amp for DVDs (the music amp plays 2-channel music much better than the AV amp). Problem is, I only have one set of front speakers (and don't really fancy littering the room with another set).
What are the safe ways of doing this?
I have had a crappy switch between the amps, which will not work any more. I don't want to risk wiring both amps direct to the speakers. I'm also keen to avoid having to put one amp's pre-outs through the other, so that I don't have the problem of trying to balance the volumes.
Can anyone recommend a switch (esp. a remote control one) or a better method?
I'd really appreciate any advice.
I have a good 2-channel amp for listening to music and a decent AV amp for DVDs (the music amp plays 2-channel music much better than the AV amp). Problem is, I only have one set of front speakers (and don't really fancy littering the room with another set).
What are the safe ways of doing this?
I have had a crappy switch between the amps, which will not work any more. I don't want to risk wiring both amps direct to the speakers. I'm also keen to avoid having to put one amp's pre-outs through the other, so that I don't have the problem of trying to balance the volumes.
Can anyone recommend a switch (esp. a remote control one) or a better method?
I'd really appreciate any advice.
Ok, this may be a really silly suggestion but...
Would a speaker selector unit work if wired in reverse?
Rather than have one amp going in and two sets of speakers going out, you have two amps going in and one set of speakers going out.
If this would work the only problem that i could see is that you would have to be careful to make sure that both buttons were never pressed at the same time.
Would a speaker selector unit work if wired in reverse?
Rather than have one amp going in and two sets of speakers going out, you have two amps going in and one set of speakers going out.
If this would work the only problem that i could see is that you would have to be careful to make sure that both buttons were never pressed at the same time.
I would agree with ginge
You can set the AV outputs to vary with av volume on a decent AV amp. That way once you've balanced the sound once you just have to set the music amp to 5.4 or whatever everytime you bung on a DVD
>> that's the best solution I've found so far, from exactly the same problem, so I'd be interested to see how you get on
>> Edited by Incorrigible on Wednesday 23 February 17:28
You can set the AV outputs to vary with av volume on a decent AV amp. That way once you've balanced the sound once you just have to set the music amp to 5.4 or whatever everytime you bung on a DVD
>> that's the best solution I've found so far, from exactly the same problem, so I'd be interested to see how you get on
>> Edited by Incorrigible on Wednesday 23 February 17:28
I use a Yamaha ?800 processor which is just a 3 channel amp with a full processor. but if you have pre-outs they'll work just fine. don't plug speakers into the processor, just put the front channel pre-outs to your 2 channel amp.
you'll have to mark the amp so you get the right volume each time. My Arcam 8R has a neat wee button on the back which turns off the volume control on my AV input, so I always get the right volume when I use the processor. - clear as mud, I'm sure.
If you don't have pre-outs - I reckon the speaker switch is the best Idea. just make sure it's a simple mechanical switch with no electronics in it and wire it up 2 amps to one pair of speakers. Most modern amps won't come to much harm if you run them without speakers plugged in.
you'll have to mark the amp so you get the right volume each time. My Arcam 8R has a neat wee button on the back which turns off the volume control on my AV input, so I always get the right volume when I use the processor. - clear as mud, I'm sure.
If you don't have pre-outs - I reckon the speaker switch is the best Idea. just make sure it's a simple mechanical switch with no electronics in it and wire it up 2 amps to one pair of speakers. Most modern amps won't come to much harm if you run them without speakers plugged in.
Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff