Would this Audio Configuration work?

[Suka]

I'm new to audio so i'm learning. Please help me out.

 

I looking for some new speakers, and these caught my eye: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16886200006

However, I found out that it's not as simple as plugging in and playing like most speakers. These must be powered with a separate amp. I understand how everything will be hooked up in regards to these speakers, the amp and my PC. However, I was also planning on getting this: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00X4SSVAG/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A2HOYD7OMXREOA&psc=1. I'm not sure if that's the right product I need, so that's why i'm asking you guys. Basically what I was thinking was using this to control my headphones and my speakers. At my PC i use both headphones and speakers all the the time, and so, going to the back of the PC and removing the jack and replacing it with either Headphones or speakers is too much work, so I found this. Is it possible to use this with my headphones, speakers and PC?

 

The way I was thinking it would work would be: PC connects to the 4 way channel amp through RCA. I connect my headphones into port 1 of the amp with the 1/4" jack. Now, for the speakers, they would also connect to the amp with a 1/4" jack in the second port into the input of a standalone amp for the speakers (Something like this: https://www.amazon.ca/Lepy-LP-2020A-Class-T-Amplifier-Supply/dp/B00V9AYMZ4/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1481105107&sr=1-1&keywords=amp). That way I can control the volume of headphones and speakers all in one spot.

 

So yeah, let me know if this works, or if this is just stupid, cause really I don't know, i'm just figuring out stuff as I go. 

 

Thanks!

[Electronics Wizardy]

That should work fine. 

[Naeaes]

That's a bad plan. All your HW seems fine for the purpose but you can't connect an low-level input into a high-level output. To simplify, you can't plug the amplifier into an already amplified output. That would generate appalling noise and very likely break stuff. Instead you have to get a splitter and plug both amplifiers to the low-level output of the PC. You can add a device into the low-level line that adjusts the input volume for both amplifiers. Or if you're dead set on your  plan you can add a level converter in between the amps. 

 

I still think it's a bad idea to use a headphone amplifier (intended for devices with the impedance in the tens or hundreds of Ohms) for speakers (impedance in the 4-10 Ohm range.) Even with a level converter the adjustment would probably act weird and lose granularity. For instance the volume knob might not affect the volume for 90% of it's turn and suddenly it would spike up to almost full. I'd go with the splitter and two separate volume controls in the two separate amplifiers.

[Naeaes]

5 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

That should work fine. 

I disagree. Could you read my post and give your opinions.

[Suka]

2 minutes ago, Naeaes said:

That's a bad plan. All your HW seems fine for the purpose but you can't connect an low-level input into a high-level output. To simplify, you can't plug the amplifier into an already amplified output. That would generate appalling noise and very likely break stuff. Instead you have to get a splitter and plug both amplifiers to the low-level output of the PC. You can add a device into the low-level line that adjusts the input volume for both amplifiers. Or if you're dead set on your  plan you can add a level converter in between the amps. 

 

I still think it's a bad idea to use a headphone amplifier (intended for devices with the impedance in the tens or hundreds of Ohms) for speakers (impedance in the 4-10 Ohm range.) Even with a level converter the adjustment would probably act weird and lose granularity. For instance the volume knob might not affect the volume for 90% of it's turn and suddenly it would spike up to almost full. I'd go with the splitter and two separate volume controls in the two separate amplifiers.

Thanks for letting me know it's a bad idea! I'm not dead set on my plan, it was just an idea I came up with to fix a problem I've been having. All I want to do is have both my headphones and speakers plugged in at the same time, but I would have analog control over both of them, so that I can chose between the speakers or the headphones to listen to, without having to disconnect anything. 

 

What would you suggest doing? I would like to get those speakers, and therefore would need an amp for it, but I would also like to have the analog volume control for both speakers and headphones. 

[Naeaes]

9 minutes ago, Suka said:

Thanks for letting me know it's a bad idea! I'm not dead set on my plan, it was just an idea I came up with to fix a problem I've been having. All I want to do is have both my headphones and speakers plugged in at the same time, but I would have analog control over both of them, so that I can chose between the speakers or the headphones to listen to, without having to disconnect anything. 

 

What would you suggest doing? I would like to get those speakers, and therefore would need an amp for it, but I would also like to have the analog volume control for both speakers and headphones. 

I think what you need is a mixer. Behringer Xenyx 302USB or something similar. If you want to, you can use the USB interface as an external sound card(essentially this would then be a DAC) or you can just power the mixer from USB and use the analog input over RCA as you originally planned. Plug your headset into the headset output and the speaker amplifier into the Main mix output and then use the knobs on the mixer to adjust the volume levels. As you can see, it's a cut-down version of a mixer/preamp that a stage-DJ or a recording studio would have so you'd also have some control over your bass and treble with it.

I don't know if you wanted this (your original plan entirely omitted it) but you'd be able to utilize the microphone on your headset too. So if you want to use something like Ventrilo or Teamspeak, you still could. So to recap, the 302USB plugs into your computer with USB, your headphones plug into the 302USB, your speaker amplifier plugs into the 302USB with RCA, your speakers plug into the speaker amplifier with speaker cables. You'd set your speaker amplifier to max or close to it and leave it at that and you'd use the level adjustments on the 302USB to control the volume of the headphones, the speaker amplifier or the two combined.

 

Just for full disclosure I gotta say I'm a bit hard of hearing myself so I can't really comment on sound quality. Pretty much anything that's loud enough sounds fine to me.

[Electronics Wizardy]

7 hours ago, Naeaes said:

but you can't connect an low-level input into a high-level outpu

he does seem to be doing that. that headphone amp is a low level amp.

 

7 hours ago, Naeaes said:

still think it's a bad idea to use a headphone amplifier (intended for devices with the impedance in the tens or hundreds of Ohms) for speakers

He's not, there is a seprate amp for the speakers.

 

6 hours ago, Naeaes said:

think what you need is a mixer. Behringer Xenyx 302USB or something similar.

Nope, thats for mixing inputs, not outputs.

[Naeaes]

17 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

he does seem to be doing that. that headphone amp is a low level amp.

 

He's not, there is a seprate amp for the speakers.

 

Nope, thats for mixing inputs, not outputs.

So we disagree. I gotta say, I've never heard of such thing as a low level amplifier unless you mean like a preamp, but this is not a preamp. I guess a range-extender would be considered a low-level amplifier but this isn't that either.

 

Just to clarify, I'm talking about Line levels. Speaker channels are in the 1-10 Ohms range, Headphones are in the 10-200 range. Those are high-level. Amplified and ready to be output from a speaker. Between devices like mixers, equalizers, amplifiers and so on, you transmit the the audio at about 100-10000 Ohms. That's low level and needs an amplifier to make the sound audible. And with passive devices like microphones or electric guitar pickups you use a preamp to get to the low-level. This is no low level amplifier, it's a full-fledged headphone amp with the output impedance starting at 10 Ohms no less! You can drive a small speaker with that channel.

 

I'm telling you. Plug the separate speaker amplifier into the output in the headphone amplifier and out comes the magic smoke. You are free to try plugging any line input on any amplifier to any amplified output on any amplifier so long as you own those amps and are ready to part ways with them. Stay safe though. A better and safer way to witness the effects of high and low line levels is to plug headphones into RCA outputs. Crank it to max and you can just barely hear it.

 

Yes, it's for mixing inputs. That's what mixers do. It's only got the two input channels because OP only needs the one (or two depending on the situation with the headset microphone) What we're interested in here are the separate monitor channel for the headphones and the output mix channels for the speakers and the ability to adjust the volume levels together and separately. That's also what mixers do.

[Electronics Wizardy]

25 minutes ago, Naeaes said:

, you transmit the the audio at about 100-10000 Ohms.

Audio is never transmit at ohms, its voltage with a max current.

 

26 minutes ago, Naeaes said:

Plug the separate speaker amplifier into the output in the headphone amplifier

Those are designed to be plugged into headphone outputs on phones and computers, that amp isn';t any different.

 

Its not gonna hurt that amp to plug the headphone out into it, headphones and amp in's are about the same level. You can plug your phone directly into a amp or a pair of headphones, they will both work.

[Suka]

12 hours ago, Naeaes said:

I think what you need is a mixer. Behringer Xenyx 302USB or something similar. If you want to, you can use the USB interface as an external sound card(essentially this would then be a DAC) or you can just power the mixer from USB and use the analog input over RCA as you originally planned. Plug your headset into the headset output and the speaker amplifier into the Main mix output and then use the knobs on the mixer to adjust the volume levels. As you can see, it's a cut-down version of a mixer/preamp that a stage-DJ or a recording studio would have so you'd also have some control over your bass and treble with it.

I don't know if you wanted this (your original plan entirely omitted it) but you'd be able to utilize the microphone on your headset too. So if you want to use something like Ventrilo or Teamspeak, you still could. So to recap, the 302USB plugs into your computer with USB, your headphones plug into the 302USB, your speaker amplifier plugs into the 302USB with RCA, your speakers plug into the speaker amplifier with speaker cables. You'd set your speaker amplifier to max or close to it and leave it at that and you'd use the level adjustments on the 302USB to control the volume of the headphones, the speaker amplifier or the two combined.

 

Just for full disclosure I gotta say I'm a bit hard of hearing myself so I can't really comment on sound quality. Pretty much anything that's loud enough sounds fine to me.

Would using something like this (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01BURJVOC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ABLOYB9H8YPEZ&psc=1) work? It can switch between headphone and speakers. I'm assuming this would connect to PC through USB, then 3.5mm to RCA into the AMP of the speakers?

[spwath]

47 minutes ago, Suka said:

Would using something like this (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01BURJVOC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ABLOYB9H8YPEZ&psc=1) work? It can switch between headphone and speakers. I'm assuming this would connect to PC through USB, then 3.5mm to RCA into the AMP of the speakers?

That would be perfect.

[Naeaes]

9 hours ago, Suka said:

Would using something like this (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01BURJVOC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ABLOYB9H8YPEZ&psc=1) work? It can switch between headphone and speakers. I'm assuming this would connect to PC through USB, then 3.5mm to RCA into the AMP of the speakers?

The price aside, that would be perfect! It also has Toslink so if you want to use your built-in optical output, you can.