How to split the preamp output
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.ค. 2018
- If you want to use a single preamplifier to feed two separate power amplifiers, how do you properly split the preamp's output signal without losing any quality? Have a question you want to ask Paul? www.psaudio.com/ask-paul/
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I Googled for DAYS about this, and never found this video, until it just pops up. Big thanks!
T=2:56 to skip over the preamp preamble! lol
Paul, I really appreciate the response to my question. High end in my price range limits the products we purchase.the time you take to answer our questions,is so valuable,we so,(I),so appreciate it.thank you.
Glad I stumbled upon your page, as a learning enthusiast there's lots of great information and audio history to be had here. Thank you!
Adcom- Additional Compensation, who knew! I always liked the Adcom brand and came close to purchasing a 555 and FM Pre-amp, I just loved the clean looks of them. Paul you're full of knowledge, so great you're sharing that knowledge with us. Anyway I never knew you could split the pre-amp outputs like that. I always thought I would blow something up. But here's the thing, my vintage equipment still works pretty well but wanted to come up to the digital age without running wires all over the place, so I purchased some of those wifi/bluetooth receivers from Parts-Express and hooked them up to all my equipment, and remarkably the music sounds pretty good and I have access to all the music in the world just from that one little box. Amazing. Thanks for all your great videos.
Thank you Paul for this answer, I have a Yamaha A1 which I use an external power amp for the left and right channels. So I have two spare internal power amps that I want to drive my centre channel in a bi-amp configuration. Enjoy your vlogs.
Dear, i can sense you sensing me. Any way thanks a lot for taking the extra mile. Honesty Is The Best Policy. My father wrote this on my copy note book and I go by it. But if at all I stray the world has to be safeguarded from other copiers. Thank You my boy.
What i meant to say is you are a good block you are the only guy that's mentioned this And I agree its a very important little topic you can do so much with just one good AMP that's got good sounds and A lot of prey out
Always the best information Paul just letting you know we are watching Thank you
Laconic response: with splitter. But for the rest... Listen to Paul!
I just split my pre-amps signal with a Purist Audio Design XLR-Splitter to be able to try to use one power-amp to the bass on my main-speakers and one power-amp to the midrange/tweeter and I think I got a better sound after that.
I use a Primare SP33, two Primare A34.2 and a Primare A30.7
Mechanicsburg was named after a settlement of mechanics who made and repaired Conestoga wagons in the early 19th century. (wikipedia is your friend) :)
Thanks, I I was curious if there was significant value to split the output. Now I understand.
I really wish I could hear an A B comparison test of line level RCA vs balanced xlr cables connection. Since I've never invested in balanced equipment before, I'm considering upgrading a 2 ch stereo pre amplifier and now have power amps with xlr.
I LOVE YOU, not imagine how much time spent searching for a clear answer and detailed, I want to drive 5 amps from 1 output mixer in home, but is One good amp for parallel speaker better than cheap multi amps drive every pair of the speaker?
You have just saved me hundreds of 💷💷💷. Thank you.
Great insight on splitter
Hello, I have a Denon 4500 with preamp outputs. I would like to have 2 dialogue channels, for which I have 2 options, the first option is to use the center channel powered out to connect 1 speaker and use a mono amp to power the other speaker using the preout. And the second option is to split the preout as you said using a Y-Cable and power dual center channels using a Stereo Power Amplifier.
Now my question - is it okay to do this in either options. Will it harm my AVR, Speakers & External Power Amplifier ? I am searching for this answer for the last couple of years.
Very good.
Splitters have served me well for years. Just use high quality gold plated ones for trouble free usage.
Correct me if I´m wrong, but isn´t it better to use a RCA Y-Splitter than using XLR+RCA for two different amps because the output gain is VASTLY different, right? So if you can´t correct the gain on the amplifier, it would mean the other speakers are playing louder than the others, whereas with a Y-splitter the gain is 1:1.
I have dozens of preamps to play with. Even my preamps from McIntosh, ARC (my good SP3) Nakamichi etc that hv two or more main outputs, take their sources from split wires inside their chassis. So take my SP3, it has double main outputs and double tape outputs.You can see that the + sides of the second RCA outputs are actually run with hard wires tapped to the first outputs' + sides. It means that the splitter method is just a variation on the "factory" implementation. The really relavant question then becomes: on preamps with only one single pair of stereo outputs, will splitting deteriorate sound quality?
Anyone?
I got these splitters your talking about and when I hook them up the way I would think they should be I lost bass on one of my subs and when I started messing with them and plugged it in the way you would think is wrong it fixed it so got some more splitters and same thing happened the splitters have a red and a white when there should be red on the one splitter and a white splitter I just want a bunch of xlr balanced pre outs so I don't have to use these confusing splitters what should I get that has xlr balanced in with a bunch of xlr balanced outputs so I can use multiple amps and powered subwoofer with my one mixer main all at the same time thanks
Do you still produce the Sprout 100? It seems to be unavailable these days.
Is the Sprout100 limited to a 2.1 system or a 3.1 can? If a 2.1 I am looking to get Klipsch RP-500M bookshelf speakers and SPL-120 Subwoofer. Thoughts?
You the man 🦾
How can I connect Jbl 308P MkII studio speaker to Denon avr-s750h receiver?
Or what is the option for this situation?
Thanks
What's with the barcode labels over the AC power termination?
Does it work as well the other way around 2 sources 1 input ?
Thanks for the great videos
No, that would connect the two source outputs together. Never do that, even if one isn't powered.
2 sources 1 input needs a mixer or simple circuit, just google it and see
Can I split it at the power amp side, if the pre-amp side is a little too busy/crowded?
Please pay attention, in other preamplifiers it’s not always possible to use rca plugs and xlr outputs simultaneously!! For example Dspeaker Antimode 2.0.
FUCK!
Can I also split the pre output between an amp (happens to be an Adcom 535!) and a powered sup woofer?
I want to connect 4 amplifiers to my PC. Can I use a headphone amp with multiple outputs for splitting the signal?
heey Mechanicsburg!! i do alot of, mechanic work, in mechanicsburg lol :p seriously tho i was curious bein a mechanic n livin close so i looked it up n turns out it did actually get its name from a "settlement of mechanics who made and repaired conestoga wagons in the early 19th century" according to wiki
So I have two Adcom GFA-6002 amps, an Adcom pre amp and one pair of speakers. I’m confused on how to hook this up. Any advice.
Paul, maybe a dumb question; but would the splitter solution also apply to a “tape-out” RCA output on a preamp or an integrated amp? The quandary I have is that I wish to drive a power amp AND a headphone amp with the single tape-out tap that my integrated amp has.
Michael Schroeder
The difference with a "line out" signal is that it is an untouched signal that is unaffected by the pre amp volume, bass, treble, or any of the equalizing signals. If your headphone amp has a way to attenuate the volume and you don't require any custom equalization then I'd think you'd be able to route it that way. The "pre out" is called such because that signal is tailored by the settings and volume of the pre amp.
Use Rhodium plated Y-splitters for best results!
Nice Dexter Gordon prints
Pertinent video, since I plan on splitting the Preamp output to two Adcom 555 MK2 amps.
He means well. Unfortunately, he is NOT an electrical engineer who has the necessary design and implementation experience. He is a nice guy, but is more like a person who grew up in a family of doctors, but never went to medical school. He knows enough to know more than some, but also enough to give often suboptimal, and sometimes simply wrong advice. I would put this on the spectrum of simply bad advice. There are too many other variables to make the recommendation he did. I feel bad sometimes, as I usually bite my tongue, but I sometimes have to jump in on some of his videos.
There are decent inexpensive transformer based and impedance matching splitters specifically for this (Sescom, Purist Audio, Radial, etc, which will much better impedance match and avoid the potential for capacitance issues. I am, after all assuming that we are talking about audiophile grade listening as a goal, and that you care about the lifespan of your components-- correct. I expect that plenty of others will have good recommendations here, but do not use a hard wired splitter, or a standard splitter-- too often used in car installations to the detriment of audio quality and component life.
There are too many unknown factors to recommend what he did. It also depends greatly on your speaker type and load, whether it is more of a reactive load or a capacitive one (different design choices) and your cable length and internal capacitance. I would NOT recommend a hard splitter as he inferred-- Y-cable or otherwise. Get a transformer based one. Coupled with an average cable of 15' in length, you can easily be dealing with an IC of 15-20K picoFarads, which is already high before splitting. It may very well "work", but components and sound quality will generally suffer for it.
There are plenty of good ones across a range of price and related requirements. I personally use Radial in my studios, but I have found some good Audio Technical, Purist and others which work great in many situations.
In any event, SPEAK TO A PROFESSIONAL, WITH PROPER EE BACKGROUND AND WHO KNOWS HOW TO MEASURE AND DESIGN CIRCUITS HIM/HERSELF. Let him know speaker lengths/type, speakers used and typical listening levels. That will be enough to make a good recommendation.
BTW, I am an electrical engineer with multiple degrees and many years of actual design/development experience in the private, military/gov and related sectors (i.e. in ceramics, discrete circuit design and for the past 25 years a combination of discrete and integrated circuit design). ADCOM has been a great company, product line and story, and that was one of Nelson Pass's design, that he started working on in earnest in 1982 and released a couple years later, and which I worked with a team to redesign later. I did see an earlier prototype, but from what I recall, it was not a design actually implemented from, but rather, it was the later incarnation that he used.
If I have learned anything over the years is some but not all electrical engineers over complicate simple problems.
@@amdenis So, soon after posting here, I was extremely lucky in obtaining a pair of immaculate aDs 910 loudspeakers, w/stands. @ 93db/28htz-25khtz/4ohms, I decided not to go with the bi/tri-amp crossover cards, instead going for the light string & card for output monitoring. Also, I was able to get both an Adcom 555 and a 555 ll, though I've never used the model ll yet. Nowadays I'm using a NAD 208 thx balanced power amp with an Emotiva XDA-2 balanced preamp/DAC, and my search for my end-game loudspeaker has been fulfilled.
What if my receiver has just a single Subwoofer Pre out. Can I use a Y-Splitter to make it a stereo signal and send that to a power amplifier?
I don’t think you can but I’m not entirely sure? Let me know if you find an answer to your question!
Maybe he can use e wye type rca cable.. i did it with my stereo system and it works fine
M from Australia forgive my spelling 那but you good you have any block that seven mentioned this and I reckon is pretty god damn important
Is there an easy way to to modify a reciever to get pre outs to run another amp.
Open your amp up having looked at the schematics and find the drivers before the outputs. Usually you’ll see 3 wires coming from the preamp before the drivers. Undo those and connect them to rcas. It’s more intensive that than that you gotta do the research.
I just found this video. My problem is this. I have a record deck, and that feeds an RIAA pre-amp. I've tried a Y-splitter to feed both my hi-fi amp and my computer's line input. The problem is that I get a load of white noise / interference. I can pull the input from the line-input plug of my computer, and even leave it hanging (6 metres of coax going nowhere), and the noise vanishes on my amp. So the computer is obviously backfeeding noise to the amp. I have tried a switchbox as I can monitor my recording of music on the computer, from the computer's speakers, and even with this, if I select the amp, I still get the noise, which suggests I'll have to get a 4-pole switch to cut off both signal and ground from the computer, but is there a more elegant solution, to decouple any noise from the computer from going back to amp? It would be nice not to have to use a switch.
Sounds like you would benefit by using digital interface to split the signal to drive your amp and your computer
Wait.. So what's the Adcom connection with Nelson Pass? There's always been this online chatter about him designing the original Adcom 555 for adcom, but in this video Paul says Morris built the 555. Is it the case where Pass design it, Morris built it and Adcom Sold it? Seems that once a well known designer builds a product ( even if its just one or 2 models) their name gets attached to all sorts of products from that brand. If you let the Internet tell it. Dan D'Agostino designed every amplifier for Mondial Designs ( Original Aragon/ Acurus line) . Pass' name gets associated in the same way. It appears that the Brand Adcom is still around ( perhaps with different owners) or at least they still have a working website. but can someone clarify on the original 555 ( not the 555 II) ? is it in fact a product that was designed for Adcom by Nelson Pass?
Pennsylvania, still the US champion of interestingly named towns and cities. King of Prussia anyone?
Intercourse?
bird-in-hand?
Andy B blue balls, virginville near me
splitting the prey outI already piggyback spl item whatever it works but what i can't find the answer to and at the end of your video you said something about when you split at fifteen thirty or some crap like that like that what I wanna know，Is when you split the signal do you lose quality from say using just the pre out with one rca oto using twenty from the same rca pre out t going to twenty different power amps I was always thought it was just A signal and the Power AMP caches the signal and pale as the sounds o do you lose quality if you split the prayer to multipl outs
Amazing you know all these audio companies in a different way than we do it's like you know the founding fathers of the audio world and it hasn't been really that long for thing's companies to change so dramatically like I said Paul write this down and make your book Encyclopedia of information from you a legend a big fan Steve Costello
Thanks, Steve! It's available for order right now if you want. www.amazon.com/gp/product/1733583300?
can I do this to send to a sub?
The Adcom GFA has an Input impedance of 22k ohms, and RCA only
yOOOO i live in Mechanicsburg too B)
Yeah, PA has a lot of interesting names for their cities and towns. Ever been to "Blue Ball, PA?" How about "Intercourse, PA?" No, these aren't made up names of towns. There are a lot of others too. Perhaps Paul is correct and the towns are named after something the they are famous for or has "a lot of". I'm thinking if the chaps from Blue Ball moved over to Intercourse, they might be able to "relieve" some of their ..... "tensions". Just a guess. Cheers! 👽🖖"Na-nu"
I tried that once 1 pre amp 2 power amps , I believe they were both SAE . Ran into problems on the pre amp kicking protection circuit at high volume. Never found out what caused it.
The impedance too low, as the impedance was divided by 2 by using two power amps?
Seems strange, there is usually a lot of headroom there.
Richard Smith Maybe something with the cables , I don't know? Unfortunately I don't have any of those component anymore. This was before 1988 . I gave one SAE amp to a friend who blew his Phase. I don't know where the other went. I miss those big power meters.
I think Richard is right. If you split into two different devices, the impedance the preamp sees is lower, and current increases.
I know a splitter is the obvious. My concern was impedance mismatch of some sort doing just what happened to you,except with with more devastating results to my gear.i knew Paul would be able to tell me what was the safe way to go.But thank you for you input.
No mention of how to split balanced outputs.
Bill Crane You can split XLR outputs in the same way using a simple XLR Y splitter cable from Amazon or equivalent. It worked perfectly for me with no audible difference (to my ears anyway)
Takes 5 minutes to say "Just use a simple y-splitter cable". lol
How to split the preamp output.... still dunno
use a y splitter
so much chit chat and never did fully explain how to use one set of pre amp outputs to bi amp two amplifiers...all you say at the end is use an RCA Y splitter...??...there is a right/left pre amp out...is one to use 2 Y splitters one from right to send both amps a right signal and one Y from left pre out to send left signal to both amps left input...?🤔
Why not use headphone out?
Spent more time yapping instead of getting in depth on answering the question! If any one wanted to know the history of ADCOM they could have easily found that out. Didnt show any examples etc , the man asked how to can he use 2 amplifiers with one preout!
And he answered the question in a way that even an idiot could understand. He said to use a Y spliter... do you know what a Y spliter is?
so you need example of how to use a splitter? Really? Wow!!!
i agree 100%. answer the question and there are always details in any issue to address, much more important than rambling on and on and on. does splitting the preamp signal work if more than one amp is running at the same time off the split signal? if switching between two different types of amps (solid vs tube) does the signal in any way get altered by having the additional circuitry to the unused amp? reasonable questions, show some breadth in covering the issue and forget the mechanicsburg diss, and who cares about adcom/sae history anyway?