2 amps- 1 speaker

artinaz

Hoping you guys will have a better idea for this than I do.

I have 2 separate setups for 2-channel and HT in teh same room. Right now when I am listening to music, I connect my speakers to my jolida amp. When I want to watch a movie, I have to disconnect the speakers from the jolida and connect it to my HT amplifier, to use them as my left and right.

What can I do to prevent this swapping of cables every time ?

Options I guess are-

1. Buy a better preamp, which does HT and stereo music- expensive choice for now. I have been eyeing the Outlaw 990 fo rnow. Dont want to do it now.

2. Use teh stereo bypass feature (my current lexicon processor mc-1 doesnt have it) and use a preamp after the processor to feed my left and right. Once again, I need a better processor than now.

3. Can I use a speaker selector ? Usually a speaker selector is used to choose between outputs- different speakers. In this case, it will be choosing between different amps.

4. Use a relay. The relay switches between the inputs. When the HT processor is switched on, the DC trigger switches teh relay to take teh input from the HT amp. However relays are not built to use thick speaker wire. Also degradion of signal a possibility.

Your opinion is appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Azi

Plaffy

Hi artinaz,

I am in the same boat, I have a decent stereo setup with Rotel preamp and amp, and a denon receiver with 5+1 b&w speaker setup. Right now I am using recording output from the preamp to the receiver when listening to stereo, and the rotel amp is hooked after the receiver to power L and R speakers. It sounds very good, believe me, but I would still prefer a direct signal path in each situation. I tried that and I can hear the difference unmistakenly when using dedicated stereo connections, and it hurts to miss that extra bit of performace considering the amounts I invested in the system(s).

Just like you, I found the same options (plus one, below), but tend to deviate to making a mechanical 2 amp to one speaker pair switch myself after all the research. It is not the most "advanced" solution, and it is not automatic (remote wise) but the speaker wire path is relatively high-current and is harder to distort with decent components rather than the lower signal input stage where even a small difference in interconnect cable quality can be heard. I also think that I have seen multiple amps to same speakers switches somewhere, need to google more for it.

The other (new) option for me would be in using a low-level switch before the rotel amp that picks either the pre-amp or the receiver output. However, it would still be a mixed solution with extra signal paths and I tend to deviate towards the previous approach.

I am also eager to hear what others tried/suggest in this situation...

Best of luck.

TECHNOKID

Depending on your HT receiver, here what I would susggest. If your HT receiver has pre-out and A B selection you could have your HT pre-out to your amp for your mains and you would need to have them let say on your B selector for music while you would use A+B for the HT meaning A+B is all speakers while B is music only. Of course you didn't say what your HT receiver is so I am only hoping your receiver can do this???

Face

Get a HT Receiver/Processor with preamp outs and a 2 channel integrated with HT bypass.

artinaz

I got myself a Sonance ASAP1 amp to do the switching.

I have both my amps connected to the ASAP1. The ASAP1 is connected to the speakers. http://www.sonance.com/products/electronics/detail/26

The ASAP1 by default will play Channel 1 (music). If it senses a video trigger (or a audio trigger on Channel 2), it immediately switches onto Channel 2 (HT).

These things are difficult to come by. I was lucky to find one locally on craiglist.

So, in theory I just need to switch on my tv to make the switch. I havent got the ASAP1 hooked up yet. Yes, coz lets see I have this DIY subwoofer project and then a couple of DIY bass traps.

Plaffy

I was trying to find a speaker switch and I did, here:

http://www.russound.com/speaker_selectors.htm

Their special purpose (on the right) AB switches do exactly the reverse commutation we've been looking for. The problem for me is that my speakers are biwired as both the HT receiver and the stereo amp allow this (and the speakers, of course), so I need double the number of connectors for each and likely will end up soldering it myself.

@ other posters: all those suggestions work if you want to hear sound, and my setup currently does a pretty good job. The question is, however, whether you want to enjoy the two systems (stereo and HT) separately (but with the same speakers), to get their best... Thanks!