12 V trigger setup

pjdami · February 2003

I have a Yamaha RX-V1300 receiver that I am using the pre-outs on to run my mains on a NAD C270 power amp. To prevent pressing the button on the NAD every time to power on and off, the instruction manuals say that you can use the 12V trigger which will put the amp in "standby" mode when the receiver is turned off. But both the Yammy and NAD manuals give no indication of what kind of cable to use for the 12V trigger. This cable was also not supplied with the receiver or the amp.

Anybody out there doing this? The cable looks like its going to have to be a 1/8 inch miniplug. Where can I find a cable like this and does anyone have any recommendations on a manufacturer of a cable? Monster? Acoustic Research?

Also does this setup work well for you?

thanks,
Paul

TonyPTX · February 2003

Figured I'd respond here too to get some posting credit listed to my name. From the looks of the Yammie and NAD manual, both lines look like a 3.5mm (1/8") mono phono jack. You should be able to pick one up from Radio Shack for $2-3. I would think that spending anything more than that (i.e. Monster Cables) would be a waste of money as this signal provides NO acoustical data or signal (just a slap in the face to the NAD amp to let it know that the main pre-amp is on). You'll need to verify that the voltages are correct on the output of the Yammie to make sure that the match the NAD requirements (tip being +12 and shaft being -12). If you really want to be ultra-conservative, you can always pick up a 12V AC to DC adapter from RadioShack and plug it into the back of a "switched" AC plug in the back of the Yammie and run the line to the NAD that way. If you can't find one, make one. RadioShack sells all the pieces and parts you need to make your cable.

Good Luck

polkatese · February 2003

Pjdami, actually I am interested to know also on this subject.....Dan, could you enlightened us? thanks...

Tony, thanks for sharing, interested to know if this plug is universal, or brand specific (other than making sure correct polarity).....

TonyPTX · February 2003

The plug may need some "modification" but they are usually the universal AC/DC adapter plugs (6, 9, 12V) you buy to replace the ones you've lost/broken for things like cordless phones, battery rechargers, computer speakers, etc... The modification would come with having to work with the tip of the unit. Many times they come with some sort of universal head that has various sizes of plugs and jacks to accomodate many end devices. Biggest caution would the the polarity and current use. In the case of Paul's NAD amp, he would need a signal within a range of 6 to 15V DC that would draw about 10mA of current. Easy enough to find. I bet I have some spare parts in my "electronic junk" draw to build one.

danger boy · February 2003

i'm also interested in this subject. i know nothing what this 12v thing is. or how it works. i have some external amps, that i'd like to hook up using the D-bus connector from my receiver. i think this is very similar to what you all are talking about. currently how I power up the amps is to plug one of them into the rear of the receiver. and then daisy chain the rest of the amps from that main one. so when I turn on the receiver.. it in turns power ups the ext amps. i know this is not the correct way to do it. but it does work quite well. the ext amps should go into "standby" mode if hooked up with the 12v connectors.

can someone explain this in easy to understand language? thanks

FYI Marantz SR5000 receiver.. hooked up with 3 Marantz MA500 external amps. the Marantz users guide is worthless to say the least. The only info says that it needs a "video" signal from the receiver to the first amp in a daisy chain to put it in stand by mode. sounds suspicious to me though.

polkatese · February 2003

danger boy,
in principle, the 12v trigger suppose to work exactly for that reasons. It can also be used to lower projection screen, controlling power amp in line with the pre-amp so that you can centralize connected gears with one remote. Wiring wise, and required cables, that's what I want to understand more....

ps: connecting high current power amp (anything that will draw more than 200 watts) from those switched outlet behind the pre-amp is not advisable, since it might damage the circuit, so I read and was told.

stevew14 · February 2003

I run a 12v adaptor(Radio Shack) from the switched outlet on my receiver to my panamax power center trigger input. When I turn the receiver on, it triggers the panamax to switch on the switched outlets where all things needing auto on are connected. This eliminates the potential for overloading the outlets on the back of receiver. You can still use the panamax for protecting the receiver because it has "always on" outlets as well. I imagine many monster, panamax and other brand power center/conditioners have this same feature. Works great for me!

polkatese · February 2003

Steve,
your trick is fine and obviously work, as long as you have another power center that protect your receiver from the surge coming thru the wall outlet.

stevew14 · February 2003

It is plugged into the always on outlet on the panamax so it gets the protection and can work as a trigger also.

pjdami · February 2003

First of all, thanks everyone for the quick responses. Good to see others with similar questions and others with answers and who are actually doing this.

I did a little more research today and called the Hi-Fi store where I bought my Yamaha receiver and they said all I need is a 1/8 inch miniplug and just go with it!

I actually have a 12 V AC to DC adapter that is adjustable from 3 V to 12 volts in 1.5 to 2.0 V increments. It also has a switch to change the "tip" from positive to negative. In my case I would need the tip to be positive. My NAD amp only needs about 6 mA at 6 to 15 V to work for the trigger. The adapter I have puts out 300 mA, so I'm a little timid to try it not knowing if the NAD will take only what it needs for the trigger. The 12 V trigger on my receiver is at 15 mA max.

Steve do you know what the mA output is on your adapter?

Also dangerboy, polkatese is correct. I choose not to plug my NAD amp directly into the switched outlet of the receiver because the back of the receiver says 80 watts max for the switched outlet. The NAD amp is capable of putting out 120 Watts continuous and 210 watts dynamic. So I choose to run that power cable seperately to my surge protector. This will also help to maximize ampere current draw when needed when I am using the Yamaha and NAD together for surround sound for watching movies.

Me thinks tomorrow I will go to Radio Shack and purchase the 1/8 inch miniplug or find an AC adapter that only puts out 15 mA or less and run it the way Steve is doing. It looks like the miniplug is the easier of the two though and you free up that extra switched outlet on the receiver for a cd/dvd player or something like that. The only question with the miniplug then would be the polarity and this isn't explained in the Yamaha manual but I guess I have to trust what the staff at the Hi-fi store and other members on this forum have to say.

Paul

TonyPTX · February 2003

Volt meter..... plug one end of the mono phono wire into the Yammie and test the voltage on the other end. You'll know if you got it right or not.

As for the 10 mA current, limit, the 10 mA is only a designation from the NAD spec that states what the current draw is. 15 mA MAX is what the Yammie can put out. If you did decide to pick up a 12V AC/DC converter, the specs may say 12V, 650 mA, but that doesn't mean it puts out 650 mA, that's just the rated max amps the unit can put out. The current draw is based off of what the load is V = I x R. And I'm sure the load on the 12V trigger for the NAD amp is very low (probably just a solonoid that gets energized and "switches" the unit on).

mantis · February 2003

pjdami,
yes all you need is a 1/8 mono phono jack cable.Plug it in your control out of the receiver to control in on your amp.Thats it.Turn your receiver on and the amp will come on,turn the receiver off and depending on the delay,the amp will go off into standby.

Triggers are great for alot of things.Automation,we use them all the time.For simple uses like triggering on an amp,most higher end power centers have triggers or switched outlets.Alot of receivers have them as well.

powercenters like Monstercables HTS5000 have 2 types of ways of triggering the outlets.1/8 inch and switched outlet out of a receiver.Here's how they work.
The receiver is the control unit,using the 1/8 inch,it sends the signal down to the power center and turns on the outlets that you setup to be switched.Like amp outlets,or any components you would like to be switched on...example a cd player without a IR on and off.Theres alot of them on the market.This component would be another example of what you would want to switch on.

Get you learn on and learn about triggers.They are fun and very useful.

pjdami · February 2003

Well everybody, I got my trigger working. Thanks to everyone who replied with some very informative posts.

The trigger is really a nice convenience. It puts the amp on standby when I turn the receiver off and this may have have its advantages to leaving the amp on all of the time (although folks do this successfully). Standby mode draws very little current to the unit.

The biggest convenience is that I don't have to go and push the power button on the amp everytime I turn off the receiver from the remote. Not only was this a pain, but eventually the switch would fail. With the trigger, no moving parts.

I picked up a gold plated 1/8 inch miniplug from Radio Shack for $4.99. I also checked the tip and shaft of the miniplug (after plugging into the receiver) for the proper voltage (tip was positive with the red on the tip and black on the shaft measured with a multimeter). Thanks TonyPTX for this suggestion and crosscheck.

If anyone out there has trigger capabilities and isn't using them ya'll need to check it out. Pretty cool.....

Thanks again everybody,
Paul

polkatese · April 2003

Paul,
do you have the RS part number for the trigger miniplug? thanks...

pjdami · April 2003

polkatese,

I just spent about 15 minutes at Radio Shacks website trying to find the exact gold one that I have but all I could find was the gold stereo one. You want the 1/8 inch mono miniplug. There should only be one "isolator" ring between the tip and shaft.

This one should work.

part #42-2420

I was extra cautious because my amp manual says you can damage your components if you hook up incorrectly. With a multimeter on DC check that the tip is +12 V with the red on the tip and the black on the shaft of the plug. The manual also says to turn everything off and unhooking the AC before plugging in.

Here's a picture of the one that I was using.

Paul

pjdami · April 2003

So I see...preview cans the picture...

one more time...damn dust and fingerprints on that piano gloss black....

polkatese · April 2003

Paul,
thanks a bunch, yeah, that 9 beg to be wipe...8>) I think I might have one in my collection of cable. It looks like a mini headphone mono jack to me. Thanks again!

mantis · April 2003

Thats a nice high quality looking cable.Better quality then I use(imagine that).I use the standard patch cable style mono's for triggers.

mantis · April 2003

pjdami,
man show somelove to the 9's would yeah

pjdami · April 2003

Yep. Them nines actually don't look dirty to the naked eye but the digital camera picks up a lot of details.

Them nines have been moved back and forth between my two systems a lot here lately. Still haven't made up my mind between the pdimes and nines for my main system. They both have their advantages / disadvantages and both really sound very good.

I might need some advice on interconnects and speaker wire (I already have some ideas from reading you guys posts) to awaken the nines a little (very flat sounding); like to have some more crispness in the treble.

P.

polkatese · April 2003

Paul,
try signalcable analog two IC. With 30 days money back, you can judge yourself...I am sold on SignalCable, including their biwire speaker cable....

mantis · April 2003

Paul,
if you want some high end detail, look into Kimber Kable 8tc bi wires.Finish it off with Kimber's Hero interconnects.

pjdami · April 2003

Thanks guys for the suggestions on interconnects and speaker cable. These are two of the companies on my list along with ATC's IXOS biwire recommendation.

I'll have to take a look at prices and my budget and go from there.

Any of these are probably going to be better than my Monster XP 14 gauge biwire that I'm currently using for speaker cables and some Aurelle Dynamics (custom built $50 interconnects from my dealer) interconnects that I'm using.

thanks again fellas,
P.

12 V trigger setup

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