Ok, well, I’ve now blown the amplifier in my JBL sub twice and seeing I don’t have the $$ for a Velodyne or similar I picked up a Pro-Audio Rack-mount amp to power my sub.
I also did this so I can build any home sub I want to later and not have to worry about buying another amp.
Anyone ever run a Pro-Audio amplifier in a home-audio setup here?
Only issue I’ve got that I’m trying to figure out is how to control the turn-on/off automatically with my receiver and not have to manually flip the switch every time. (I’ve got an idea, but I’m not 100% on it)
Hell no, dont run a amp through the little relay on a reciever… LOL…
Anyways, i have a good ol crown xls-602 that i used to have some subs on, but pro audio amps generally sound like shit and even though its only driving a sub, it still sounded blah… Id never consider actually using it for a home theatre. But then again, not many subs below 1k sound decent anyways…
Yea, as you said, don’t plug the amp into the back of a receiver. Those sink enough amps to power things like DVD/CD players, not audio equipment.
If its not a huge amp it should idle < 35W so it won’t really cost anything to keep it on. I understand where you are coming from tho. An AC relay is a good bet. You can get a 15A relay for decently cheap.
^ I doubt it, and that wouldnt really make things that much easier anyways…
Powering a relay off the reciever to switch the amps power on is a poor way to do it, but it would work… And it shuldnt cost more than $10 including a enclosure…
how would a 12V trigger not make it any easier, the receiver should have a 12V trigger out, and if the amp has a 12V trigger in there you go. Most of my shit has 12V triggers on it, minus my amp.
And why would using a relay be a bad idea? Putting it in the power-line I’d agree with it being a bad idea.
I’m talking about voiding the warranty and opening the amp up and putting the relay in parallel with the power-switch such that when the receivers 115V switched output goes high, it closes the relay. The relay would act just like someone turning on the switch manually.
Also, if the “amp” sounded like shit, then why are they used for concerts and live productions? Not to mention I’m seeing more and more Pro-Amps in very very high end home theater setups than single-box receivers.
The “musical” and quality ratings of the amp are astounding from what I’ve read, with almost all being 8/10 or better.
Well, after getting the amp in place (that was fun seeing it weighs in at 47 lbs!!!) and getting everything wired up to my receiver and “modified” subwoofer (removed the amp and put banana jacks on the case) it was time to set the gains and go for a test drive…
Matrix Revolutions, Bourne Identity, Crimson Tide, Aliens, and some music from CD were all used.
This thing brought a WHOLE NEW level to my home theater!!
It made the sub which sounded ok, but garbled/blurred once it got loud to being crystal clear even to the point of me having to put things back on my fireplace mantel.
I’ve NEVER had to move things back or pick things up before and I’ve had these speakers/sub for almost 4 years now.
Whenever I used to turn it up even remotely loud it sounded like crap; now, it sounds great all the way to the point of me worrying about blowing the driver (2400Wrms amp driving a 250W sub!!!)
Overall this is a complete success and the results are amazing. Looks like I’m going to be using separate everything from now on with my home theater.
I understand thats what you are talking about, but what does that switch actually switch? On the pro audio amps i saw, it just switched the line voltage anyways, so in that case i would just make a switched outlet in a enclosure to bypass the whole opening and running wires out thing…
And yes, the pro audio amps i used sounded horrible. But that only 3… Have you ever went to a concert that sounded good by any means? Theyre allways horrid and aimed at making it as loud as it can be basically.
And what ratings are you talking about? Most ratings are somewhat biased, where the reviewer got the amp for free to review it, so the say its great so they will get more in the future. Or if this is by customers, people buying pro audio amps generally dont understand what good sound is.
But anyways, im sure most people wont notice the difference. I hear people driving around with thier subs at full volume, woofers beyond thier natural excursion and the amp is clipping… They dont care, or know…
The “ratings/reviews” were from users/mods on AVSForums; most who are doing similar things that I’m either doing, or want to now.
The sub is a JBL that came with the set.
As for the “concert” comparison; this is true, but what are they using “in-studio” when they record and “master” the music that we listen too? All the studio’s I’ve ever been in (4 of them) have all been fully outfitted with pro-audio stuff.
As for sounding good/ok/etc; I’ve been doing audio for going on 10 years as a side-hobby and know what shit sounds like Vs ok, Vs good, Vs amazing.
I haven’t opened up the amp to see what the switch is switching; if it is just the power, then I’ll just use it manually right now, and wire it into a line/power conditioner/switcher when I get the other amps.
I dont know what that amp sounds like, but i know mine sounds horrible.
And most studios dont run high end speakers, just something ok…ish. A real amp would cost thousands more than a pro amp, so they go pro…
Im not suggesting you dont know the difference, im saying most people dont, so i wouldnt trust their reviews. Im assuming you have some experience in the topic…
And from the look of that switch, i would assume its switching power, but i have no clue.
Maybie im expecting something more, im used to taking about subs that cost a few thousand… and generally suck…
