Hello, i am curios if you can connect a speaker amp to active speaker and control the volume of the speakers from the amp, without breaking the active speakers.
the short answer is yes. the long answer is depends. a signal is a signal. amplifiers just amplify that signal. high in high out. if you start your amp with abnormally high gain from the signal being a lot stronger then normal, you run the risk of damaging the unit pushing it harder then it can take.
edit: there are lots of cheap pre-amps out there that that work perfectly fine.
edit2: industry standard is typically 4volts on a pre-amp out. which translates to 4 watts. most headphones amps will work as speaker amp pre-amps. but if your going for another headphone amp, you have to be careful. doesnt work as well.
Thanks! Was thinking of dropping the volume on the active speakers and just raising the volume with the amp. Specifically talking about the smsl da-6 amp feeding edifier mr4. But also considering other options like the kanto yu4 for the optical input (i can only send the digital signal through that)
i wouldnt recommend that. what are you using as your source? and if you already have a power amp, why active, and not passive?
Well i do not have the amp or the speaker yet, i am searching for an option that fits best for me. I found another option, kanto yu4 and plug optical directly thus skipping the dac and amp. Any thoughts on the yu4?
Edit: source is apple tv 2nd gen with output audio optical.
Sure that would work.
They have a remote for volume control. Just speakers and remote is what i think you are looking.
Easy option with no extra hardware.
Depending on overall budget there are few other brands as well that can take optical audio (toslink) and have remote. Kanto is in the affordable range money wise 420$…ish?
There have been few issues with Kanto speakers even in here.
The more expensive ones are few hundred more than Kantos, going to 1k - 3k range and even to 100k options but i think we in the few hundred-dollar range.
That option simplifies everythings. Indeed remote and optical is smth i am looking for, in europe i can find if for around 300-350 euros. Other options would be powered speaker + topping e30, or passive speakers + xduoo mu-602 + smsl da-6.
I wouldnt want to exceed 400. For passive i have polk xt15, kanto yu 4inch, r-41m ( kind breaks the budget a bit). Powered is the yu4 and the mr4. Any suggestions to look into?
Well the cheapest ones start being around the ~150e like Edifier R1280DBs but dont really know are they any good for anything really.
Even some soundbars are 80e point… then again are they actually good for anything.
1 Like
kanto’s are good, but terrible amps that die at a larger then i would like to see rate.
polk xt15 will give you the best bass extension out of them all. the kanto tweeter is a little more detailed. the klipsch is probably the best performer of those 3 for technicalities, but horn. but for me personally, i think the 41m’s have a more balanced sound then their bigger brothers that get more attention. one thing about klipsch and the horn, the more you crank it, the more the tweeters take over and the less balanced the sound gets, and its even worse on the 41m vs 51m for instance. the tweeter starts taking over around 60-70% of max rated power for me.
i would go with the amp and one of the passives over the active options you have.
edit: if you do go that route, you will need a dac before the power amp. are you going to be using this for music?
Thanks for the advice, the dac that I found that filled the role was from xduoo, the mu-602. The setup goes in the living room for movies, series, and occasional sports. As stated before I need an optical input do you have any suggestions for soundbars with this input?
Edit: what js your opinion on the mr4?
they are good.
as far as sound bars. the klipsch cinema400 is on sale here anyways atm. samsung/sony/polk.
the samsung and sony will sound about the same, fairly neutral with a little extra at the top end. the polk will be warmer sounding with a little less top end energy. the cinema400 will have extra top end and upper mids energy.
the one thing about sound bars, while they can be great value, in my experience the louder you want to play them the smaller they sound. they have weak upper bass and lower mids, which makes them sound small.
edit: and i should say for the entry level/cheaper ones. never tried a 1k+ sound bar. but i have goten myself and family a bunch of different ones for bedrooms where speakers dont work as well with space constraints.
1 Like
the mu-602 and edies would be just fine. doesnt break the bank and gives you quality audio for your tv.
1 Like
Thanks for the advice, much appreciated. Will sleep on it!
Edit: If I do get the mr4 I would get the topping e30 dac because it has a remote.
1 Like
How would you compare the mr4 vs the iloud micro (seem pretty competitive).
i have not heard the ilouds, sorry. they are highly recommended though. and i have no doubt they sound better then thr mr4’s
1 Like
Took a while go make this post in whag ive chosen. Went with the kilpsch r-41m and a smsl da-6. Ive added picture. Any suggestions for the setup?
looks good my man! i do love the looks of the klipsch! if they are not sparkly enough for ya, use non tilted pads. i personally like my klipsch a little off axis as well anyways, as that horn makes those tweeters sing and can be a little much pointed at me.
1 Like
If you are able, you may try to bring the speakers closer to the front of the table/stand; this could improve any issues with surface reflections as well as potentially allow you to “dial-in” some of the bass response. The ideal placement for most speakers-to-listening position in rooms is considered the “rule of thirds” (i.e. the speakers a third of the way into the room from the rear wall, and your listening position a third of the way into the room from the opposite wall). You may find that this can help tremendously with soundstage perception, as well as making the speakers themselves audibly disappear into the room. A simple visualization would be like so:
[Rear wall—speakers—center of room—Listening position—Front wall]
Most people never go this far because of aesthetic concerns, rowdy children or pets in the house, etc. but the closer you can get to it, the better your performance is likely to be with something you don’t need to spend any additional money on and is completely adjustable and reversible on a whim. In a perfect world we would all be listening in anechoic chambers, but we do what we can with what we have.
1 Like
a nice video that explains a lot about speaker placement
edit: to reinforce your statement 
2 Likes