conecting 1 sub and 2 speakers to 1 soundcard output

Jimmy154 · 15th March 2006, 09:54 PM

My sound card had one stereo output. One channel of the output goes to my sub and one speaker and another channel goes to the other speaker. I did not connect the sub to both the left and right, since that would make my speakers mono.

How can I get around this? Only with a new sound card? Is it better to connect the sub to both the channels and have mono sound or is the setup I have now better, IYHO's?

lndm · 15th March 2006, 10:35 PM

I would think your soundcard would feel out of balance here with the extra loading on one side. Dynamics may be affected. Are you still within rated impedance?

Probably best to tap the outputs into a high level input to a sub amp, or get a soundcard that has a sub output.

Jimmy154 · 15th March 2006, 11:29 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by lndm
I would think your soundcard would feel out of balance here with the extra loading on one side. Dynamics may be affected. Are you still within rated impedance?

I dont know

Quote:

Originally posted by lndm
Probably best to tap the outputs into a high level input to a sub amp

I can do that. Is that for the impedance? Balance didn't change much when I added the amp. Infact I cant tell the difference, so balance is still centered. Everything sounds like it did before except now I have a sub on one channel. And I'm wondering if it's missing a lot of sonical information by being only on one channel.

lndm · 15th March 2006, 11:34 PM

Putting two 8 ohm speakers in parallel gives 4 ohms (generally speaking). AFAIK, soundcards prefer or need at least 8 ohms. Quite apart from sound quality, you may be stressing your soundcard.

Jimmy154 · 15th March 2006, 11:45 PM

The sound card connects to amps, dont know what the nominal impedance is.

lndm · 16th March 2006, 12:09 AM

Safest to assume 8 ohms.

Jimmy154 · 16th March 2006, 12:43 AM

I dont get what ur saying. DCR at the inputs of one amp is 270-300 ohms and on the sub amp it's . . . i can't figure it out. The output on the sound card plugs into amps for speakers and sub. They're not 8 ohm nominal impedance, the amp inputs. The signal has to go through the amp before it gets to the speaker coils. Anyway the card is not strained, I'm pretty sure.

lndm · 16th March 2006, 02:30 AM

Sorry if I wasn't clear, I was just saying if you don't know what an amp can drive, you should assume it is 8 ohms which is a single speaker.

As far as your mono question, the bass can be thought of as being mono. Bass is often blended so it is the same in each channel. If this mono bass were a problem, more manufacturers would sell two subs at a time. For close listening, it is difficult to tell which speaker the bass comes from, this is why this is ok.

For what you want, the setup you have is better than full mono. It shouldn't make a difference to the bass content which way you connect it (IMO without seeing your system).

BTW do not connect each channel together directly or you may destroy them.

15th March 2006, 09:54 PM	#1
Jimmy154 diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Los Angeles	conecting 1 sub and 2 speakers to 1 soundcard output My sound card had one stereo output. One channel of the output goes to my sub and one speaker and another channel goes to the other speaker. I did not connect the sub to both the left and right, since that would make my speakers mono. How can I get around this? Only with a new sound card? Is it better to connect the sub to both the channels and have mono sound or is the setup I have now better, IYHO's? __________________ We do not allow political statements or conjecture to be made on these forums.---the diyAudio moderation team

15th March 2006, 11:45 PM	#5
Jimmy154 diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Los Angeles	The sound card connects to amps, dont know what the nominal impedance is. __________________ We do not allow political statements or conjecture to be made on these forums.---the diyAudio moderation team

16th March 2006, 12:43 AM	#7
Jimmy154 diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Los Angeles	I dont get what ur saying. DCR at the inputs of one amp is 270-300 ohms and on the sub amp it's . . . i can't figure it out. The output on the sound card plugs into amps for speakers and sub. They're not 8 ohm nominal impedance, the amp inputs. The signal has to go through the amp before it gets to the speaker coils. Anyway the card is not strained, I'm pretty sure. __________________ We do not allow political statements or conjecture to be made on these forums.---the diyAudio moderation team

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15th March 2006, 10:35 PM	#2
lndm diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: nsw	I would think your soundcard would feel out of balance here with the extra loading on one side. Dynamics may be affected. Are you still within rated impedance? Probably best to tap the outputs into a high level input to a sub amp, or get a soundcard that has a sub output.

15th March 2006, 11:34 PM	#4
lndm diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: nsw	Putting two 8 ohm speakers in parallel gives 4 ohms (generally speaking). AFAIK, soundcards prefer or need at least 8 ohms. Quite apart from sound quality, you may be stressing your soundcard.

16th March 2006, 12:09 AM	#6
lndm diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: nsw	Safest to assume 8 ohms.

16th March 2006, 02:30 AM	#8
lndm diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: nsw	Sorry if I wasn't clear, I was just saying if you don't know what an amp can drive, you should assume it is 8 ohms which is a single speaker. As far as your mono question, the bass can be thought of as being mono. Bass is often blended so it is the same in each channel. If this mono bass were a problem, more manufacturers would sell two subs at a time. For close listening, it is difficult to tell which speaker the bass comes from, this is why this is ok. For what you want, the setup you have is better than full mono. It shouldn't make a difference to the bass content which way you connect it (IMO without seeing your system). BTW do not connect each channel together directly or you may destroy them.

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