line-in to phono transformer?

  • Thread starter Thread starter martin
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martin

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okay, this might be a really silly question. i'll explain my situation.

i'm looking to buy some monitors and can't really afford actives. so the yorkvilles are a natural choice. i hope to hook them up to my sony stereo, which has the matching 6 ohm speaker impedance i need.

now, the problem is that my sony doesn't really have an aux input of any kind. it only has RCA phono inputs, which give a very distorted signal if i plug anything line-level into them. is there some kind of transformer/adapter i can buy to correct the impedance? or is this asking for a very dirty signal?
 
Yes, thats asking for a very dirty signal, although it's quite possible.
Vinyl records are RIAA encoded, which basically means that you have a 6db/octave slant over the whole spectrum. This signal is picked up by the pickup, which outputs a level of typically a couple of mV.
First dampening the signal a hundred times and applying a 6dB/octave filter, and then doing the reverse, is definitely going to affect your signal.

I have no idea if you can buy these anywere, but if you are handy you might be able to build one: http://www.hut.fi/Misc/Electronics/circuits/phono.html

Now we come to the tricky part, recommending you what to do:
I don't know. But I wouldn't use that converter. It feels to me like the improvement you are going to get from the Yorkvilles will get lost somewhere in the conversion or in the amp...

Other options are:
- Opening the Sony and see if you can find a place to put a line-level signal. (Obviously only of the warranty is expired and you know electronics).
- Buying another amp. (Yeah, I know, expensive).
- If you think your Sony sounds pretty good as is, save the money and buy active monitors at a later stage.

If you think that the biggest problem with the Sony is the speakers (it is common that the speakers are the "worst" part of a hifi-system) then buying the Yorkvilles might be a good idea, but make sure you are able to return them. The sound when you try them out with your Sony should be significantly better or you won't have any real use of them.
 
Use either a tape input or the CD input on the reciever. The phono inputs have the RIAA equilization curve built into it. I know of phono pre amps that do phono to line level but not the opposit.
 
Big yikes...

If you've got an amp that only has phono inputs, forget about it! Even if there is such an adapter, that calibre of amp is nowhere near up to the task of use in a studio environment. Get yourself a real amp - even a cheap one will likely be better than going the route you describe.

Bruce
 
okay, thanks for your good advice. how about renting a pair of nice actives like the mackies? is it a reasonable idea to rent monitors for a couple months? or should i buy my own, so that my ears can get accustomed to them? (note: this is not an option. oh, monetary woes).
 
Personally, I feel you'd be better off buying a pair of "decent" monitors and then getting comfortable with the way they translate to other systems. You can mix on most any system if you KNOW how your monitors/room behaves.
 
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