what is the best to use to power monitors?

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videodrone

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what do you use for non powered monitors?

A reciever or some kinda of power amp? If I use a reciever, wont that take the recievers EQ also and pass taht to my monitors?

is there anything i should know about buying something to power my monitors? would it be cheaper and wiser to but powered monitors? Im guessing its not,

thanks ahead of time!
 
use a power amp

I dont have any specific recomendations but im sure someone will. I use an alesis ra-100 but thats only because it came with my event monitors.
 
so can I use any old reciever or will it affect my monitors sound? Dont recievers have built in EQs?
 
you'll get better sound for your money if you go with a dedicated power amp, if only because you're not paying for more features.

i got some new monitors recently, and at first, i hooked them up to a panasonic receiver i had around. of course it was a tremendous improvement from my previous speakers, but then i got a Hafler TA1600, and there is a noticeable difference, especially in the low frequencies. the hafler is much tighter.
 
so I have a power amp for my reciver for my home stereo, basically I have to plug the reciever in with a little flat ribbon looking connection, than it powers my reciver,

would that hook into my monitors than and power them>?

also, with preamps, does it matter which one you get or are they all pretty much the same thing that do the same thing?
 
it sounds like you may be a little bit confused, or i maybe it's just an issue of terminology. but here goes:

a power amp does not just output generic "power." it takes in a line-level signal and it outputs that same signal, but much stronger. unpowered monitors do not require a power supply, persay .... what they do need is for the the electrical/audio signal to be very powerful, enough to drive the speakers. powered monitors have amplifiers built in, so they can take in a line-level signal, boost it internally, and play it.

a preamp is for microphones, turntables, and other high-impedance signals. it boosts signals to line-level. a simple volume control is also sometimes misleadingly referred to as a "passive preamp."

so you have your source (cd player/tape deck/mixer/etc) that is at line level, and you want to play it out of your unpowered monitors. you send the signal into the power amplifier, which outputs that same signal, but far more powerful. this goes directly into your speakers, and voila, there's your sound.

a ribbon-looking connector sounds like a proprietary plug. usually from the power amp to the speakers people use either banana plugs or bare wire into binding posts.
 
yeah, I am a bit confused but you are definantly helping me moer and more evey post though!

So would it be cheaper to just get power monitors?

Can I buy any power amp or do the cheaper ones give you worse quality?

Again, my digital recorder (roland VS 1680) wont power this correct?
 
correct, your recorder outputs a line-level signal, which needs to be amplified before it can be sent to speakers.

any power amp will let you hear your music. but yes, as with most things, cheap ones are worse. you should also make sure to get one powerful enough to drive your monitors properly. many would tell you to get an amp that is 50% more powerful than your speakers are rated at. really though, you should just have an amp that is powerful enough that you never need to turn it up much more than halfway. at that point you risk it clipping and damaging your speakers.

powered monitors are simpler, if only because they eliminate the need for another unit. they are not really cheaper, but they are very comparable to separate amps, and one can only hope that the monitor designers chose the amplifier because it was a good match for that particular speaker.

just about the cheapest option that i've heard good things about would be powered monitors made by M-Audio: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7...7061526351/search/g=home/detail/base_id/59391
 
I have the Hafler TA1600 powering KRK Rockits--total cost about $450. Very tight and clean. Nowdays, however, there are so many powered monitors out there that are affordable, that may be the best way to go. Event has some good ones out also. Check out the PS5 ($460), PS6 ($520), TR5-N ($300), TR8-N ($500).

http://www.8thstreet.com/product_search2.asp?combined=Event&site=Go+to....

The M-Audios have received some good reviews, too. BX5 ($300), BX8 ($500).

http://www.8thstreet.com/product_search2.asp?combined=M-Audio&site=Go+to....

Dang these things are getting cheap!
 
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