Any audio gurus or enthusiasts?

[turboscrew]

I think they use complementary output op-amps, and the minus-line is the reference: either the inverted output or the amplifier ground. It would be switching between double-sided and single-sided op-amp configuration.

I think that the main functionality, and a lot of other stuff is integrated into the DAC.
https://www.akm.com/content/dam/documen ... asheet.pdf

After that, probably an ordinary power amp stage.

[Lady Fraktor]

The DAC is simply put, the equivalent of the source amplifier of a home component system.
Connect your CD, DVD, tuner and speakers etcetera.

The main problem to me is the 15W output.
Is it 15W RMS which would mean peak is 30W or is it 15W peak so RMS would be 7.5W....
Most outputs are usually mW (my headphones are 200mW/ 250 Ohms) so I am not sure how well a amplifier would be able to 'filter' the extra noise so to speak or if it would be possible.

[KathyNS]

Speaker power levels are always RMS.

Headphone levels are in the mW range, so you can't use them to drive speakers. I am not sure what you mean by being able to filter "extra" noise. A good amplifier should have low noise regardless of the power level, up to the rated power level.

Note that you will only occasionally be drawing 15W. That is a safe maximum, and would typically happen only on loud passages of music or fancy waveforms. You will typically be running a lot lower than that.

Power levels depend as much on waveform shape as they do on volume. A sound with a square-ish waveform will require a lot more power than a sine wave, just because more acceleration is required of the speaker cone. The reason you need a fairly high power capability in the amp is to faithfully reproduce the shape of square wave, not necessarily to play it louder.

[Lady Fraktor]

I am likely overthinking this, (not that I ever do that)
The majority of the passive loudspeakers I have looked at online are rated as requiring about 60W each which is why I am thinking about the amplifier/ speakers.
My thinking is that with the headphone amplifier putting out 15W RMS, that is not something you would want to put into a amplifier. (what I referred to as noise going in)

[AstroBee]

If you are looking for really high-end speakers, check out www.sweetwater.com . They specialize in recording studio gear.

[turboscrew]

Passive speakers don't require any specific power. They just stand that much - RMS, continuous. When there is a sharp corner in the sound wave, they can, momentarily, draw a lot more (current - the impedance of 4 Ohm speaker can go, momentarily, to about 0.5 Ohm). The heavy series amps can have over 1kW peak output power, like old Centurion, that has huge capacitors and a bridge power amplifier for that. That's why big cables are recommended between the power amp and the speakers.

I think the DAC, basically, IS the amp. The power to the signal is then added with a power amp stage (my guess).
The box is basically a digital signal processor that controls the DAC, and probably the power stage too.
I THINK the 15W is put into the speaker poles, and that the other outputs are line-level or close to that.

On the other hand, it's output voltage that kills the next stage. If the voltage is fine, the next stage only takes as much current as it needs, no matter how much more the previous stage can supply. On the other hand, if the next stage needs more current than the previous stage can supply, that can break the output of the previous stage, but usually the signal just gets small and crappy. Of course impedance mismatch can distort the signal quite a bit.

If you have a digital volt meter, you can have a rough check of the output levels (unloaded). Digital volt meter gives you the true RMS. (Turning coil volt meters only give you the true RMS if the signal is pure sine.) During music it changes, of course, but you can still see, if it's less than 2 V or closer to 7 V.

You can probably drive speakers with the other outputs too, but you'll hear next to nothing. I think the output impedances of the outputs keep the power (or current) from getting too high. Better safe than sorry, though.

[KathyNS]

I am likely overthinking this, (not that I ever do that)
The majority of the passive loudspeakers I have looked at online are rated as requiring about 60W each which is why I am thinking about the amplifier/ speakers.
My thinking is that with the headphone amplifier putting out 15W RMS, that is not something you would want to put into a amplifier. (what I referred to as noise going in)

Juha is right: the speakers don't require 60W. If they are rated at 60W, it means that they can tolerate no more than 60W. A 15W amp will drive 60W speakers just fine, though they won't be as loud as with a more powerful amp, and you may get distortion when the music demands more power.

You do not want to put 15W into an amplifier. Use one of the Line-Out connectors for that.

[turboscrew]

I am likely overthinking this, (not that I ever do that)
The majority of the passive loudspeakers I have looked at online are rated as requiring about 60W each which is why I am thinking about the amplifier/ speakers.
My thinking is that with the headphone amplifier putting out 15W RMS, that is not something you would want to put into a amplifier. (what I referred to as noise going in)

Juha is right: the speakers don't require 60W. If they are rated at 60W, it means that they can tolerate no more than 60W. A 15W amp will drive 60W speakers just fine, though they won't be as loud as with a more powerful amp, and you may get distortion when the music demands more power.

You do not want to put 15W into an amplifier. Use one of the Line-Out connectors for that.

Yes. The speaker output has a lot higher voltage - probably around 7 V in this case, and it will, probably, destroy the input of an amp, that expects less than 2V.

[Lady Fraktor]

Quite a few of the speakers I have been looking at do require a certain amount of power supplied by the amplifier to get the full frequency response, the ones I referred to in my last posting required a minimum of 60W to a maximum of 250W.

I was thinking earlier that I will likely have to find a amplifier that will connect either through the 3.5mm or XLR though that so far seems to be a very expensive idea as the ones I have found that have those inputs are in heart attack price ranges.

[turboscrew]

Are you sure they were passive speakers? :-D
Or maybe they have gigantic splitters?
In that case, you probably need to get a good power amp.
Like this...
https://addictedtoaudio.com.au/products ... -amplifier

It tends to be the case, that if you want a hifi-power amp with 250W or up, you get to pay.

It looks like hifi-stuff is hard to find these days, except some BS "car hifi"-stuff. (I think "car hifi" is an oxymoron.)
Today's youth rather listens to (c)rap music from internet through crappy PC sound system, I guess...
Or maybe even though PHONE!

[KathyNS]

Are you handy with a soldering iron? You may have to get creative with making up your own cables.

[turboscrew]

I don't think the cables are, really, a problem.
The power amplifier could be, if hundreds of Watts (RMS) are needed.
The one I linked, can push 2x300W in 8 ohm (and 2x500W in 4 ohm), and has XLR input. The price is just somewhat high...

[KathyNS]

Back when I had my own recording studio, my power amplifier was an Alesis RA-100, with 100 watts per channel into 4 ohms. It had an incredibly low noise level. It has been superseded by newer models, but you can still find it on the used market for $100 - $250.

Update on current models:
The Alesis RA-150, surprisingly, doesn't deliver as much power as the old RA-100.
The Alesis RA-500 delivers 250 watts per channel into 4 ohms. It retails for $500-$600.

[Lady Fraktor]

Are you sure they were passive speakers? :-D
Or maybe they have gigantic splitters?
In that case, you probably need to get a good power amp.
Like this...
https://addictedtoaudio.com.au/products ... -amplifier

It tends to be the case, that if you want a hifi-power amp with 250W or up, you get to pay.

It looks like hifi-stuff is hard to find these days, except some BS "car hifi"-stuff. (I think "car hifi" is an oxymoron.)
Today's youth rather listens to (c)rap music from internet through crappy PC sound system, I guess...
Or maybe even though PHONE!

Sorry for the slow reply, I am busy baking

Yes they are passive speakers, I do know the difference between passive and active
How to connect to a amplifier was the original question.
I do not require 250W, just that most passive speakers have a power requirement range where they reproduce the sound fully/ properly.
I would be perfectly happy using 15W per channel if there was a set of full range speakers that operated well with that power supply.
Part of the problem with smaller speakers is that many are made as front speakers for home theater setups and these are not good for
music listening as they are tuned for higher frequencies and miss out on the lower ones.
I do not want to add a subwoofer so that rules that type of speaker out.

Not sure where you are looking but hifi equipment is easy to locate, here are a couple of locations if you are looking
https://mareks.fi/ or https://audiokauppa.fi/ (the site seems to be down at the moment)

Car audio and home audio are different things though. A lot of people seem to confuse speaker count and power for quality.
Then when they power on the system all you can hear is background hiss through everything like a bad case of tinnitus...
PC sound cards and telephone sound.... just urgh!
Hifi in a vehicle is quite easy to achieve but you will pay for it.

[turboscrew]

How to connect to a amplifier was the original question.

LXR cable between your amp and, say, Alesis RA-500.
Then, say, 6 mm^2 cables from Alesis to the speakers.

I do not require 250W, just that most passive speakers have a power requirement range where they reproduce the sound fully/ properly.
I would be perfectly happy using 15W per channel if there was a set of full range speakers that operated well with that power supply.
Part of the problem with smaller speakers is that many are made as front speakers for home theater setups and these are not good for
music listening as they are tuned for higher frequencies and miss out on the lower ones.

That's what I meant with the commens on youth and car hifi.

Not sure where you are looking but hifi equipment is easy to locate, here are a couple of locations if you are looking
https://mareks.fi/ or https://audiokauppa.fi/ (the site seems to be down at the moment)

Car audio and home audio are different things though. A lot of people seem to confuse speaker count and power for quality.
Then when they power on the system all you can hear is background hiss through everything like a bad case of tinnitus...
PC sound cards and telephone sound.... just urgh!
Hifi in a vehicle is quite easy to achieve but you will pay for it.

Not, really, if you want GOOD hifi. Cars have so many angled surfaces, that you are bound to have "dead points" and weird echoes interfering with each other. The mounting of speakers is hard: not so many good locations, and the material to mount them to, may not be very good. It may sound good for the driver, but crappy for the passenger.

[Lady Fraktor]

The Alesis looks very nice and apparently there is a retailer in Bratislava as well!
Most shops are closed till at least 03Jan for holidays and I would likely have to make a appointment due to current lockdown rules.
I was looking at a beautiful tube amplifier earlier and then saw the price... 49.000€ and it weighed 81.5 kg!!
A work of art though.

Cables are not a problem, if I cannot source them locally Sabin can likely make them as she repairs amplifiers and guitars so is quite experienced at soldering.
It seems the easiest way to go is with XLR to RCA

[Lady Fraktor]

Not, really, if you want GOOD hifi. Cars have so many angled surfaces, that you are bound to have "dead points" and weird echoes interfering with each other. The mounting of speakers is hard: not so many good locations, and the material to mount them to, may not be very good. It may sound good for the driver, but crappy for the passenger

If the installer knows what they are doing and have the equipment, they can build a system that is placed properly and be just as enjoyable for the passenger as the driver
You just have to pay for it.

[turboscrew]

Those, at least, used to be quite good. http://kaiuttimet.fi/en/

[turboscrew]

These used to be good too, but it seems they have gone towards active speakers.
https://www.genelec.com/

[Lady Fraktor]

I am looking at a few possibilities, Wharfdale Evo, Cabasse Murano, Quad-S and a couple others.
It will depend on how much a amplifier is going to cost as well.

It is all about balancing the money and giving up my hobbies budget for the next 2-3 years