Audio setup advice required!

[hexagonLife]

Hello all,

I am trying to get a makeshift audio setup on the go, using my Netbook (which has an extremely low-powered soundcard), and my bookshelf speakers I picked up at a charity shop.

I know that I need a preamp, and was actually given a generic one by a friend which is just distorting whatever I try to listen to after a certain volume. It is listenable, but I want to put this thing up a LOT louder.

So, I've been looking for other preamps, but notice that most of them only output to speaker wire. Problem is, my speakers have RCA connectors. I tried googling whether or not I could just chop these off and hook the wire up to a new preamp, but apparently that's not suitable.

So what I now need, is an affordable (~£30 inc. delivery), half-decent preamp that has RCA outputs. No amount of sleuthing is turning up what I require. I have found some well-rated Headphone amps on Amazon, but worry that they might not be capable of powering my speakers (which can only be connected by RCA; no power hookup etc.).

Any ideas? I'm thinking of just trying to source a half-decent DJ mixer off ebay.

Cheers!

hL

[Cupz]

Someone I know has a turntable preamp that MIGHT be RCA, and he was trying to get rid of it not to long ago. I could ask him if he still has it and how much he wants for it.

[Lens Larque]

Hello all,

I am trying to get a makeshift audio setup on the go, using my Netbook (which has an extremely low-powered soundcard), and my bookshelf speakers I picked up at a charity shop.

I know that I need a preamp, and was actually given a generic one by a friend which is just distorting whatever I try to listen to after a certain volume. It is listenable, but I want to put this thing up a LOT louder.

So, I've been looking for other preamps, but notice that most of them only output to speaker wire. Problem is, my speakers have RCA connectors. I tried googling whether or not I could just chop these off and hook the wire up to a new preamp, but apparently that's not suitable.

So what I now need, is an affordable (~£30 inc. delivery), half-decent preamp that has RCA outputs. No amount of sleuthing is turning up what I require. I have found some well-rated Headphone amps on Amazon, but worry that they might not be capable of powering my speakers (which can only be connected by RCA; no power hookup etc.).

Any ideas? I'm thinking of just trying to source a half-decent DJ mixer off ebay.

Cheers!

hL

At the thrifty shop where you got the first set of speakers could you find another set that uses the wire for almost nothing? Is it a receiver or a per-amp? does it have a headphone-out jack? Output a y to rca?

[Lens Larque]

http://www.ehow.com/how_4885770_convert ... plugs.html

[hexagonLife]

Some great advice here! I especially love the RCA female to wire cables, the thought crossed my mind about those but I didn't think they'd actually exist (although in hindsight it seems like a perfectly sensible idea).

I got sick of all the faffing around and managed to source one of these for peanuts:
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-CMT-EX5-Micr ... B00006IS4F

It's beautiful, and the sound quality is really fantastic. Played some of TH to my girlfriend last night and the bass coming through on Cold Earth was really nice.

Anyway, thanks for all your help folks![/url]