Multiroom Output (Cheap Amp)

[Night Black]

Before we start, let me completely state that I feel like a retard at the moment and am out of my element.

A buddy of mine is working on a restaurant. He wants to have sound from his personal collection on his iPod playing in the dining area. Also, he has a TV mounted facing out towards the patio, and wants to install external speakers to broadcast sports games and whatnot.

Thinking I knew how to do it, I managed to pick up a Pioneer VSX-819H Receiver on clearance for about 220. It has multiroom technology. I assumed it meant that the first area would broadcast out of the "Speaker A" wire connections, and the second would broadcast out of the "Speaker B" connection. Unfortunately, it doesn't do that. "Speaker A and Speaker B" are meant to output the same source, and the second area's output would be a line out RCA intended to go to an amplifier.

Obviously my speaker wires for the external speakers and the RCA are incompatible, so is there an easy way to connect the two and provide volume control for the external? World Cup season is approaching.

Basically, if you haven't understood what I've typed in my frustration of dealing with this receiver, how do I take the output from the receiver, which is a line out, and connect it to outdoor speakers that connect via speaker wire, without buying yet another receiver? Budget is extremely limited.

Thanks.

 

[keenan]

Something like this would likely do the job on a really tight budget: http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-383 . In a bar setting, probably not enough power, but if you've got relatively efficient speakers, it's probably sufficient for a restaurant. Without an idea of how large the space is, how loud you need it to be, sound quality requirements and what speakers you'll be using, it's hard to say.

 

[Night Black]

Well, it's outside, so audio doesn't need to be that loud to cover the 20x20 patio.. But as long as I can hook the wires up to the device, then it should be okay.

129 seems pretty pricy, given I could get a stereo with line in for a bit less.

 

[keenan]

$99.90, they do a stupid 'MSRP but we sell it for this' thing, even though the product is basically their house brand. Pretty cheap for a reasonable good amp, though you can certainly do cheaper, and economies of scale on consumer garbage help.

Though scratch that, I just looked at the receiver you bought and it's a 5.1 unit, why don't you just use it in surround mode as a 5 channel amp? Do you want to be able to switch each output individually? Depending on your setup you can probably rig this by using a splitter on the 'ipod' input and connecting it to the surround fronts as well as another stereo input setup to duplicate the audio on the rear channels. Connect the sports to the rear inputs on the surround.

 

[96redformula]

I am giving this Plye PCA3 mini amp a try for my patio setup w/ 2 90db JBL 3-way outdoor speakers, reviews seem very positive on the unit. I will update you on how it goes by Monday, apparently many people are using them for the different rooms in the house, sounds like one heck of a bargain.


http://www.amazon.com/Pyle-2x75W-St...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1274945874&sr=8-1
Pyle PCA3
* 2x75W MAX Power
* BLUE LED output level display
* POWER ON/OFF switch and LED indicator
* MP3 Via 3.5mm To RCA Converter
* RCA jack input


Speakers I will be testing with it:

JBL S36AWII
http://www.jbl.com/EN-US/Products/Pages/ProductDetails.aspx?PID=S36AWII&accT=1&tsT=0&ovT=1

Infinity Beta 20's
http://www.infinitysystems.com/home...ser=BET&Language=ENG&Region=EUROPE&Country=GR