Basic speaker connector questions, 1/4" TRS, USB, etc.

A

agneum

Audiophyte
I just got a few speakers for my PC, Argon 7450A.
Manual is here:
(argonaudio)(dot)(com)/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/7450A-7460A-UK-01-09-2011A5format.pdf

1) Manual says connectors with same type of ends is best. An ¼”TRS to RCA cable is therefore bad? The cable I bought is TS to RCA, not TRS. From what I gather it's not "balanced", whatever that means? (I assumed TS were mono, and since there are two connectors why would they need to be TRS?)

2) I use a decent sound card with built in amp in my PC (ASUS STX II). Would I want to use it or the DAC in the speakers themselves by using the USB? Or should I proceed with getting a regular RCA/RCA? (sound card has ¼" line in and headphone jack only).


3) The sound card manual says this about connecting speakers:
"Left/Right Front Out. Left/Right Front Out ports have a built-in quality amplifier to drive headphones. Connect the 2/2.1 speaker set’s 3.5mm plug to the bundled RCA-to- 3.5mm Y cable, and then connect the Left/Right ends to the Front/Left Right Out ports on the sound card.

I shouldn't have to use a Y cable here I hope. RCA/RCA cable should work fine on its own, right?
Anything I need to think about? (Like "Balance"?)
Please keep replies relevant to the questions. Thank you!
 
Last edited:
WaynePflughaupt

WaynePflughaupt

Audioholic Samurai

1) Manual says connectors with same type of ends is best. An ¼”TRS to RCA cable is therefore bad? The cable I bought is TS to RCA, not TRS. From what I gather it's not "balanced", whatever that means? (I assumed TS were mono, and since there are two connectors why would they need to be TRS?)
There is no such thing as a RCA to TRS cable. The RCA to TS will be fine. There’s no need for a technical explanation about balanced vs. balanced (you can easily find that info on the Web; it has nothing to do with “mono”) since it appears your sound card doesn’t have balanced outputs anyway. You can plug an unbalanced cable with a TS end into a TRS input and it will work fine.


2) I use a decent sound card with built in amp in my PC (ASUS STX II). Would I want to use it or the DAC in the speakers themselves by using the USB? Or should I proceed with getting a regular RCA/RCA? (sound card has ¼" line in and headphone jack only).
I’ve never used a powered speaker with a USB input. Try them both and use the one you like best.


3) The sound card manual says this about connecting speakers:
"Left/Right Front Out. Left/Right Front Out ports have a built-in quality amplifier to drive headphones. Connect the 2/2.1 speaker set’s 3.5mm plug to the bundled RCA-to- 3.5mm Y cable, and then connect the Left/Right ends to the Front/Left Right Out ports on the sound card.

I shouldn't have to use a Y cable here I hope. RCA/RCA cable should work fine on its own, right?
Kind of confusing, because I’ve never heard of a sound card with its own speaker set. But the bottom line is, if the only analog audio output the sound card has is a 3.5 mm headphone jack, you’re going to need one of those 3.5 mm – RCA splitters.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt
 

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