passive sub woofer

[maximoiglesias]

Hey guys,
I have a passive sub woofer in my HT system, can I power it via an old stereo integrated amplifier that I have?
How do I connect it? From the sub output of my reciever to the aux input of the amp??
I know the best thing is to buy a powered sub but in my country that is very hard $$$ to do.

 

[jaxvon]

Yeah you could, though I doubt one channel of your integrated has enough oomph to drive a subwoofer, unless it's pretty small. I would look at getting an inexpensive PA amp, like a Mackie or an Ashly and using that. You can get a lot of watts for a few bucks.

 

[jotham]

Following up on Jaxvon's comment. You can't tie the two channels of your integrated amp together unless it specifically has a mono switch (which seems unlikely). So as Jaxvon said, you would be using one channel of your amp and it is unlikely to have enough power. You would probably need a minimum of 150/watts per channel RMS @ 8ohms to power most subs reasonably.

Buying a pro-amp like Mackie, Peavey, etc. is the cheapest course. You can often get these used from musicians for cheap. A lot of them can be bridged into mono (switch on the back).

 

[j_garcia]

Integrateds usually have pretty decent power supplies. If the sub isn't a heavy duty deal, and the sub has stereo inputs (R&L), you should be OK to use it. Do you happen to know any specs for the sub?

SVS's passive subs are fairly serious customers, and they say there is no problem driving them with an old stereo receiver (just don't expect the same performance as something like a Crown, etc...)

Long term though, a bridgable amp is probably the best way to go.

 

[maximoiglesias]

passive subwoofer

Thanks,

The amp does have a mono switch. It is a NEC AT-4200 rated at 40 watts per ch at 8 ohms.
The sub is a unknown brand to me, it doesnt look like it needs a lot of power.
It is a 8" woofer in a big box and it does have L & R inputs.

 

[Spiffyfast]

Thanks,

The amp does have a mono switch. It is a NEC AT-4200 rated at 40 watts per ch at 8 ohms.
The sub is a unknown brand to me, it doesnt look like it needs a lot of power.
It is a 8" woofer in a big box and it does have L & R inputs.

prolly not enought to push a sub, but you can always try it out and see how it sounds

 

[maximoiglesias]

passive subwoofer

It looks like nobody else have ever try this. So I will give it a try and will let you know how it sounds.

I grew up listening to Altecs Voice of the Theater so I know what to expect on the low end.

 

[Spiffyfast]

It looks like nobody else have ever try this. So I will give it a try and will let you know how it sounds.

I grew up listening to Altecs Voice of the Theater so I know what to expect on the low end.

I've done something like that, but I was listening to a 12" JL sub being powered by a 100x2 Stereo Receiver bridged so I know it was getting some decent juice sounded pretty good and would rock the whole house, just dont think ur amp has enough umph for a sub

 

[maximoiglesias]

I know but I will try anyhow.
My listening room is no that big so I don't need much power not even for my whole system.

 

[Spiffyfast]

like I said, hook it up, give it a try and find out how it sounds, ull find out quickly if ya need more power