Cross posted from rec.audio.tech

I am toying with the idea of installing several sets of speakers around my
new house when I eventually move. What I would like to be able to do is
drive all the speakers from a single source and switch each room on/off as
required. I have seen some of the speaker switches on the market - is this
all I need or is there more. Also these switches seem to be just that
(switches). Is there anything available that will let me control the
*volume* on each set of speakers independently of the others ?

Thanks

Andrew

In article ,
Andrew Metcalfe wrote:
I am toying with the idea of installing several sets of speakers around
my new house when I eventually move. What I would like to be able to do
is drive all the speakers from a single source and switch each room
on/off as required. I have seen some of the speaker switches on the
market - is this all I need or is there more. Also these switches seem
to be just that (switches). Is there anything available that will let me
control the *volume* on each set of speakers independently of the
others ?

The only way to do this satisfactorily with many sets of speakers is to
use 100 volt line equipment which is designed exactly for this task. But
it's relatively expensive and normally not of the highest quality as it's
more used for PA etc rather than good sound reproduction.

A far better solution is to distribute a line level signal and use an
amplifier at each speaker. This allows decent quality and easy control
over levels.

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*Why is "abbreviated" such a long word?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Andrew Metcalfe wrote:
I am toying with the idea of installing several sets of speakers around my
new house when I eventually move. What I would like to be able to do is
drive all the speakers from a single source and switch each room on/off as
required. I have seen some of the speaker switches on the market - is this
all I need or is there more. Also these switches seem to be just that
(switches). Is there anything available that will let me control the
*volume* on each set of speakers independently of the others ?

A preamp (for source selection), a zone mixer (for varying the level at each
destination), and active monitors at each destination. For long runs, go
balanced between the zone mixer and active monitors.

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