My question was: What is the difference between a signal present at a pair of Audio Pre-Out jacks when compared to the signal present at a pair of Audio Line Out jacks. My new Cambridge Azur 851A integrated stereo amplifier has a pair of Pre-Out RCA jacks and a pair of Line Out RCA jacks, labeled Tape Out. There seems to be a good bit on confusion about these two types of output jacks and what their purpose is.

A standard RCA output jack pair, such as Tape Out, has a fixed-level audio signal present. This signal is designed to be fed into a standard audio input on another amplifier or AV receiver (inputs such as Tape In, CD In, DVR/VCR in, etc.).

An audio pre-out signal is lower-level signal, designed to be fed into the input of an amplifier with a separate volume control. This signal level varies with the volume control setting of the source device and with the volume control of the receiving device. Typical use for this signal would be as an input to a powered sub-woofer with its own volume control, or to a separate power amplifier with its own volume control.

Comments are invited and I hope this little post can help other folks who might be considering interconnect options.

Art

Hello Art.

My Amp (Musical Fidelity M6si) has both line level and pre-amp output. I'm currently using the line level to feed the input of a tape deck (not that I use the tape deck all that much these days).

I am not using the pre-amp outputs, but the thought has crossed my mind to run a connection into my Triton One LFE input. Not sure if there would be any benefit (or detriment) in doing that. To date I have only listened to two channel source material (through the amp). I plan on adding a sound source (forthcoming Oppo UDP-205) that of course includes movie and other sound track not necessarily music related. But even then I intended to configure the Oppo as two channel.

Any guidance or suggestion by the forum members as to whether or not I should run a connection between the amps pre-outs and the Triton's LFE input is welcome.

Also, if it is suggested to give it a try and find out, then I'm hopeful to use standard (i.e. inexpensive) RCA cables. Hopefully this type of connection does not require exotic cabling with impedance characteristics that need to be carefully considered.

ArthurDaniels wrote: My question was: What is the difference between a signal present at a pair of Audio Pre-Out jacks when compared to the signal present at a pair of Audio Line Out jacks. My new Cambridge Azur 851A integrated stereo amplifier has a pair of Pre-Out RCA jacks and a pair of Line Out RCA jacks, labeled Tape Out. There seems to be a good bit on confusion about these two types of output jacks and what their purpose is.

No confusion, the pre-out jacks are the variable signal from the volume control before it goes to the power amp, the Line Out jacks are a fixed level output (consumer audio line level is usually fixed at 0.3 volts I believe). These have been called "Tape Loops" and "External Processor Loops" when coupled with the typically paired Line In jacks.

That said, absolutely none of these have anything to do with connection to the Triton LFE input, which is only for the LFE output of a receiver/processor.

Moderator wrote: ...

That said, absolutely none of these have anything to do with connection to the Triton LFE input, which is only for the LFE output of a receiver/processor.

Thank you for that clarification Moderator. You've saved me the trouble of any "experimentation".

That said, the following is the applicable text from the M6si manual regarding their pre-outs. At face value I was led to believe there could be a benefit to connect to the Triton's LFE because I imagine (perhaps wrongly so) that the Triton can be thought of as an external power amp and active sub-woofer.

FROM M6si Manual:

PRE-OUT output sockets allow analogue signals controlled by the volume, to pass on to, for example, an
external power amplifier. This is useful for bi-amping or active “subwoofer” connection where volume out needs
to be controlled by the M6si front panel volume knob.

Sure, use those for your SuperSub, or any stand alone subwoofer with a low pass control (in a stereo system, of course). That does not apply to the built-in powered base section of the Triton speakers.

Nothing wrong with experimenting if you want to play, of course. It won't hurt anything, you'll just be bypassing all the work GET engineers did to blend the passive and active sections perfectly by throwing in your own idea of crossover point, slope and level. Chances of getting it as good, zero. Chances of mucking up the sound, I'm going with 95% just to leave the door open.

Hi GDHAL,

I'm not disputing the Moderator, but I can offer some additional insight into the option you were considering. The audio pre outs you have available would be best served by connecting them to an external powered sub-woofer with it's own level control. The external sub-woofer will have some sort of either fixed or variable cross-over to separate the low frequency signals from the total signal present at the audio pre outs. Standard RCA audio cables will be fine for such a hook-up - better quality audio cables might provide a noticeable difference in sound, or they might not do so. As I mentioned in my original post in this thread, I have connected my audio pre out L/R to a pair of external powered sub-woofers, using a pair of RCA audio splitter cables, along with two pair of standard RCA audio cables.

To reinforce the Moderator's comments, you will not gain any performance improvements by connecting the audio pre outs to the Triton LFE inputs. The only reason for making those connections would be if your audio source provides some sort of "Double Bass" option and you wished to implement that option. But, as the Moderator has mentioned, if you were to make such connections and elect to use the "Double Bass" option, you will dramatically increase the amount of bass you hear and you will need to be able to balance the bass against the rest of the sound yourself. you would then use the Triton One LFE gain controls to adjust the bass level.

Prior to implementing the Cambridge amplifier, I have had extensive past experience using Double Bass configurations. I have written a number of posts in this forum explaining my various connection and settings implementations. I was never fully satisfied with the resultant sound and only continued to use the Double Bass feature because my Onkyo NR 3009 just did not provide enough bass "oomph" to suit me. I no longer have that problem with the Cambridge amp, so I have my Cambridge speaker outputs connected to my Triton Ones and the LFE gain controls on the Ones set to the 12:00 o'clock position.

However, I am making use of the Triton One LFE inputs -- I have the LFE outputs of my Onkyo connected to the Tritons, but there are only LFE signals present from my Onkyo when I am watching movies and when the source (DVD, etc.) provides a multi-channel from which an LFE signal can be derived. When I am listening to two-channel music, there are no signals present at the Triton One LFE inputs.

I hope the above information helps to decide about hoe to implement your options.

Best,

Art