Any successful whole-house audio via x10 relays?

[Sacarino]

Hi guys,

Maybe this is a stupid question, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway so anyone that follows might not have to ask the same stupid question.

I have a desire for whole-house audio for announcements and low-volume background audio from mp3s. I don't need high fidelity, nor am I an audiophile that cares about .023 of pitch distortion. I was thinking about what I have laying around here that I might be able to use to accomplish such a goal and it occurred to me that I have an older Smarthome I/O Linc that would give me four discrete zones, plus a couple of Elk-70 speakers that would seem to suit my purposes alright. The Elk speakers are pretty low quality so I'd upgrade to something better once the concept was proven.

Provided that I pay attention to the speaker and amp impedance issue with a switcher like this ($40 at NewEgg), can I just use the relays to flip on and off individual zones? is it possible to just interrupt the speaker circuit like this? I'm not terribly concerned about individual zone volume control, but I don't know if speakers in general appreciate the source to be just toggled on like that.

Thanks in advance for your insight!

 

[upstatemike]

I assume you will go from your amp to the Sima switch to some relays controlled by the I/O Linc to the speakers. I'm not sure the Sima is of much value here since it does not really balance the load but rather just adds some protection circuitry for when the impedance gets too low. A different speaker selector or a 70V PA type arrangement might work better to ensure the volume does not shift on a given speaker when other speakers are turned on and off.

If your amp is OK when all of the speakers are playing (lowest impedance) then switching speakers out of the circuit with a relay will not hurt anything as that just brings the impedance up (assuming the speakers are all connected in parallel.) Series connected speakers won't work because using a relay to disconnect one will disconnect them all.

 

[nightwalker]

You could also use inexpensive computer speaker sets. They have a small amp built-in and fit nicely behind a fake heating vent. Using a X10 appliance module to turn them on or off. Since the amps are at each location and you're only dealing with line level signals there will be no need to worry about impedance matching. I've been using this setup for years for announcements around the house.

 

[sic0048]

You could also use inexpensive computer speaker sets. They have a small amp built-in and fit nicely behind a fake heating vent. Using a X10 appliance module to turn them on or off. Since the amps are at each location and you're only dealing with line level signals there will be no need to worry about impedance matching. I've been using this setup for years for announcements around the house.

That is a very interesting idea. I bet you can get decent sound out of the computer speakers as well - at least when compared to other options in the same price range. You can definitely pick computer speakers up cheap.

 

[electron]

That's what I do, my main TTS speakers are old Yamaha 2.1 PC speakers, they sound really good. They get turned off at night using an appliance module, so I won't hear any strange OS sounds. I am planning on deploying a few more of these setups once I have more time.

 

[AutomatedOutlet]

Funny story. I was at a wedding reception a few years ago and noticed that the speakers in the main dance room had X10 appliance modules on them.....

 

[Sacarino]

If your amp is OK when all of the speakers are playing (lowest impedance) then switching speakers out of the circuit with a relay will not hurt anything as that just brings the impedance up (assuming the speakers are all connected in parallel.) Series connected speakers won't work because using a relay to disconnect one will disconnect them all.

Your assumption was correct. I was planning on wiring them in parallel to avoid the single zone issue but I hadn't considered the load balancing at all... is there a selector that you would recommend for my test? At some point in the future I'm going to want audio that adds to the home's value but it's all about the proof of concept and the WAF, so I have to keep it at slush fund levels for now.

You could also use inexpensive computer speaker sets. They have a small amp built-in and fit nicely behind a fake heating vent. Using a X10 appliance module to turn them on or off. Since the amps are at each location and you're only dealing with line level signals there will be no need to worry about impedance matching. I've been using this setup for years for announcements around the house.

That IS an interesting idea... how do you blend them into the decor? Or do you just hide them behind furniture and such?

Martin, did you sell the DJ on better gear?

 

[electron]

I personally have mine hidden behind a desk in the living room, at one point, had a set behind the TV in the bedroom, and am considering putting a set on top of my kitchen cabinets (the wife put a lot of baskets up there, so it's easy to hide them in one of those baskets).

 

[nightwalker]

I have mounted mine either in the wall or in a ceiling behind what looks like a heating vent.

 

[Sacarino]

I have mounted mine either in the wall or in a ceiling behind what looks like a heating vent.

Can you expand a bit on how you've mounted them in the wall?

 

[nightwalker]

Not a lot to it really, I cut the appropriate size hole for the heating vent grill. Next I fished the wire up through the wall, I had to put a little shelf at the bottom of the opening i had cut so the speakers had something to sit on inside the wall. Then just sit the speakers on their little shelf, screw the heating vent grill over top of it all and the mounting is done. First floor speaker and electrical connections were made in the basement just below and the second floor connections were made in the attic.

 

[JimS]

I was thinking of using amplified computer speakers too but thought noise and hum pickup might be a problem. What are people using to run the signals and is this a real problem? The signals are fairly low level so I would think it would be. I was thinking I would build an op amp differential line driver, use CAT5 twisted pair, and put a op amp diff receiver at each speaker set. Is this overkill? Like others I am not looking for ultimate quality.

 

[nightwalker]

Since it's pretty much line level output we're dealing with I used some 22/4 stranded security wire I had laying around. I haven't noticed any hum or interference with the system. I've been running it for about 3 years now with no troubles.

 

[AutomatedOutlet]

Martin, did you sell the DJ on better gear?

No, just kept it to myself. Also keep to myself the fact that they had X10 cameras too.....