[jessica00]

have a 50 dollar pair of altec lansing 2.1 speakers, with a headphone jack, plugged my 497's into it (never have before now)
now, my ears are far from trained..but the sound is a bit clearer, maybe a tad flatter. but the quality sure isnt worse.
im sure it cant compare to something like a meta tho.

 

[jessica00]

another thing i just noticed, and compared sound card to speaker jack with a frequency generator, speaker jack tends to put out freqs a bit lower, and bass is deeper in songs, maybe its just me tho.

 

[wallijonn]

sounds like impedences are interacting, ie, the amp portion of the built in amp (or speakers) is presently a load to the sound card's output. if your speakers are amp'ed, then the output impedence out of the altec lansings are better suited to your headphones.

 

[JahJahBinks]

...

 

[DLP]

Strange. The only thing I've noticed when plugging my headphones into speakers is a loud and annoying hiss and static. Crappy speakers?

 

[jessica00]

yes, i had a pair of crappy speakers that did that too. these dont.

 

[pedxing]

Hmmm, computer speakers that don't hiss? I think those speakers are broken.

 

[jessica00]

well, it DOES have to draw enough power for a subwoofer. the power is heavily filtered too.

 

[Mallow005]

isn't the subwoofer plugged directly into the wall socket? Not sure what you mean by it has to draw enough power to drive a subwoofer. Also, if it's coming out of your soundcard and you don't notice sound degradation, you might want to look for a new source.

 

[jessica00]

source is a santa cruz.

 

[Mallow005]

oh, that's your only source? you should upgrade.

 

[jessica00]

i have a 1st gen cd/mp3 player too, and an old ass walkman cdp.
have a dvd player in living room with a headphone jack. not that that means ****.
no amps due to no job.
how is the santa cruz a bad source? i find it quite..er..badass.

 

[gerG]

I'm curious how this works. You plug the cans into a speaker? When you do so, do the speakers turn off?

Please don't take this for a smartass question. Most members of this board have gotten caught listening to headphones with the speakers still on (myself included). My episode was in an audio shop with lots of people around (a few years back). I had plugged a set of phones into an integrated amp, switched off the speakers, and proceded to have my own listening session. I caught on pretty quickly when several co-patrons looked in my direction at the same time. I had merely switched from one set of speakers to a larger and more efficient set. Thinking quickly I flipped the switched and gave the onlookers my best "which one of you jokers did this" look. They all averted their gaze pretty quickly. The best defense is always a good offense.


gerG

 

[kyr]

okay...can't speak for the altec lansing, but I do have logitech Z560s, and this is how it works on them.
The computer speaker system has a wired remote, which connects to the computer and also the subwoofer, which in turn connects to the satellites. The remote is powered through the subwoofer, which is connected to a power strip. The remote has a headphone jack, and if you plug the headphones in, the speakers automatically mute. The remote also has built-in amplification, as all self-respecting computer speakers do, so the headphone jack on the remote can drive your cans better than plugging them directly into the soundcard line out. Of course, it's no substitute for a dedicated amp, but it does improve the sound.

 

[gerG]

hmmm, makes sense. The phones are likely driven off the amp that runs the satellites. The only problem might be the crossover. The feed to the sats is downstream of a high pass filter to keep the little cones from becoming flying rubber darts. They should have wired the phone plug upstream of the xover, but I wouldn't bet on it in all cases.


gerG