How Do I Know If My Stereo Receiver Is Supplying My Bookshelf Speakers With Enough "Juice"

https://i.imgur.com/PyRcwUh.jpg

 

Don't feel bad Kevin. Stopped by to hear the new Monitor Audio Silver 300s the other day and guess what. Yep, the shop had wired them out of phase and didnt know it.

 

Still not sure what's going on as the picture seems to show the right channel - coming from right field. Your two cables going to your speakers look similar to regular electric cords except they're clear, right? 2 wires running side by side in the same cable. A lot of speaker cables will be marked in a way that distinguishes the 2 wires within the cable. This helps in hooking up the - on the amp to the - on the speaker. Sometimes, one of the halves of the cable will be a different color, or sometimes one will have a white stripe. Do your cables have anything like that?

 

As a side note, I love some of these 'new to turntables' threads from human nature aspect. Everybody knows that vinyl sounds way better than digital, right. You hear it everywhere. It's on the news, the internet, and out on the street. It gets repeated over and over. Has to be.

Last weekend, I experienced something that many of us on this forum have seen before. A friend told me her daughter got a turntable and told me I had to hear it. Her daughter told me to be prepared for how great it sounded (her mother is smiling and winking at me). Out comes this cheap all in one turntable. On the platter goes a warped album. Then, plunk, down goes the tonearm with no counterweight. The mother is standing behind the daughter laughing. It sounds nowhere near as good as a car radio from the 80's, but the daughter is talking about how great it sounds. Oh, the power of suggestion, and the desire to fall in with the masses.

So early in this thread, the music sound is fantastic. Now that the wires are switched around, it sounds more fantasticcer?

This vinyl fad is tricky. Vinyl is expensive. Its ok to want to play vinyl for the coolness factor. But if one is really interested in sound quality, get that cheapo cd player from Goodwill and do a real comparison. On a budget, cd players and cds may be a better fit than turntables, cartridges, and albums.

 

Digital has always been better at the very bottom. I prefer vinyl, but I feel I am at the very bottom of good vinyl sound. If I couldnt afford at least what I have know, I wouldnt bother.

 

Yes. My friend's daughter was just getting into vinyl. She had 4 albums that cost (gulp) $80 and a record player that seems to go for $90. For that $170, she could have bought the 5 disc changer I use from Goodwill for $5, decent receiver for about $25 from Goodwill. The same 4 cds probably cost $5 each. That leaves $120 for a used pair of speakers. Way better sound. And for the budget in the future, used cds cost $1-$5 vs. used albums at $8-$15, and new cds at $5-$7 vs. vinyl at $20-$30.

So my point, Kevin, is not to be fooled by the hype. On this forum, we listen to vinyl because we have properly set up rigs that really do make vinyl sound better than digital, and we can easily afford the price difference when buying music. We're not talking about comparing vinyl on a receiver and nice big speakers to a wireless bluetooth speaker, we're using vinyl and digital on the same rig.

 

Ok, listen @Kevin Rachman, I'm gpnna make this super easy for you. The speaker wire should have a white or red stripe on one wire. Connect that stripe to the red connection on the receiver and the red connection on the speaker. The clear wire to the black on speaker and receiver.

Facing the equipment, not from behind, is how you know left speaker and right speaker.

So, left speaker red or white stripe to red on both the receiver and speaker, clear to black on both. Same thing on the right speaker.

 

I love mine.

 

All I know is that I love the word "Juice" in the title of the thread.

 

I don't know how others are commenting, because I can't tell much from that picture. I can tell that one wire has writing on it, which is going to the lower right black=negative connection. But I can't tell on the top.
I'd turn off the amp and disconnect all the wires.
- One wire should go from the right speaker to the "R" terminals. The wire half with the writing on it should connect to the red + terminal,* the wire half which I presume does not have writing should go to the black - terminal. At the speaker end, the one with the writing should connect to the + or red terminal (picture at the speaker end????)
- Then another wire from the left speaker to the "L" terminal, writing to the red +, etc same as the right speaker.
Then to check I should have actually said to use a mono track with constant bass-early Elvis or early Beatles or such. A simpler way occurred to me: with the speakers next to each other, touch/un-touch ONE wire into the corresponding speaker terminal. If you've done the above wiring correctly, the bass should increase noticeably when connected.

*this is not due to physics or something, it's just a way to consistently keep track. Some wires have + + + markings on one half, some have a raised ridge or color stripe.

 

Jeez, something to check when going out to audition, huh? I never thought about that. I should add like some mono solo bass or something to my listening check repertoire.

 

Yes, I know that's what I have read on here, but I think digital sounds better on my headphones, but in my system, I prefer vinyl because I hear all the instruments and the instruments are clearer.

 

I think thats what I did I will try to send a better pic.

 

'It does get better as you go up the chain. Good excuse to get a good job.

 

I did that Positive Red Negative Black but I think why it looks wired is because I think I might have put the speaker wire for the Right speaker into the left and vice versus IDK. I am very bad at giving direction.

https://i.imgur.com/Y5tPEPg.jpg

Imgur

I connected the speaker to the right in the picture to the left speaker section of the amp. and vice versus because I think In "real life" the thing would be opposite. If I stand in front of my speaker the left speaker in the speaker is actually the right speaker.

 

If you have the right channel going to the left channel, and vice versa, the soundstage will be reversed, but that is not out of phase. Out of phase is having the + connection on one speaker going to the correct plus connection on the amp. The negative connections will also be correct. The other speaker will have the positive on the amp going to the negative on the speaker. The negative on the amp will be going to the positive on the speaker. The sound will be real spacey and you will initially think the soundstage is huge. But soon, you will notice a lack of centerfill, poor bass, and most of the soundstage will be outside of the speakers.

 

so when I determine what is right or left should I face the speaker or have my back facing the speaker. It seems that I was wrong and should face the speakers when I determine what is right and what is left.

 

That is how I do it. From the listening position, turning the balance control fully to my right will send all sound to the speaker on my right. And vice versa. I repeat, that is not out of phase and wont cause all those problems.

 

What is the listening position? Can you explain in terms of having one look at the speakers? When I determine which speaker is right or left should it be by having my back to the speakers or my face staring at the speakers. I hope this makes sense I assume I did it wrong it looks weird.

 

ELAC UB5 Uni-fi Listening Impressions

Doubt it is the same issue though...(@92db issue).

Why not just try a different amp?

 

Once I get a Job I'm going to buy a great amp either new or a relatively new one for a steal on craigslist

 

I Have fixed the Problem!!!!!!! My speakers were out of phase. Now I also know the listening position means facing the speakers!!!!. I finally hear That Vinyl "Warmth"

 

Ah the simplest solution....blah blah. Glad this crisis has been resolved!

 

Ah. Glad we were able to help. Looks like my hypothesis in post #13 was correct. Enjoy, sir.

 

So if you move the balance knob to the left, the sound is then coming out of the right speaker? Because if so then yeah you have them backwards.

Also I'd recommend moving up to like 14 gauge wire...how long are your wire runs?