2

Sorry I feel like an idiot asking this, but hey, I don't know what I don't know.

I have a microphone and some speakers and some box like things that you can attach speakers to (pictures here), and I want that whatever I say in the microphone should come out of the speakers loudly.

I think out of the two box like things I have that connect speakers to them, one of them is called a woofer and I think it's purpose is to equalize and also amplify sound but I can't be sure. The other one of the boxes seems like a useless thing that you just connect speakers to. It's just so you can connect speakers to it and channelize whatever sound you want into the speakers.

Well, I used to use one of these box like things, the woofer (Videocon brand) with my television set and DVD player. The other one is a Phillips make.

Before you begin to wonder why I bought these things if I know so little about using them, I just dug all these things out from my basement. They'd been lying there for years now. I got them free with some other stuff I bought at different times.

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4

The "Big Boxes" you have are both subwoofers with integrated amplifiers. You must connect each speaker to its appropriate amplifier, however, the Panasonic system requires a sound source that outputs 5.1 channel sound on RCA plugs. (The RCA marked "SW" would output sound from the "big box" itself.)

Your Videocon amplifier has a passthrough, you could connect the output on the Videocon to the FL/FR plugs on the Panasonic to make use of at least two of the Panasonic's speakers.

Given the equipment you have, you may have some success plugging the microphone directly into the PC2 Input on the Videocon. None of this equipment is very high quality, and microphones typically need to be preamplified before the level is suitable for use with a speaker system. Additionally, the PC2 input is probably stereo TRS, while the plug for your microphone is just TS, so your mileage may vary.

Plug it in, crank it, and see what happens.

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  • Thanks again, NReilingh. I forgot to mention that I couldn't up-vote your answer on the previous thread and this one because I need a minimum reputation of 15 before I can do that. About your reply, I do have RCA plugs that came with the Phillips system. Also, before I posted this question, I had tried out plugging in the microphone into the PC2 input on the Videocon big box, and attaching the Videocon speakers to it but nothing happened. – Sathyaish Jun 23 '11 at 19:57
  • I had also tried plugging in the mic into the Phillips big box and attaching its own speakers but then too I had no sound output from the speakers. – Sathyaish Jun 23 '11 at 19:58
  • I just re-read your reply and realized that you proposed another alternative that I hadn't tried out. Am going to try this one out now and report back. "Your Videocon amplifier has a passthrough, you could connect the output on the Videocon to the FL/FR plugs on the Panasonic to make use of at least two of the Panasonic's speakers." – Sathyaish Jun 23 '11 at 20:08
  • No luck with that either. :-( – Sathyaish Jun 23 '11 at 20:18
  • What I have not yet done so far is attach all the 6 speakers of the Phillips system I have and see. I just read what a 5.1 sound format is and it is giving me the feeling that I need to attach all the 6 speakers and see. I could be wrong, though. But I'll try anyway. I'll also try other permutations like changing the RCA cable. May be that one's the culprit. May be the cable is bad. I'll try with a new one. I have about 4 spare ones. I'll try all combinations I haven't tried tomorrow and report back. Thanks much. Learning is fun. – Sathyaish Jun 23 '11 at 20:24
1

I think you're really going to need a preamp. I don't have specs on the input requirements for your kit, but although they may have amplifiers built in, you'll want them driven at line level.

And your mic just isn't going to manage anywhere near that.

Get yourself a cheap preamp (even this one from Maplin for £4 should be enough)

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  • Thanks very much. Actually, at the moment, I simply want to use the periphery to amplify my voice signal within my living room. Would I still need an amplifier for that? Just asking. – Sathyaish Jun 25 '11 at 16:56
  • Yes, microphones generate a very small signal, so need amplification, and your kit needs a higher input level. – Rory Alsop♦ Jun 25 '11 at 21:41
  • You may still need a preamp to bring the signal level coming from the mic up enough to hear it through the speakers. – Friend Of George Jun 25 '11 at 21:43

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