I was wondering if I can safely connect one subwoofer to two receivers. The sub has 2 LFE inputs. Each receiver has a single sub out. I have a surround receiver connected to 5 small CSW MC55 speakers and a bass cube 105. The surround receiver does not have a zone 2 or B speaker option. I have a second stereo receiver for a pair of CSW Model Six. I want to be able to run the sub with the stereo pair for music and with the 5 cube speakers for movies. I will not run both receivers at the same time. Should I have any problems doing this? Thanks in advance for your help on this one.

Won't hurt anything to try. If it doesn't work all you need is a line-level switch box.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

I don't think that sub actually has 2 LFE inputs. More likely it is left and right pre-amp inputs.

The difference is that an actual LFE input would bypass the subs internal crossover. When you use the pre-amp inputs the crossover is still in the chain.

Back to your question though, as long as only 1 receiver is putting out a LFE signal at a time it should work.

Hi, this is my first post. I am setting up a HT, two TV viewing areas, plus a multi-zone set-up, and most everything I need answered seems to be in these forums. After weeks of reading these great forums by the experts, I saw this thread and it definitely is something I am interested in too.

I am running two identical, side-by-side, Yamaha RX-V1900 receivers in my set-up. The first powers a 5.1 system for a flatscreen HT in my small family room (plus another zone in another room), and it is connected to a MartinLogan Dynamo subwoofer in its LFE input. The subwoofer has only one LFE input. [I looked briefly to see if there were any subwoofers that had two LFE inputs, but I didn't find any . . . also, it really didn't make sense to me that a company would want to design one that way anyway.]

The second Yamaha receiver powers a 3.1 system in an immediately adjacent "kitchen/dining/bar" area where I have a secondary flatscreen set-up (it also powers two other zones in other rooms). Of course, right now I only have the "3" set up (Polk LC60i's) and am missing the "0.1" for this area, as I don't want to spend the money necessarily to buy a second expensive MartinLogan sub (also, that probably would be overkill, plus I would have to run more in-wall wires).

This "kitchen/dining/bar" area would be for basic TV watching where I would not need the sub tied in; the three in-ceiling Polks by themselves sound fine to me so far for TV viewing (news, cooking shows, children's DVDs, etc.).

However, and here is the big issue for my wife and me: the majority of our music listening (XM satellite, HD radio, CDs, MP3s from the network) is honestly going to be in this kitchen/dining/bar area. [Unfortunately, we just don't have the ability and time to sit and enjoy music in the adjacent family room where the subwoofer is located; also, you miss out on the "highs" if you try using the family room's 5.1 set-up to listen from the kitchen/dining/bar area.]

So, when we listen to music on the three Polks in the kitchen/dining/bar area, we get the "highs," but we really miss the soundstage and suffer from not having a subwoofer tied in.

Long set-up here to get to my point: if I disconnect the MartinLogan from the first receiver (for the 5.1 HT in the family room) and instead connect the MartinLogan to the second receiver that powers the kitchen/dining/bar area's three Polks, then the result is a huge improvement in music listening experience . . . EVEN if I leave the subwoofer right where it is located in the 5.1 family room HT (of course, it is not ideal if you are an audiophile, but it is better than nothing). This is mainly because the rooms are small, relatively open, and adjacent to each other.

So, this sort of "line level switch box" metioned here may be what I need to consider. I don't really know what they are, so I googled the term, but didn't see anything that jumped out at me for subwoofer applications. Any suggestions on how to search, or what the best product may be to "match" the Yamaha receivers and MartinLogan sub?

Also, I assume this sort of switch is some manual thing I would set by hand each time, correct? If so, is there any way I could set things up so that this could happen "electronically" instead? I plan to buy one of those RF remotes that do macros, but I can not figure out whether there is some way to permanently wire this subwoofer into both receivers, and then use receiver commands to change receiver settings such that, e.g., I could turn on and off each receiver's LFE output depending on what I was doing (but this does not seem possible on those Yamahas as far as I can tell). If I want to use the receivers' settings to electronically toggle back and forth, then maybe I can't use the LFE outputs on the receivers and have to connect the sub some other way to the two receivers? Maybe this all is just impossible and not worth it, and instead I just go with the manual switch? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I am also welcome to any criticism or suggestions on the whole set-up, such as if someone thinks I need to just knuckle-down and buy two subwoofers (of course, placing a subwoofer in the "kitchen/dining/bar" area would be a challenge.)

Thanks all.

This should do it (http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=180-935) – a remote controlled audio/video switcher. You could send the sub output from each Yamaha 1900 to it, then the output to your subwoofer. The macro would be programmed to turn on the switcher, then select the correct input. However, your remote will have to be the “learning” kind – meaning, it learns by placing both remotes head to head.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Thanks for the link; I will check them out.

Please don't laugh at this question, but I have wondered whether all these pre-amp outputs on these receivers, including the subwoofer LFE outputs, were somehow passing "digital." I know they use standard RCA cables, and I know that indicates they are "analog," but to me I always figured these pre-amp outputs had to be passing a "better" signal quality type then the ones passed in standard red/white RCA cables one used to use to pass audio from say a CD player to the amplifiers in a receiver (now everyone uses digital coax/optical for that connection). Maybe there are high end receivers with pre-amp digital optical/coax outputs for external amplifiers (and subwoofers) with digital optical/coax inputs? . . . I am pretty niave about this stuff.

Anyway, my follow-up question was to confirm that I simply attach the LFE subwoofer cable from the receiver's subwoofer pre-amp output to any one of the audio inputs on these selector boxes, and then from the same output on the selector box to the input on the subwoofer. In other words, it doesn't matter whether I use the red or white one on the box, right? :) [Man, since my subwoofer is so close by, all of this makes me wonder why I am paying more for a "subwoofer" cable instead of using one of the two cables from my decent quality, shielded red/white RCA stereo cables I have accumulated over the years!]

I have wondered whether all these pre-amp outputs on these receivers, including the subwoofer LFE outputs, were somehow passing "digital."
Maybe there are high end receivers with pre-amp digital optical/coax outputs for external amplifiers (and subwoofers) with digital optical/coax inputs? . . .No, those pre-outs on receivers are the same thing as what CD players,VCRs, etc. have. The only digital inputs and outputs I've seen are for the connection of digital recorders - things CD, DVD or mini-disc recorders. AFAIK no one is making a basic amplifier with digital inputs (which would require them to have on-board A/D converters). Probably will happen someday, though. Until then, there's no reason for receivers to to have "digital pre-outs."

In other words, it doesn't matter whether I use the red or white one on the box, right? Nope, doesn't matter. Just be sure and use all red or all white - can't mix them.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Hi, thanks for the info confirming that the LFE subwoofer connection is an analog audio connection that would use either the "white" or "red" RCA connection on the switcher.

I am still looking into this whole thing, and I am wondering about some of the reviews of the A/V switcher that was linked to above. For example, I noticed that a couple reviews said that the analog connections on the switcher degraded the quality of the analog audio signal and affected what they heard. [One said that the switcher has limited bandwidth and clips the signal (i.e. distortion) on the analog portion of the switch (which I would be of course having to use).]

I am wondering whether there is a better quality manual audio switch I should be considering? (Having an IR-remote controlled switch box is not essential I guess.) Should it be passive or powered?

If there is no high-quality, passive or powered analog switch that maintains the quality of the LFE signals to the one subwoofer, then, as another thought to avoid degradation of the analog LFE signal to the subwoofer, maybe the best option is . . . I simply just disconnect and connect two different subwoofer cables from the two receivers to the one subwoofer each time. :(

I guess I am willing to do that to maintain the best quality signal.

At least for me, the two Yamaha 1900s and MartinLogan sub were an expensive investment, and I don't want to screw things up. I searched high-end brands like Niles and Gefen, but they don't make switchers for such a simple audio RCA analog hook-up as mine.

Any thoughts by anyone are much appreciated!

I am wondering whether there is a better quality manual audio switch I should be considering? (Having an IR-remote controlled switch box is not essential I guess.) Should it be passive or powered?

If there is no high-quality, passive or powered analog switch that maintains the quality of the LFE signals to the one subwoofer... I would have recommended the one I use, the Chase RLC-1 (http://www.****************.com/forums/home-audio-subwoofers/2237-options-remote-controlling-your-subwoofer.html#post15410), but you'd have to look around for one or wait for one to show up on eBay, while you can get the PE switcher quick and easy. Actually, any old-school remote controlled pre amp will do the trick. A list of options is included in the link.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt