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Best method for 2 sets of speakers from 1 system?

due to having somewhat of a backyard playground including a swimming pool where people are often over in the summer (Michigan), I am forced to use a speaker selector switch so I can play music both through my main indoor system and outside through some good sounding speakercraft outdoor speakers. My system has pretty good tone, dynamics, and resolution for a moderate price range (see "time to listen" in virtual systems), and I am currently using a Rotel RSS-900 speaker selector box for the 4 months that I need to select speakers. However, I am in the process of setting up a hot tub, and will probably want the ability to play music through my outdoor speakers year round.

Therefore, I would appreciate knowing whether any of you have experience or comments regarding the quality of the RSS-900, or whether you have other suggestions outside of setting up an entirely different system for outdoors (which I am also considering). Since the binding posts on the RSS-900 are a little cheesy, I went inside to look at replacing two sets of the posts (it has 5 outputs) and found several electronic boards and two large cylindrical coils (sorry I am not that well versed in what is what electronically). I also observed that the binding posts are hard wired to the boards inside. I am not sure what all the electronics are, since it is a passive unit(no power cord), but I do know it has a switched "direct" output, where there is supposed to be no sonic degradation compared to the input (this is where I hook up my main speakers). Any suggestions how I can accomplish this multi-speaker setup without losing the quality of my main system would be greatly appreciated, or is the RSS-900 the best I can do?
mitch2

Showing 1 response by ehart

ehart
215 posts
 
How about just listening closely to the main system with and without the box in place, and decide for yourself whether there is degradation in sound? Let us know what you find.

I am in the process of solving a similar problem in a different way. I do have a separate preamp and amp (not yet installed) for "the rest of the house". But I don't want to buy (or house) additional sources. So my plan is to do "Y"s from all my sources into both preamps (one for my main system and one for everything else).

The advantage over your little box is that I will be able to play different music on the main and "rest of house" systems at the same time. In fact, the "rest of house" preamp (Adcom GTP-506) contains 3 zones and 2 tuners, so I could theoretically have several different types of music going at once!

If you don't need this multizone capability, the little box seems cheaper and better to me. If you can avoid purchase of a separate system, more money for upgrades on the main one (or for music)! Assuming you don't hear a sound degradation...

BTW, I believe the box is a "passive resistance network". The problem it fixes is that two speakers on one output look like one speaker with half the impedance. This can quickly be a problem for the amp. Others with more electrical background can say more. Here is a link:
http://www.rotel.com/products/specs/rss900.htm
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