Hi. We have a single ceiling speaker that we need to run from a computer. The headphone jack isn't quite powerful enough to fit the bill, so is there any type of small amplifier that would work to boost the computer audio for the 8ohm speaker? Thanks!
I've seen some headphone boosters/splitters, but they've all been battery operated.
That depends on the volume requirements and the electrical sensitivity and impedance of the speaker. Do you know any of those items?
Do you have a mono output from the computer or will the signal need to be switched from a stereo to a mono output? What sort of program material will be run through the speaker and what quality level is desired?
Hi. I was not in charge of the speaker installation, so I don't know particular details. I do believe it is an 8", 100w, 8ohm speaker.
The audio feed is mono. The computer is feeding a business presentation into a conference room for viewing on a large LCD screen. We are hoping to play videos and DVDs, so the audio needs to be CD quality.
If you have RCA outputs from the computer - or a cable that ends in RCA's at the amplifier end - you can use any receiver/amplifier that suits your budget. If you can find an integrated amplifier (an integrated amplifier has no tuner/radio), it offers the least amount of buttons and knobs in most cases. If you are less concerned about audio quality for speech only, Radio Shack sells small PA amplifiers that would serve the purpose. Any company that sells sound reinforcement equipment should also be able to provide something like a Bogen or Davis PA amplifier. If you opt for the PA quality sound, just check in your local Yellow Pages under "Sound Reinforcement" for a dealer.