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Speaker Selector Switch Opinions

Keneye

Keneye

Well-Known Member
I have 2 receivers and want them to play nice with one set of speakers. But the speaker selector set ups I see are in the $75-100 range. Unless I am Missing something, all I want is a manual switch to select receiver one or two. Any suggestions for a simple cheap way to achieve that? I have seen "knife" switches as one option. Thoughts?
 
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I've also heard nothing but awful speculation on doing this, due to possible amp damage if both are on, and the speaker load is dropped from one of them to the other.
Or possibly back feeding an amp.

I'm no stereoligist.
 
Thanks. Think I will just use receivers in rotation and manually switch. But I think 70s rockfan has the solution. Worth the few bucks to try it out. Stay tuned for any sparks.
 
A double-pole double-throw knife switch is the safest way. With some selector switches you can accidentally engage both leads with disastrous results. Make sure whatever you buy does not allow that. Most speaker switches allow you to use A+B
 
They DO manufacture "break, then make" A/B switches to avoid accidentally sending signal from both amps but a homemade DPDT box isn't that hard to make. I've done it with a regular speaker box like post #3 but veeerryy carefully...ALWAYS!!
 
I use one of these,
Technolink TC-616 6-Way Stereo Amplifier / Speaker Comparator
Reasonably priced and will do exactly what you want.
 
If you're looking for inexpensive, try some Speakon connectors (4 wire) male and female, will give you a quick disconnect
from one receiver to another in seconds...
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Lots of options - what ever you choose the one thing to consider is the switch specifications. Voltage rating and current capacity apply to all switches. Arcing and fused contacts can occur.
Good luck with the project.
 
I'm in the same predicament (want to connect one set of speakers to 2 amps, and be able to switch between them). I've been reading a while and found out that the cleanest solution is -maybe- a knife switch like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V5YYWFV/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=A1TBJFOKESMIUW&psc=1

Now, I'm planning to use it with a class-a tube amp and a solid state home theater. Not knowing the first thing about electronics, loads and resistors, I've read that the amp load of tube amps is somehow trickier. Hence my question: could this work safely in my setup?
 
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