Has anyone successfully incorporated headphones (wired or wireless) into a whole house audio setup? In particular, the application would be to be able to mute the main speakers in a given zone, but have the headphone still play.

The system in question is a Russound CAV, btw ... I can think of a couple of possibilities to 'hack' it (e.g., pipe line level out from subzone's ABUS keypad to L/R stereo walljack), but nothing elegant - and certainly nothing that I'd feel comfortable supporting!

[Link: audioplex.com]

[Link: audioplex.com]

Works Great.......

Interesting ... the wiring diagram on the manual's odd (shows two receivers?), so can I confirm how this would be wired up?

Oh, wait .. looks like the link to the manual on their site is wrong - it's referencing the HP18AB/HP14AB; so can I ask you folks how've used this how it's wired up?

I'm assuming the spkr cable to the zone's main speakers ties in to this, then runs on to the speakers? Is there more to it?

nope. Amp to plate, plate to speakers

Sorry, that's what I meant - just put it incorrectly.

holy crap i can actually have some valid input and not a smart ass comment....

ok we have done headphones over a multiroom system 4 or 5 times....granted they were hi-end ADA systems but concept is the same......

take 1 zone or as many as needed and use the line level out. take line level outto wireless headphone adaprter ( we use rca 900mhz from radio shack) dont laff they work flawlessly......

take line level at fixed output connect headphone.....done....volume is handless by the head phones....zone controlled by keypad or remote control....its sweet...

ed

CAV doesn't have fixed output, otherwise great suggestion.

oh well i tried

We did a B&k CT600 awhile back and the bedroom was zone along with all of the AV fear for the bedroom, we ran a fixed out(B&K) into an input on the receiver(bedroom) and when audio was selected the TV powered down and such. We also did the headphone thing as well, we used a Xantech Ir controlled A/B switch and when headphones were selected it cut the receiver speaker level and still continued to use the headphones on a fixed out of the receiver(tape)

We used RF headphones from Senheisser, worked well through out most of the house

On the remote we had a headphones button and when it was selected did a page flip to mention speakers will go off, and when system was powered down we had the speakers come back on so there was no confusion why there was no audio next time on

I have taken the zone 2 out to a cordless headphone as mr minuscule* suggests. This worked great.

I have also taken a power amp output. Word of caution -- if you do that, it is standard practice to put a 330 ohm resistor in series with the hot lead for each channel between the amp and the headphone. I don't know why that value, but when I first took one of these apart in the 1960s, that is what they used, and I have seen it repeatedly since then, and it has always worked. It keeps a low impedance, say 8 ohm, headphone from being overdriven by too much current (if you think a flaming speaker LOOKS strange, you should HEAR one from an inch away!), and the higher the impedance of the 'phone, the less effect that resistor has.

One director we outfitted has a "headphone" switch. It kills the sub, puts the preamp into two- channel stereo, and switches the amp output over to the headphone jack. With 330 ohm resistors in series with each channel's hot lead.

My house has a set of Sennheisers hooked to Zone 3,

Wife's in bed, I fire up Zone 3 and finish my TV show.


Keeps things happy on both sides!!

Don't know how it would work to have it work with more than one TV though?

These are all great solutions for a standalone receiver ... but not clear how the Zone2/3 output solutions would help in tieing headphones into a whole-house solution?

Oh, but for a set of fixed line level outputs on the Russound :(

Hi Netarc,
I guess we both frequent the same places... :-)

I have had headphones in my CAV 6.6 for awhile now and it works well. In the zone I needed it I just took the speaker wires and hooked them up to a stereo switched 1/4" jack. Normally when the wall speakers are in use they just connect in the normally closed position of the 1/4" jack's switches, when I plug the headphones in, it opens the connections to the wall speakers and they turn off, and the headphones are connected. This allows for volume control of all CAV sources when on headphones. It is sweet.

If my description makes no sense let me know, i will draw a diagram.

cheers

Al

Take the RCA outs for your zone2/3 and run them to a Headphone amp wired near the listening position. Musical Fidelity makes a great little headphone amp.