powered subwoofer question

so i bought a crappy little PA off craigslist just so i could have something to take to small house parties.

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com...tem?sku=609803

it's actually not terrible considering how little i paid for it, but, as expected, it's got absolutely no thump!

i'm still learning, but from what i gather, there's a way to daisy chain a powered subwoofer into the setup (the amp only has 2 channels, and there definitely wouldn't be enough power to juice a 3rd speaker anyway).

i'm not really clear on the details of how to do that though. is there a special cable or device i would need to send out to the sub? i'd appreciate it if someone could describe that process for me.

also, i'd appreciate any opinions or recommendations about what type of powered subwoofer i should be looking for. i guess keep in mind the quality of my current gear, i'm not trying to spend more than 300$, and i <3 craigslist.

i really appreciate the help!

A powered Sub has everything it needs to "just work" - an internal amplifier and the filters necessary to lose the high frequencies. It really is just plug-and-play.

All you need to do is run another pair of wires from your signal source into the sub by using a "y-splitter cable". Careful, there are many kinds of splitters. Some take a stereo signal and split it into left and right parts, but you want one that duplicates the signal on both paths. A pair of these would do it for an RCA output:

http://www.hdcabling.co.za/images/RCA-Y-Splitter.jpg

This for 1/8" jacks to RCA:

http://images.channeladvisor.com/Sel...-R2F-01__1.jpg

Many different combinations, check you have the right kind and DON'T LOSE IT.

Another option is to get a small mixing desk with multiple sub-mix channels, and dedicate a submix to each set of speakers. Lots of control over the sound if you go that route.

thanks fatlimey, i really appreciate you breaking it down for me.

so i'll grab a couple of y-splitters, plug 'em into the back of my BCD, send one pair of red and whites straight to the sub, then the other pair straight into the PA amp. makes perfect sense now!

now to find a reasonably affordable power sub....

thanks again!

yorkville powered subs are decent, portable, and won't break the bank too much. mind, with subs you can only really get two out of three: portability, spl, or extension. look into the 720p/700p, back when I was thinking about a powered sub those were high on my "listen to" list.

your amp might also have a "link out" function. Will be in the form of XLR cables, labeled out.

EDIT

XLR cables, my bad, they are xlrs.

thanks for the advice sine143. i just did a google search and found that those are pretty out of my price range.

does anyone know anything about gemini products? guitar centers got a 12inch and a 15inch for 300 and 350$ which is more what i was looking to pay.

i guess i can't be too picky when i'm trying to be so frugal. maybe i should just take a trip over to guitar center and check some out.