Setting Up Speaker Selectors with Volume Control
When the need arises to have multiple speakers that each need their own volume control, a speaker selector with volume control is the best solution. Speaker selectors
with volume control allow the user to control the output volume of each set of speakers individually. This means you could have a stereo outputting music to different speakers in different rooms of your house, and control each room’s volume with the speaker selector.
Speaker selectors with volume control are easy to install and setup. They utilize the usual 14 gauge speaker wire to feed the signal to each individual speaker. The input from the stereo or other audio generating device will also need to be in speaker wire format (14 gauge being the standard). However any speaker wire will usually work, including simple twisted pair wire, or any other available wire that can handle two channels.
Some speaker selectors with volume control allow for multiple input sources. For instance you could hook a computer and a stereo up to the device, and choose between one of the two as an audio source, then select a set of speakers to distribute the sound to, and finally control the volume of the set of speakers that the sound is being distributed to.
Imagine having your stereo hooked up to your in house entertainment station. Also you have speakers in the backyard for parties and get-togethers. You can have your stereo output the music to your house at a nice low, indoor audio level, and the speakers in the backyard output loud music (or vice versa).
Some of the selectors will allow for remote volume controls. For instance next to a lightswitch there could be a knob that connects to the speaker selector and controls the volume for that area. This is convenient in situations where different people occupy different rooms, and would like personal control over how loud the speakers are. Other speakers selects that have volume control have the volume control knobs directly on the selector, so when you go to switch which speakers are being output to, you can also adjust the volume.
Speaker selectors with individual volume control come in anywhere from 2 to 10 channels of output. This means you can have up to 10 sets of speakers with their own individual volume control. Because the speaker selectors also sometimes serve as amplifiers they will need to be plugged into a power outlet.