RUNNING POWERED SPEAKERS FROM AN IMAC


Hello all:
What am I missing here? How would I go about using my powered speakers, Kantos i pair 5's with my iMac? They have s video and rca jacks etc. but the iMac has only a headphone jack and usb ports. Is there a way to do this? I no longer need these speakers in a home office and would love to repurpose them in the computer room.
Thanks for any suggestions!
audiowoman

Showing 8 responses by audiowoman

Ok, so did this and it does work BUT I am hearing quite a lot of static from the speakers. I did not hear this in my office where the speakers used to be, and there was a laptop between them.
Any suggestions audio wizards?
Thanks in advance.
thanks folks, I'll give this a try. Would anybody local like Best Buy sell this or do I need to order it?
Thanks Sfar: When used with my iPad mini, the static is pretty much gone. When I take the cable out of the iMac I can really hear the static. When I plug it back into the iMac, the static is back especially when scrolling through different internet sites. Always a low static but crackly sounding when moving anything with the wireless mouse.

Is this something that would be resolved by using something like a usb dac (Audioquest v.2 Dragonfly) as it would be plugged via usb port? I read where this device can really cut down on noise?
Thanks again for your help.
Cathy
I did read on the Apple forum where making sure that the powered speakers are plugged into a different outlet than the iMac can be helpful. I tried this but it really didn't make any difference. I also read about using an RCA ground loop isolator, not sure exactly what that is. I do plan to try the audioquest dac as I would appreciate even better sound and hopefully that will take care of my static issues as well.
I tried it again and actually there is no static when I'm using the iPad. I'll try finding some contact solution and cleaning the headphone jack . I realize what I was hearing was the actual noise of the iMac itself as I was sitting in front of it when I had it plugged into my iPad. The noise really does seem centered around that headphone jack, and when I plug it back in there again I definitely get the static noise happening. Am I correct in thinking that if I use the dragonfly, this may beat as it will be plugged in via USB port?
Actually the headphone jack on the iMac has rarely if ever been used prior to this
Well, just tried my Momentums in the headphone jack - clear as a bell. Put the RCA/3/5mm cable back in with the powered speakers and the static is back.....could it be that my lovely Radio Shack cable is faulty???
Well got the new cable from Monoprice - it looks and feels more substantial than the Radio Shack one - unfortunately, the static is still there! Very frustrating.
On a happier note, got the latest version of the Audioquest Dragonfly and am really liking this. When you play music, the static is not really noticeable which is nice. Once you start scrolling the internet, static is back...

By the way is there a way to use the Dragonfly with headphones and iPhone at all? Seems I read that the iPhone doesn't have enough power, but using a powered hub would do the trick - anyone do this?

Thanks for all your help on this folks.