Dreyfus Fabrini Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 Hi! I'm new to Control4 and I'm building a new system. Basically I would be powering 4 zones at most. I was wondering if I could connect each of the 3 audio outputs of the EA-5 directly to a 4 channel amplifier so it would work as an audio matrix. Would it be a good practice? Or it would be better to buy the audio matrix instead? Thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 Hmm. First: EA-5 has TWO stereo audio outputs and TWO digital audio outputs. Second: A 4 channel amplifier is 4 mono channels so a two ZONE amplfier Third: This wouldn't be an audio matrix at all. Now, the question is what amplifier are you using? If you mean Control4's 4 Zone MATRIX amplifier, this would be a perfectly fine setup. This due to the fact that that amplifier has 2 digital inputs, so it would be dreadfully simple to setup. You'd actually 'lock' the inputs and create a volume controlled 4-zone setup with 4 dedicated audio feeds. Not a problem at all - assuming you do not want sources other than what C4 has built-in. Should you want something like a Sonos added (or any other non-video source) - still not an issue as the EA-5 also sports 2 stereo inputs and 2 digital inputs. Technically it isn't recommended to feed Sonos to a controller, but as long as it is one it should be perfectly fine (it does become a problem once you add more). If you mean the 4 Zone POWER amplifier, or another 3rd party static (uncontrolled) amplifier, it won't really work. Yes you can feed the digital coax out to a DAC and turn them into stereo, but volume controll won't work properly through almost and DAC, not to mention that it would never match up. SO to summarize - if you want only audio, and only what the C4 system provides natively or with adding a single Sonos (and perhaps a separate SiriusXM tuner, or a CD player or....) I'd recommend gettinga C4 4 Zone MATRIX amplifier - and your world will keep turning smoothly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreyfus Fabrini Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 Thank you very much for you answer! It really helped me to clear it out. However, there are something that I still haven't figure it out. I've just bought a 4K/UHD Dual-Distance 6×6 HDMI to HDBaseT Matrix Switcher with PoE, and as you mau know, it features four unbalacend audio outputs. Is it different from the audio matrix? I know it doesn't have the built it amplifiers, but it that case, would you still recommend to buy the audio matrix in order to make the system run as smoothly as possible? Thank you again and best regards! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 It would depend - exactly WHAT hdmi matrix. Some do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreyfus Fabrini Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 Sorry... I didn't write the brand... It's the Atlona AT-UHD-PRO3-66M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funnyfarm299 Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 We had a huge amount of trouble getting audio matrix functions to work on the Pro3 we installed in a customer's house. Ended up having to add a Control4 matrix switch. We'll be sticking with Leaf/C4 matrix switchers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreyfus Fabrini Posted June 1, 2016 Author Share Posted June 1, 2016 Thanks for replying! But would you still consider the Atlona a good HDMI switcher? Because, I'll have to buy the "amplifier part" of the system anyway, and for that matter, I could buy the Control4 Audio Matrix. I guess the whole thing would still be cheaper than a Leaf HDMI switcher. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreyfus Fabrini Posted June 1, 2016 Author Share Posted June 1, 2016 So, which equipments you suggest to build the best audio and video system possible for Home Automation. I'll need 4 audio zones and 6 video zones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funnyfarm299 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 If we were doing a system with your requirements we would use an LU642 and the non-matrix amp from Control4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreyfus Fabrini Posted June 4, 2016 Author Share Posted June 4, 2016 Thank you for the feedback. Hopefully I'll be using B&W ceiling speakers (CCM663) so, quality wise, which amplifiier has a better audio quality: the built in amplifier in the audio matrix or the standalone version? Because it seems that the frequency range from the standalone multichannel amplifier is larger, which in theory would provide a better audio, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMHarman Posted June 4, 2016 Share Posted June 4, 2016 Thank you for the feedback. Hopefully I'll be using B&W ceiling speakers (CCM663) so, quality wise, which amplifiier has a better audio quality: the built in amplifier in the audio matrix or the standalone version? Because it seems that the frequency range from the standalone multichannel amplifier is larger, which in theory would provide a better audio, right? For ceiling speakers and ambient listening, not critical listening both / either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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