Trying to connect old computer suround sound speakers to a modern LCD T.V

[Soundsight]

Hello I need some help,

My question is about compatibility,

I have an old computer surround sound system (Altec Lansing ADA885) and I'm hoping that I can connect it to my TV (Finlux 37FLHD850U(l2). I have tried to provide enough details of the TV but I bought it off a friend and don't have the manual, I also can't locate the model online so I have taken what I think is the relevant information from the back of the TV. The TV has a headphone jack and this is what I'm thinking of plugging the speaker system into using a 3.5mm cable. However I don't know much about electronics and I'm wondering if plugging this system into the T.V could cause damage to either the speaker system or maybe even the T.V as they were not designed for each other, for example the voltages/wattage might be unsuitable, for all I know there could be other possible incompatibility problems that might cause damage. I got this speaker system years ago in 2001 when I got a Dell computer but I don't know how old my TV is, I don't think it's very old at all, it's a very modern LCD HD TV. If the speaker system still works it seems like such a waste to not use it especially considering that I know the speakers and subwoofer are pretty good quality.

This link will take you to a webpage where you can see the ports in the subwoofer, if you scoll down a bit you can see an enlarged diagram of them. http://stuartconnections.com/produc...eakers/ADA-885/Documentation/setup.htm#note_2

I'm thinking of plugging the other end of the cable into the input port that's colour coded green saying front, front means front speakers and the other port that says surround means back speakers. I'm hoping that if I plug the system into the headphone jack on my modern stereo TV that I will at least get full stereo out of the speakers without any damage occurring.

So if anybody on here knows about speaker systems and connection compatibility then I would love to hear from you. I basically want to know if there is any danger of me damaging either the surround sound system or the TV if I was to try to connect them together.

Ok well I look forward to any feed back anyone can offer. Thanks very much.

Kind Regards.

Soundsight.

 

[donkey]

hi and welcome to the forums,
I don't have your tv model BUT very simply this would work.
the speaker jack is audio out, the speakers will have an inbuilt amplifier to take that audio and boost it to make a signal that the speakers can use.
now the issue is you have a audio jack that at best will be stereo (left and right only) so I would recommend using http://stuartconnections.com/produc...rs/ADA-885/Documentation/setup.htm#near_field for your setup as you won't be able to use the rear jacks

if you send me the manual for your exact brand of TV I might be able to get you surround sound but until then I am going with the above statement

 

[Soundsight]

Hello Donkey and thank you for responding,

Yes I guessed it will probably work but what I'm concerned about is whether or not it will do any damage even if the damage doesn't occur immediately when I first plug it in. The speaker system was made such a long time ago in comparison with the TV plus it appears that it was made for a computer although it does say on that webpage that the S/PDIF port and cable can be used to plug in a DVD player, but I would not be able to use that input port to connect the system to the headphone jack in my TV. However the two input ports marked as surround and front do appear to be 3.5mm ones but could it be that the computers that were made around about 15 years ago would output a different or weaker level of audio, one that the Altec surround system was designed to take? Maybe it's not made to take a potentially different or stronger signal from a modern TV and if not then could the electrical current harm the speakers system or damage it by confusing it if the signal is different in some way.

I'm more concerned about damage that might occur to the TV because if I don't even try the speakers they will probably just get chucked at some point anyway because I'm not sure what else I would use them for. Although I'm guessing it's less likely that the TV would be damaged because like you say the TV would be the one giving the signal from the audio out, but do you know if it's possible for the speaker system to somehow resist the different or extra electrical current/voltage and could that cause it to somehow start building up and damage the TV? By the way I live in England, I don't know if that's relevant to the electrical current concerns I have or not but I thought I might as well mention that.

These are the sort of concerns that I have because I don't know about how electronics work. As regards sending you the TV manual, as I said I don't have it because I bought the TV from a friend and although I have tried to find the model online I can't seem to. I will see if my friend still has the manual but for now I'm hoping that I can plug the sound system into the TV by using a 3.5mm cable into the headphone jack and then into one of the 3.5mm ports in the subwoofer.

Once again thanks for any feed back.

Kind Regards.

Soundsight.

 

[donkey]

unless the circuit allows for spike jumping and the transformer is broken it to allow a signifigant amount of surge then you should be fine.
there is very much unlikely this will happen ever though. usually an amp just stops working, the board fries, parts get old.... very rarely does a transformer allow a spike that would harm other items

 

[Soundsight]

Hello again Donkey,

Well I went ahead and tried plugging my old sound system into my TV and it's been working.

my only other concerns are about whether or not I should put the subwoofer near my TV stand. Bearing in mind again that this is a very old sound system that wasn't built with the idea of it one day being sat close to such electrical items like my recorder box and DVD player and I know you're not supposed to put them near various electrical devices, magnetic devices something like that.

Also I want to move my LCD TV to a different location in my lounge but it will be in a position where the sun will shine on it if I do and I've heard that these types of TV's don't like heat. As I said before I live in England and it doesn't get as hot here as it does in certain other countries but it can still get pretty baking during the summer.

Are these concerns I need to have?

Again thank you for feed back.

Soundsight.

 

[donkey]

ok so for starters let go with the magnetic one. you are most likely talking about a CRT tv and these DO suffer from magnetic issues. the magnet messes with the screen something horrible and if its colour they usually go bad.
BUT I want you to look at this clip

see how close the manet has to get? well including the insulation around your speakers I would assume you have more clearance then that.

as for heat, all electrical items have issue with heat. there are things you can do to stop this. now direct sun on a tv is going to cause glare, so it will be unwatchable for starters, but having said that I live in Australia, temps here can reach 40 degrees in the summer. a ceiling fan is usually enough to move the air around and keep it cool. however having said this I would not put it in direct sunlight, try some curtains and a fan

 

[siggy]

If it's a lcd then glare is a small problem, if it's classed as a plasma screen (there is a difference) then any glare is a big problem. The plasma I had when I lived in England was only watchable with blackout curtains... Even at night street lights also caused glaring issues

 

[Sunnysky]

there is aging affect that doubles every 10'C rise, and inexpensive caps are usually the first to go. It should never feel hot. If I leave my iPad in the sun it tells me and shuts down for the the sake of the batteries mainly.

 

[nitish kumar sinha]

add a emc filter at the 3.5mm jack like its given on the data cables and power cable of laptop so it will resolves the problem of spikes