What’s the best rca “Y” adaptor?


I have a ARC SP-9 MKll Preamp with only one set of outputs and I’m thinking about adding a sub woofer or two.  I can’t go off of speaker cables because I have Acoustat  Model X’s and the have the Servo amps with three wires to the speaker, so I must pull off of the preamp.

I looked in the older posts and the newest one was from 2004, so what’s new in the “Y” Adaptor world?

Thanks in advance.

JD
128x128curiousjim
$250! LOL! Just get s pair from Monoprice and stop being so obsessive! I'm telling you this for your own good!
Hi dweller,
I actually have a pair of those and another very similar, but I can hear the difference with and without them. With them my main speakers become muddy sounding.

 I saw some Pangea ones for $20 each, but before I buy more things that will end up in a box, I decided to ask Avon.

Thanks

JD
I've had fine results with the Audioquest splitter linked to by @maxwave.  It is also sold by Audio Advisor.

However, be aware that the line-level input impedances of many and probably most powered subs are in the area of 5K to 20K or so, and ARC's recommended load impedance for your preamp is:

Recommended load 60K ohms and 100pF. (20K ohms minimum and 1000pF maximum)

The preamp would see a load impedance corresponding to the input impedance of the sub in parallel with the input impedance of your power amp, which is equal to the product (multiplication) of the two impedances divided by their sum.  The result will always be **lower** than either of the individual input impedances.  For example, if the input impedance of the sub is 20K and the input impedance of your amp is 50K, the preamp would see a load impedance of:

(20K x 50K)/(20K + 50K) = 14.3K

That is not consistent with ARC's recommendation, of course, and the heavy load would affect the sonics of both the main speakers and the sub.

If that looks like it would be a problem, a solution would be to insert an active buffer stage having high input impedance between the preamp and the sub.

Regards,
-- Al