Input sensitivity question

[harrisonjr98]

Hello all. I had to downsize my home theater gear when moving into a new place, and scored a set of Edifier S350DB on Facebook marketplace dirt cheap. Nothing super special, but they get the job done and I don't have to worry about my roommates trashing my nicer gear.

I am hoping to use the two RCA inputs on the back for a turntable (outboard preamp) and tape deck, and noticed that they were labeled "PC" and "AUX" respectively. This was presumably due to the two most likely use cases for them, but I figured I'd check the spec sheet and make sure they were actually the same.

Lo and behold - on Edifier's website, it says that the "PC" RCA jacks have the following input sensitivity:

R/L: 600±50mV SW: 270±20mV

Meanwhile, the "AUX" labeled RCA jacks have:

R/L: 400±50mV SW: 200±20mV

I am not an audio engineer, just a hobbyist. I have no idea what input sensitivity means in a practical sense for my use case. Is it okay to plug my gear in like they're normal RCAs? I was thinking TT into the PC jack and tape deck into the AUX one. What even is a "standard" input sensitivity for RCA jacks?

 

[restorer-john]

The defacto standard for many decades for RCA/line level on domestic high fidelity integrated amplifiers or preamplifiers was 150mV-200mV for full rated power (or full output). Then along came CD players with 2.0V outputs and sensitivities were gradually reduced to allow for a decent volume pot range.

Power amplifiers tradirionally were 1.0V to 2.0V for full rated power (single ended RCA).

The AUX jacks on your Edifiers are clearly more sensitive and likely more suitable for the TT with the built-in preamp. That said, be prepared to try the other jacks if the volume control is jammed up at the low end with too much gain.

 

[harrisonjr98]

The defacto standard for many decades for RCA/line level on domestic high fidelity integrated amplifiers or preamplifiers was 150mV-200mV for full rated power (or full output). Then along came CD players with 2.0V outputs and sensitivities were gradually reduced to allow for a decent volume pot range.

Power amplifiers tradirionally were 1.0V to 2.0V for full rated power (single ended RCA).

The AUX jacks on your Edifiers are clearly more sensitive and likely more suitable for the TT with the built-in preamp. That said, be prepared to try the other jacks if the volume control is jammed up at the low end with too much gain.

Thank you so much @restorer-john! Appreciate the layman's explanation. So the PC input with the 600 mV sensitivity will be the "louder" of the two then? (I guess that makes sense, Edifier assuming that most PC mobo dac/amps aren't the loudest in the world.)

Probably a dumb question, but I didn't even realize input sensitivity for RCA jacks was a thing - I've been happily plugging into all manner of old receivers and whatnot for years. There's no chance of damaging equipment if the sensitivity is an extreme mismatch, right?

 

[staticV3]

So the PC input with the 600 mV sensitivity will be the "louder" of the two then?

No. Smaller number means higher gain. Aux will be louder.

 

[harrisonjr98]

No. Smaller number means higher gain. Aux will be louder.

Thank you!