Start Monoblocks from 12v trigger on Surge Protector?

[DollPhones]

Hello, I recently managed to get some Hypex Nilai500 monoblocks. I do not have a preamp, and nothing else that I have has a trigger out save for my Surge Protector. My previous amp, XTZ Edge A2-400 had auto sense for when audio was being passed in, I had no need of 12v triggers, since I could leave the XTZ to "auto on" and just have it turn on when fed from my DAC.

Now that I have 2 monoblocks, I have no way to trigger them automatically when I start playing audio. My Surge protector has 12v in and out, 6 switched outlets 6 non switched, and I can trigger the non switched via 12v. My problem is trying to find out how to power the amps when ANY audio source is enabled, I have 3 in total: PC, audio streamer, TV out.

I am hoping to have something like the following: 3 sources -> fed to dac inputs -> fed to 2 monoblocks -> fed to speakers, I would like to have 12v out hooked up from my Surge Protector to my two monoblocks and then the monoblocks plugged into the switched outlets, this should mean that everything in the system works fine, provided that I can find something to input into the 12v in.

I need some way to tell my Surge Protector to switch the amps on when the Dac is turned on through 12v. I have a USB port on the dac, so I looked in to having a USB to 12v adapter, and then using that as the trigger for the SP. I am looking for some sort of confirmation that this will work:

This USB to 5.5 barrel 12x converter + This 5.5 barrel to 3.5mm hp jack converter

Theoretically I should be able to plug this in, have the usb 5v converted to 12v and then have the barrel connector paired down to 3.5mm to trigger my psu when my dac is active and turn on my amps. I am a little skeptical and a bit afraid to play with power connectors when it comes to audio stuff, so I would be greatful if I could get a second guess to double check that this would work as expected. I have confirmed that the USB is active when the dac is turned on, so I know that it can supply the 5v, just hoping for someone to help check my guess work. Thank you!

 

[xyvyx]

Yeah, if you've confirmed that the USB *only* provides power when it's turned-on, I think you're on the right track.
According to the Hypex docs, their latest power supply for the Nilai needs 6-18v for the trigger input. It's unfortunate that it doesn't start at 5 volts, which would probably simplify things.

I'd probably put a little 220-ohm resistor in-line (series) with the 12v output to limit the current going into the trigger. The Hypex input probably wouldn't draw much current, but that's unknown. Nor do I know how much power the DAC can output... so I'd get the smallest BUCK *Boost converter you can to power the thing. (if the USB output says it's capable of charging phones or other devices, then it's probably 2A+ and should be totally fine with whatever)

 

[tprevett]

My plan is to use the 5v from one of the USB ports on DMP-A6 to this expander, which will trigger my amps and my sub when the device is powered on. I will just leave the preamp on all of the time.

ET-3 Trigger Expansion Module

The ET-3 is a handy little device that improves the flexibility of the basic trigger functionality on your preamp or processor. Shop preamp accessories today!

emotiva.com

 

[frabor]

you can also use wifi relay controlled via google assistant or alexa. set in on a routine with a time delay after you start the dac for the amps. All will be voice operated. if you want to use the trigger out , you can use shelly wifi relay, they have an 5-230 ac/dc external trigger and when sense you can trigger the turn on of the amps. I use a similar method to start my tv and amps and my main amps/ preamps-dac-turtables. (no routine, I just start one after the other so I can cut the audio on demand). I think after writing this I will add the automatization.