Elmo GS-1200: What are the options for Audio?

[Lee Hardcastle]

Hi,
I have been using 8 ohm speakers attached via wire, to hear the audio from the projector.

I was wondering if there were any better options to this?

I'm going to put on some public screenings, and it would be nice to have the best audio I can achieve coming from the screen.

Is there wireless solutions? To send a signal to a sound system?

Thank you, Lee

[Steve Klare]

Hi Lee,

There are line-level jacks to allow you to send audio into an external sound system. This would have to include an amplifier since these signals are too faint to drive a speaker. This is what I do and I find it to be almost a separate hobby unto itself, because it can bring in all sorts of choices in terms of hardware to be included and the results can be really enjoyable (despite starting out a little discouraging until you solve problems.)

My basic system starts with a mixer so I can have multiple projectors connected ( -both film AND digital video), then goes to an amplifier that drives four decent sized-speakers. I have a home-made interface between the mixer and amplifier to ease the interconnectivity, reduce hum and break the ground loop I have because of the grounding situation among various pieces of equipment. (-did I say this can get challenging?).

It's best to start off with the basics: one projector, one amplifier, some speakers. (You can let it get way out of hand later!)

An Easy Hookup from a Projector to a Stereo Amplifier

[Lee Hardcastle]

Do you ever use the headphones port to connect to speakers?

[Steve Lee]

Hi Lee.
All super 8 projectors output an analog audio signal, in the case of a GS1200 is via the jack sockets on the rear of the projector. The easiest way if you don't want to have a speaker cable running to the screen is to use a Bluetooth transmitter. This can send the signal to an all in one bluetooth speaker or by using a pair of them, to use one of them as a receiver, which can be pluged into an amp by the screen.
I use one at home for showing Super 8 on my GS 1200 or my Beaulieu. I have a 5:1 set up in which my AV amp has a Bluetooth receiver built in to it.
Because Bluetooth can transmit the signal in stereo, I have found when running a stereo print, if I switch the amp over to Dolby pro logic, it will play back the soundtrack in 4:1 surround from super 8.
It all works very well, and the great thing by using Bluetooth there is no cables, and is cheap to set up.

[Steve Klare]

The headphone jack is high in series impedance and can't drive a loudspeaker.

It's the same signal that goes to the internal speakers and the external speaker ports anyway: just without that big series resistor.

The joy of pulling out the audio as line level is there is all sorts of signal conditioning you can do easily at low power before you amplify it and make the same things very difficult. I'm messing around with the idea of adding an effects panel which can do things like add a slight reverb effect to simulate being inside a theater.

[Paul Adsett]

Steve, I have a Yamaha AVR which has DSP ( digital signal processing) that enables all kinds of specific effects such as hall and cinema emulation , mono enhancement etc. Great for super 8 films

[Steve Klare]

-he who has the most knobs wins!

[Chip Gelmini]

When factory spec serviced, the Elmo GS 1200 is a workhorse of a machine. It can do things that even the owner’s manual doesn’t have printed. And when the manual is packed with all those options for basic operation, it is hard to believe it can do so much else. You just have to figure it all out. Not everything works – but when it does beauty behold to very professional presentations.

Connecting this projector using various sound outputs couldn’t be easier or more powerful for the purpose of sound reproduction. Hunting down connectors depending on where you live could be a challenge even with Radio Shack a memory. There’s always Google.

EXTERNAL 2 PIN DIN SPEAKER CONNECTIONS.
You can buy online 2 pin din connectors. Some must be opened and wired. Others are factory made to RCA Female and with this you simply attach a RCA Male stereo cable. The owner’s manual specifications page will list these are only 6 OHMS. But actually this is a Japanese printing error. The correct OHMS is equal to Aux out @ 600. With this in mind it is perfectly safe to use this output as a secondary stereo output connection. Upon doing this, you can use the volume knobs to control the output to the stereo amp. You can use the built in MONO/STEREO switch to evenly direct to Pro Logic processors. With this, you can rest assured that center dialogue will come from center speaker assuming your PL system (Pro Logic) is properly calibrated with speakers rated to do the job.

AUXILARY OUTPUTS.
Using mini plugs to RCA connectors this is a great way to switch to stereo produced film tracks. The output works much like connecting a CD player to a stereo amp. There is only gain control from the master receiver volume knob.

MONO/STEREO SWITCH BOXES.
By using this kind of device, you can easily switch from 2 pin din mono to auxiliary output for stereo just by pushing two buttons. The same effect can be achieved running the cables to dual input sources on the back of your amp. Example: 2 pin din to a VCR input – and then – auxiliary output to Laser Disc. You can use the PL amp remote control to do the switching. This is especially noted for splicing mono cartoons and trailers on the front of a stereo sound main feature. It is here you have no down time swapping cables between reels. Wait for the splice – press a button – and the sound is changed.

HEADPHONE OUTPUTS.
I once tried running these to the stereo PL processor and had poor results. Maybe it was turned up too high. Maybe the sound board had a defect. But it was terrible I could not use it. Yet when I tried headphones, the sound was very good. So I would use caution connecting these. I believe they should only be used for headphones. And never anything else.

Consider everything I have written here. Visit me in Florida for a demonstration if you are able to do it. The GS1200 is a true gem of a projector. I have used other Elmo machines throughout the years, and I have used other brands as well. But for me personally there is no projector other than a GS 1200.

This advice assumes your projector has been serviced to Elmo factory specifications as well as your sound system is properly installed & calibrated.

[Ed Gordon]

...I have been using 8 ohm speakers attached via wire, to hear the audio from the projector.

I was wondering if there were any better options to this?

I'm going to put on some public screenings, and it would be nice to have the best audio I can achieve coming from the screen.

Is there wireless solutions? To send a signal to a sound system?...

There are options other than wire to send the projector's audio to a sound system, but wired connections will give you the best audio quality. If you are not an "audiophile" and you find the quality of MP3 recordings to be ok, Bluetooth (BT) will work fine for you. There are solutions out there that use wifi that should provide higher quality audio that BT, but I have not used them.

Here are a couple of discussions on the quality of BT vs. wired:

The ultimate guide to Bluetooth headphones: Wired is still king for quality

Look, we get it: Bluetooth headphones are convenient. It’s the K-cup coffee machine of audio. Like the aforementioned liquid sadness brewer, Bluetooth is a crappy, expensive facsimile of the real deal—but many, many people enjoy it because it’s convenient and they don’t need gourmet coffee every day.

I’ve never enjoyed the audio quality of Bluetooth headphones, but that’s just me. The sound is better than it ever has been, and it’ll get you 99% of the way there—but not everybody is willing to make that tradeoff.

Full article at: https://www.soundguys.com/ultimate-g...dphones-20019/

Bluetooth audio vs. wires

Features like Bluetooth audio add value to products, so they raise the price of BT-equipped gear. I don't have a problem with that, but I'm surprised how much sound quality people are willing to give up just to have wireless audio.

Cheap Bluetooth add-ons like the $25 Belkin Bluetooth Music Receiver or the $40 Logitech Wireless Speaker Adapter can stream tunes from a smartphone, iPod Touch, iPad, or other tablets sans wires. That's nice, but the processing sounds awful -- gritty harsh, limits bass oomph, and has unpleasant treble -- compared with just running a wire to the device. Great, BT puts music choices at your fingertips, but if that's the main attraction, why not just run a $3.37 wire 25 feet from the device to the amplifier or speakers. If running wires isn't possible, you could walk over to the device and select your music. Think of it as a low-impact aerobic activity.

I just trashed the sound of BT on the cheap, but even when it's used in higher-end gear like the $699 NAD Viso 1 iPod speaker, BT doesn't sound as good as a direct connection. The Viso 1 uses higher-fidelity Apt-X wireless technology, so it definitely sounds a little better, but reception isn't robust and the BT signal would occasionally sputter and drop out if I walked in front of the VISO 1, or put my hand over the front of the device. Direct docking sounds better.

Source: https://www.cnet.com/tech/home-enter...udio-vs-wires/

If your primary use is going to be at home using your current home audio system, just for go with wire. If you plan to make remote presentations, hauling a lot of audio equipment around may not be practical and makes Bluetooth an appealing solution.

[John Bakker]

The easiest way if you don't want to have a speaker cable running to the screen is to use a Bluetooth transmitter.

Be warned some of these can cause latency in the audio signal. It has to convert the analog signal to digital and transmit this over bluetooth. When used for listening to music some latency is not a problem but watching a movie with out of sync sound is very annoying.

[Lee Hardcastle]

Be warned some of these can cause latency in the audio signal. It has to convert the analog signal to digital and transmit this over bluetooth. When used for listening to music some latency is not a problem but watching a movie with out of sync sound is very annoying.

yeah, really annoying. Cant stand that.

thanks a lot for all the help.

I didn't know you could get adapters to turn the speaker ports into rca female, I'll get onto that soon.

For now, I'm going to buy a cheap lengthy amount of speaker cable and use the Ohm Speaker set up.

[Chip Gelmini]

Consider power cord as speaker wire
purchase extension cords the length you need cut and strip the ends. Color coded easy to know what is what....etc