Use of headphone output

[ogunter]

Hello. I am wondering if I can use the headphone out on my Electro 4 as an output to a preamp and then a Leslie speaker while
continuing to use the left and right outputs to powered speakers for piano sounds. I am asking because I have never found the Hammond/Leslie sounds to
be as good as they would through a real Leslie. I just don't know if I can use all three outputs at the same time. don't want to
cause any damage. Thank you.

[Hlaalu]

Hi, the headphone out is going to be a hotter signal as compared to the line level of the main outs, because it's already amplified. Chances are you won't need the preamp between the Electro and the Leslie. That said, I guess different Leslies from different eras may differ in the level of the signal they expect as their input. I don't know if the headphone out's level is going to suit a Leslie "out of the box". I think you can try with no risk of damaging anything anyway.

[ogunter]

thank you for the information, I had no idea about the hotter signal from the headphone out. I will be going into a 122 Leslie.
I will give it a try. If it 'works' it would be great.

[M1tsos]

You can use it only if you use the right cables and right connection… headphones output is stereo signal you need to use a stereo jack cable to a double mono left right jack to a stereo di input and then mic out left right in a stereo mixer.. or if you have analog mixer with stereo channel line inputs you can try directly but you will propably have noise.. anyway do not use a mono jack from the headphone out to line or instrument input like everyone trying to do… this will burn the output of the keyboard..

[Tasten-Bert]

Some points:
- regarding a difference in output level between headphone and line outs, I don‘t think it is. I use the headphone outs at rehearsals whereas I use the line outs on stage and have never realized differences.
- more important: If you intend to get different instruments per channel I‘m sorry but the headphones output always sends the same as the line outs. So there will be organ and piano mixed, no matter which way you choose.

Cheers from Germany

[ogunter]

Thank you for responses, and what Tasten-Bert says means that I will not pursue this.
I used the split output to send the organ from left output to Leslie and the right to piano, but I feel when
I do this I am losing the stereo aspect of the piano samples. Is this correct? Thank you.

[Hlaalu]

anyway do not use a mono jack from the headphone out to line or instrument input like everyone trying to do… this will burn the output of the keyboard..

A mono plug into the jack of the headphone out would short ring and ground, which is the way keyboards "detect" a mono connection thus sending all the output to the tip (think all the cases in which there are L and R out and one of them is also labelled /MONO). Whether the Nord does this or not on the headphone out, I'm not sure. But I don't see why shorting the tip or the ring to ground would burn anything... shorting the tip and the ring together is another story, but even in that case I don't think any damage would occur.

In any case, as far as organ is concerned, you don't need to sum tip and ring into stereo because the source signal is mono anyway. You would just have to take either the tip or the ring and the ground from the headphone out, with the right cables and connectors.

As for the higher level of headphone out, try plugging your headphones into the line out and you will hear almost nothing, because the line level is too low for headphones.

Anyway, as others have pointed out, you would have everything on the headphone out, including piano. This may or not be a problem depending on the specific use you had in mind. If you play only one instrument at a time, you can silence the Leslie between songs. Again, depends on the setting...

[M1tsos]

anyway do not use a mono jack from the headphone out to line or instrument input like everyone trying to do… this will burn the output of the keyboard..

A mono plug into the jack of the headphone out would short ring and ground, which is the way keyboards "detect" a mono connection thus sending all the output to the tip (think all the cases in which there are L and R out and one of them is also labelled /MONO). Whether the Nord does this or not on the headphone out, I'm not sure. But I don't see why shorting the tip or the ring to ground would burn anything... shorting the tip and the ring together is another story, but even in that case I don't think any damage would occur.

In any case, as far as organ is concerned, you don't need to sum tip and ring into stereo because the source signal is mono anyway. You would just have to take either the tip or the ring and the ground from the headphone out, with the right cables and connectors.

As for the higher level of headphone out, try plugging your headphones into the line out and you will hear almost nothing, because the line level is too low for headphones.

Anyway, as others have pointed out, you would have everything on the headphone out, including piano. This may or not be a problem depending on the specific use you had in mind. If you play only one instrument at a time, you can silence the Leslie between songs. Again, depends on the setting...

Short ring is something that we never want in a signal chain.. it happend many times for me in the future .. many customers i have they were trying to drive an active speaker through the headphone out with a mono jack cable.. and ofc they burn the headphone amp of their mixer..

[analogika]

Note that one of the extra features of the Nord Stage series over the Electro is additional line outputs (3+4) so you can do exactly this.

[ogunter]

Thank you. I had noticed that on the Stage but could not afford it. I am wondering if Electro 7 might
have this feature.