Wire into an existing conference room's loud speaker system, and go into a laptop'

[EricOfAlaska]

My church as a sound system powered by two RMX 850 power amplifiers. Six large speakers surround the sanctuary. I would like to connect wire from one of those conference room's speakers, and use that as input into my computer's USB port. This direct connection would improve the sound quality of our hybrid Zoom services. I am currently capturing Zoom audio using a webcam microphone.

The sound in the sanctuary is powered by the RMX 50 amplifier (about 200W or so). So my question is: would a direct connection from a speaker burn out my computer's USB port? Is some kind of smart gadget needed inline to reduce the conference room's speaker system wattage to my laptop? I hope I've explained this clearly. Thanks. I'm a beginner.

 

[Sergeauckland]

Yes, a direct connection will most likely destroy your USB port. Secondly, a USB port is a digital serial connection, a loudspeaker is an analogue voltage, so totally incompatible.

You need a USB audio interface, and an attenuator to reduce the loudspeaker voltage back to line level, although you should be able to find a suitable level at the output of the mixer or whatever is driving the RMX850s.

The best advice I can give is to find a local PA installer who can advise, as it is very easy to damage equipment you're unfamikiar with.

S