Denon AVR to Leviton Distributed Audio System (1 Viewer)

[mrossum]

Hello all. NEWB here. Please forgive the ignorance.

We recently purchased a home that came with Denon AVR-S710W "Integrated Network receiver" and Leviton HiFi2 "Digital Whole Home Audio Distribution System".

The problem: the AVR and the Distribution System do not talk to each other. AVR has zone 1 wired to the 7 speakers. Zone 2 is not utilized at the moment. The Distribution system is wired to 4 pairs of speakers in 4 separate zones throughout the property. The source for the distribution system, at the moment, is an Audio In jack in a wall plate that we have been plugging in our old Ipod. This is connected to the Distribution center via Cat5. Both AVR and Distribution System are connected to network.

The question: Is there a reasonably easy way to get these to talk to each other so we can use the AVR to play in the Distribution zones throughout the property?

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Looking at the manual for the Leviton, it accepts line level audio inputs. Thus it should be as simple as connecting the Denon’s Zone 2 outputs to it.

Regards,
Wayne

 

[mrossum]

Looking at the manual for the Leviton, it accepts line level audio inputs. Thus it should be as simple as connecting the Denon’s Zone 2 outputs to it.

Regards,
Wayne

Mr. Wayne,

Thank you for the very quick response. Again, please forgive my ignorance and the exceptionally poor description of my system layout. For clarification, the AVR is upstairs and the distribution system “module”, for lack of a better term, is downstairs in the communication room. Unfortunately, I do not have any suitable wiring already passing between the two spaces that I could use. Additionally, the AVR is on one wall in the upstairs room and the remote input wall plate that we have the iPod hooked up to is on the furthest wall from the AVR in same upstairs room

 

[JohnRice]

Considering that, I personally see no reason to connect the two. The most likely solution is to use wireless playback like AirPlay to send audio to the distribution system.

 

[mrossum]

Mr. R,

How would I connect them?

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

The simplest thing to do would be to re-arrange the room so that the Denon is near the jack. That’s probably how the previous owners had the room arranged.

Alternately, you could hire someone to get wiring from the Denon to the jack. If there’s an accessible attic, it would be a piece of cake.

Barring all that, you could bet a pair of Bluetooth transmitters / receivers. The Avantree Oasis gets good reviews. You would need two of them.

Oasis B

Avantree Oasis B long range bluetooth 5.0 transmitter for TV watching with aptX low latency, simultaneous dual link and optical output support

avantree.com

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[mrossum]

The simplest thing to do would be to re-arrange the room so that the Denon is near the jack. That’s probably how the previous owners had the room arranged.

Alternately, you could hire someone to get wiring from the Denon to the jack. If there’s an accessible attic, it would be a piece of cake.

Barring all that, you could bet a pair of Bluetooth transmitters / receivers. The Avantree Oasis gets good reviews. You would need two of them.

Oasis B

Avantree Oasis B long range bluetooth 5.0 transmitter for TV watching with aptX low latency, simultaneous dual link and optical output support

avantree.com

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Mr. P,

Unable to rearrange the room. AVR is hard wired in its current location, as is the Remote Input Module for the Distribution. No easy way to rewire or wire AVR to module.

 

[JohnRice]

My point is...

Do you want to play something fed into the receiver to the entire house? Often, these days, it's easier to connect a WiFi device to the input of the distribution system, because you don't typically play back movie soundtracks throughout the house. Typically it's music, and often that music is on a device that can be sent using WiFi.

Also, be aware that the analog Zone 2 output typically has to come from an analog input. Meaning, say you have a disc player connected to the receiver with hdmi. That will not play back through Zone 2. There has to be a corresponding analog connection between the player and the receiver and most disc players lack an analog output.

And, finally, now that I actually look at the AVR-S710W receiver, it doesn't appear to have a Zone 2 anyway. It appears it can provide a powered stereo output if the surround part is only 5.1. The problem is, you want a line level output. Yes, speaker level can be dropped to line level. I just think there's a better solution.

So, the reason I'm asking different questions is sometimes the goal you're looking for isn't the ideal thing to do. It will help if you state your goal.

 

[mrossum]

My point is...

Do you want to play something fed into the receiver to the entire house? Often, these days, it's easier to connect a WiFi device to the input of the distribution system, because you don't typically play back movie soundtracks throughout the house. Typically it's music, and often that music is on a device that can be sent using WiFi.

Also, be aware that the analog Zone 2 output typically has to come from an analog input. Meaning, say you have a disc player connected to the receiver with hdmi. That will not play back through Zone 2. There has to be a corresponding analog connection between the player and the receiver and most disc players lack an analog output.

And, finally, now that I actually look at the AVR-S710W receiver, it doesn't appear to have a Zone 2 anyway. It appears it can provide a powered stereo output if the surround part is only 5.1. The problem is, you want a line level output. Yes, speaker level can be dropped to line level. I just think there's a better solution.

So, the reason I'm asking different questions is sometimes the goal you're looking for isn't the ideal thing to do. It will help if you state your goal.

Your response/questions are EXACTLY what I’m looking for. I haven’t the first clue how to facilitate what I want to happen: I want to be able to listen to my AVR throughout the property via already set up zones in the distribution center. We generally listen to Sirius, local radio and Apple Music / ITunes on the AVR. Obviously we also use AVR for the tv, but that is all hardwired already. I’m not afraid to spend money, but I don’t want to waste money

 

[JohnRice]

That’s exactly my point. You don’t need the AVR to listen to those sources. You can use a mobile device with a WiFi receiver connected to the distribution system.

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

John,

It appears to me the OP needs an analog connection to the Leviton, based on his mention of the “audio in” wall plate. Is there a WiFi receiver with an analog output that could feed that input that you can recommend? I don’t know anything about this kind of equipment.

Alternately, can the Leviton receive a signal directly from a WiFi receiver, which could then "talk" to the Denon? Here’s a link to the installation manual, if that helps.

https://www.leviton.com/en/docs/PK-93483-10-B0-5C-W.pdf

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[JohnRice]

John,

It appears to me the OP needs an analog connection to the Leviton, based on his mention of the “audio in” wall plate. Is there a WiFi receiver with an analog output that could feed that input that you can recommend? I don’t know anything about this kind of equipment.

Alternately, can the Leviton receive a signal directly from a WiFi receiver, which could then "talk" to the Denon? Here’s a link to the installation manual, if that helps.

https://www.leviton.com/en/docs/PK-93483-10-B0-5C-W.pdf

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

I figured this was more your area. However, the cheapest one I found was this Belkin for $60 that has a 3.5mm output. That's if you have iOS devices such as an iPhone or iPad. Then you need to install whatever apps to control your various streaming sources and send them to the WiFi adapter using AirPlay. Much better, since you don't need to control playback from the receiver.

BTW, the receiver also has AirPlay, so streamed music can also be sent to it.