This discussion is locked
drjeff2

Q: adapter for apple pro speakers?

My powermac G4 bit the dust. can I adapt the pro speaker plug(that wierd plug only a mother could love) to the necessary plug for my 13 inch MB silver?

MB 13 in aluminum 2.0, Mac OS X (10.5.5)

Posted on Oct 22, 2008 11:43 PM

Close

Q: adapter for apple pro speakers?

  • All replies
  • Helpful answers

  • by Michael Paine,Helpful

    Michael Paine Michael Paine Oct 23, 2008 3:40 AM in response to drjeff2
    Level 2 (348 points)
    Oct 23, 2008 3:40 AM in response to drjeff2
    Griffin used to sell the iFire adapter for the Apple Pro Speakers. It plugged into the Firewire port of the Apple computer and had a socket for the Apple Pro speakers.
    Two slight problems:
    1. Griffin no longer sell the iFire
    2. The latest Macbook does not have a Firewire port

    If you can obtain a used iFire adapter and an old iPod Firewire powerpack then you will still be able to use the Apple Pro speakers as the Firewire was just for power and there is an audio jack for plugging into the headphone socket on the Macbook (or iPod).
    See http://users.tpg.com.au/aoaug/mac_video.html#ipod
  • by drjeff2,

    drjeff2 drjeff2 Oct 23, 2008 5:18 AM in response to Michael Paine
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Oct 23, 2008 5:18 AM in response to Michael Paine
    Thanks for the reply Michael,
    How about just splicing all the wires into a minijack plug? Do these speakers need an amplifier or can they be driven alone?
  • by Michael Paine,Solvedanswer

    Michael Paine Michael Paine Oct 23, 2008 2:37 PM in response to drjeff2
    Level 2 (348 points)
    Oct 23, 2008 2:37 PM in response to drjeff2
    The iFire is the amplifier for the system - the Apple Pro speakkers need an amplifier. You could try buying a cheap USB speaker set and use its amplifier to run the Apple Pro speakers. That does mean splicing wires.
  • by drjeff2,

    drjeff2 drjeff2 Oct 23, 2008 5:01 PM in response to drjeff2
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Oct 23, 2008 5:01 PM in response to drjeff2
    pays to buy a new set of speakers ,thanks
  • by puddlejumper1@mac.com,

    puddlejumper1@mac.com puddlejumper1@mac.com Jan 12, 2009 3:51 PM in response to drjeff2
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Jan 12, 2009 3:51 PM in response to drjeff2
    I have been reading that people are trying to splice the wires on their Apple Pro Speakers to connect them to a regular headphone jack . I can tell you from experience that this will not work. The Griffin iFire and Griffin PowerWave work because they are external POWERED sound cards. Your iMac had a port that supported the speakers and fed them the necessary power to boost the sound, there are some towers out there with the special sound cards inside them as well. Without a powered sound card you get a very very low volume and unusable sound output.