iSwitch questions

[Timebutt]

Hi,
this may not be a 'traditional' stompbox question but it is very related to it, only it has a different goal.
What I'm trying to build is basically a switch that will take the input of my iPod (stereo signal) and then divide it over two different stereo channels that both have a seperate volume control as well as an on/off switch (for instance: iPod into iSwitch, iSwitch connects to headphones on one side and to my stereo on the other side, using the switches I can turn either one channel on/off or both channels on/off).

Now my question is: can this be done using passive wiring or do I need to think about buffering and thus employing a small powered PCB? I strongly prefer finding a solution that does not require a power source since I could use it as a mobile device in that case.
How do I have to wire this up in anyway? I mean: what potentiometers do I choose? Stereo potentiometers I guess but what value is valid for this application?

Another thing: is it possible to use the switch 'upside-down'? I mean: can it be used to for instance connect an iPod and the audio out from the pc to the switch and then convert this to one signal that would go to the stereo installation?

Another issue: will there be loss of signal in any way if using this switching system? At the moment I have a very high-quality audio chain and would not like to see my efforts lost by one 'noise-creating' device in that chain.

A sample of what the result would be like, to give you a better idea of what I want: http://users.skynet.be/Timebutt/iSwitch.pdf

I hope you guys can answer most of my questions: I have no idea where else to turn to?
Thanks!
Timebutt

[Timebutt]

Bump, who can help me out?

[slacker]

I think this should work, it's passive and will work in either direction. It will probably pop like crazy when you switch one channel off and the volume controls will interact with each other if you try and mix the 2 channels. It should work fine if you're only using one channel at once.
I don't think it could cause any damage to your equipment but it's completely untested.



I got the component values from the headwize site, which is dedicated to all things headphone related. You'd probably get a better answer if you asked the question over there.

[Timebutt]

Thank you, I'll post the question there, interesting forum