Can I hook up powered speakers to a powered mixer?
No. If your mixer is powered, it already sends an amplified signal, so you need passive speakers to run that setup correctly.
Powered speakers have their own built-in amplifier. Feeding them an already-amplified signal from a powered mixer stacks one amp on top of another, and that can damage your equipment.
Check your outputs first
Some powered mixers only send the amplified signal through the main outs. Many still give you line-level or unpowered outputs you can use with active speakers.
Check your mixer's operations manual to see whether it has alternative passive (line-level) outputs. If it does, run those to your powered speakers and leave the amplified main outs for passive cabinets.
The short version
- Powered mixer plus passive speakers: the standard, safe pairing.
- Powered mixer plus powered speakers: only from a line-level or unpowered output, never from the amplified main outs.