Harman Kardon HK50 Owners Manual - Page 5
Harman Kardon HK50 Manual
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On the back of the speaker, near the bottom, you will see two pairs of terminals. Each pair has 1 red terminal (+) and 1 black terminal (-). These will accept a number of different connection configurations. "Spade" lugs or "Banana" plugs are preferred but they will accept bared wire up to 4mm. If you are using bared wire, use the hole in the post rather than wrapping it around and tightening. WARNING: MAKE CERTAIN THAT ALL STRANDS ARE NEATLY TUCKED INTO THE HOLE TO AVOID SHORT CIRCUITS. If you are not bi-wiring or bi-amping, either the upper or lower pair of terminals may be used. Of course, the connecting strips between the terminals must be left in place. Connect the red (4-) terminal on the speaker with the red (4-) terminal on the back of your amplifier and similarly with the black. If these connections are reversed on one of the loudspeakers, bass output will drop dramatically. In this condition, the speakers are out of phase. If both are reversed, bass output Is unaffected but absolute phase Is lost. This will not be noticed on most recordings but you might as well have it right. WARNING: IF YOU ARE BI-WIRING OR BI-AMPING AND ARE UNCLEAR ABOUT ANY ASPECT OF THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS, CONSULT YOUR DEALER. DON'T GUESS, YOU CAN DO SERIOUS DAMAGE TO YOUR SYSTEM. Remove and save the connecting strips between the two pairs of terminals. The two terminals are now completely isolated from each other. The upper pair of terminals connects to the tweeter and midrange crossovers and the lower to the woofer crossover in the Sixty. In the Fifty the lower terminal connects to the woofer crossovers and the upper to the tweeter. Connect the appropriate wires to the appropriate terminals and your amplifier. Pay extra attention to maintaining correct phase as above. Errors in this case can introduce frequency response anomalies and prevent accurate imaging. o 0 + - 0 o Tweeter/Mid range Connecting Strips: REMOVE FOR BI-WIRING Woofers Bi-amping can have very beneficial effects. However, if you are biamping, there are number of points you must keep in mind in addition to those mentioned in the Bi-WIRING section. WARNING: YOU MUST REMOVETHE CONNECTING STRIPS BETWEEN THE TERMINALS. FAILURE TO DD THIS CAN DESTROY YOUR AMPLIFIERS AND MAYBE SPEAKERS AS WELL. DO SD NOW. If the amplifiers you are using are not identical, ascertain the following... 1. That the amplifiers have the same polarity. Some amplifiers invert phase and this condition will have the same effect as miswiring in the bi-wiring mode. If one of your amplifiers inverts phase, be sure to invert its connection to its corresponding speaker terminal. That is, connect its red (+) terminal to the black (-) terminal on the speaker. 2. That the amplifiers have the same sensitivity. That is, that they achieve their respective rated power at the same input voltage. A better alternative is to use power amplifiers that have input attenuators. Care must be taken to adjust the output of the amplifiers so that the speakers sound as balanced as possible. Otherwise, the woofers or the midrange /tweeter will be playing too loud or soft. Naturally, this will have deleterious effects on fidelity. It is generally recommended that the more powerful amplifier be used for low frequencies. o o + - o 0 To Tweeter/Midrange Amplifier Connecting Strips: REMOVE FOR BI-AMPING To Woofer Amplifier The equipment you choose to complement your loudspeakers will have a direct bearing on the quality of sound you will achieve. As your loudspeaker is very efficient, it is not necessary to use high powered amplifiers to drive them to realistic levels.. Your money is better spent on quality rather than high "spec" power. Your loudspeakers are capable of the highest possible performance and will do justice to the best electronics . BI-AMPING ACCOMPANYING EQUIPMENT
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