Harman-Kardon AVR 125 Stereo System User Manual


 
18 SYSTEM CONFIGURATION
SYSTEM CONFIGURATION
If the front left/right speakers are set to LARGE,
three options are available:
• If no subwoofer is connected to the AVR 125,
press the
/Buttons mq on the remote
so that
SW NONE appears in the Main
Information Display
F. When this option is
selected, all bass information will be routed to the
front left/right “main” speakers.
• If a subwoofer is connected to the AVR 125, you
have the option to have the front left/right “main”
speakers reproduce bass frequencies at all times,
and have the subwoofer operate only when the
AVR 125 is being used with a digital source that
contains a dedicated Low-Frequency Effects, or
LFE, soundtrack. This allows you to use both your
main and subwoofer speakers to take advantage
of the special bass created for certain movies.
Press
/Buttons mq on the remote
so that
SW (LFE) appears in the Main
Information Display
F.
• If a subwoofer is connected and you wish to use it
for bass reproduction in conjunction with the main
front left/right speakers, regardless of the type of
program source or surround mode you are listen-
ing to, press the
/Buttons mq on the
remote so that
L/R+LFE appears in the
Main Information Display F. When this option
is selected, a “complete” feed will be sent to the
front left/right “main” speakers, and the subwoofer
will receive bass frequencies below 100Hz.
11. When all speaker selections have been made,
press the
Set Button o to return to
normal operation.
Configuring the Surround Off
(Stereo) Modes
For superior reproduction of two-channel program
materials, the AVR 125 offers two Stereo modes: an
analog Stereo-Direct mode that bypasses the digital
signal processing circuitry for a completely analog sig-
nal path that preserves the purity of the original signal,
and a digital mode that is capable of providing bass
management for optimal distribution of the low fre-
quencies between smaller speakers and a subwoofer.
Stereo-Direct (Bypass) Mode
When the analog Stereo-Direct mode is selected by
pressing the
Surround Mode Selector 7j until
SURROUND OFF STEREO scrolls
across t
he Main Information Display F and the
Surround
Mode Indicator ˜ for Surround Off is lit,
the AVR 125 will pass the analog source material
directly through to the front left and right speakers,
bypassing the digital processing circuitry.
In this mode, the front left and right speakers will auto-
matically be configured as
LARGE, and it will not be
possible to configure these speakers as
SMALL.
You may configure the subwoofer as
ON or OFF
by pressing the Speaker Select Button ı
until S-W SPKR appears in the Main Information
Display
F. Press the
/
¤¤
Buttons mq or
the
Selector Buttons 5 to select the desired
option, and the
Set Button Ôo to enter the
selection.
Stereo-Digital Mode
If your front left and right speakers are not capable of
handling a full-range input, you may prefer to take
advantage of the AVR 125’s bass management capa-
bility.When listening in the Stereo mode, press the
Surround Mode Selector 7j until SUR-
ROUND OFF
A/D MODE scrolls across
the
Main Information Display F, the Surround
Mode Indicator
˜ for Surround Off is lit and both
the
Stereo Indicator E and the DSP Mode
Indicator
G are lit. In this mode, the analog input will
be converted to digital and routed to the digital signal
processor for bass management processing before it
is converted back to analog and output to the front
left and right speakers.
To configure your front left and right speakers in this
mode, press the
Speaker Select Button ı
until FNT SPKR appears in the Main Information
Display
F, and then press the Set Button Ôo.
Press the
/
¤¤
Buttons mq or the Selector
Buttons
5 until either LARGE or SMALL
appears, matching the type of speakers you have at
the front-left and front-right positions, as described
on page 17.
When
SMALL is selected, low-frequency sounds
will be sent to the subwoofer output only, and the sub-
woofer speaker will automatically be configured as
ON. If you choose the SMALL configuration and
there is no subwoofer connected, you will not hear any
low-frequency sounds.
When
LARGE is selected, a full-range output will
be sent to the front-left and front-right speakers, and
NO low-frequency signals will be sent to the sub-
woofer output.
Output Level Adjustment
Output level adjustment is a key part of the configura-
tion process for any surround sound product. It is par-
ticularly important for a Dolby Digital receiver such as
the AVR 125, as correct output levels will ensure that
you hear sound tracks in their proper place with the
proper directionality and intensity.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Listeners are often confused
about the operation of the surround channels. While
some assume that sound should always be coming
from each speaker, most of the time there will be little
or no sound in the surround channels. This is because
they are only used when a movie director or sound
mixer specifically places sound there to create
ambience, a special effect or to continue action from
the front of the room to the rear. When the output lev-
els are properly set, it is normal for surround speakers
to operate only occasionally.Artificially increasing the
volume to the rear speakers may destroy the illusion
of an enveloping sound field that duplicates the way
you hear sound in a movie theater or concert hall.
Before beginning the adjustment process, make cer-
tain that all speaker connections have been properly
made. The system volume should be set to the level
that you will use during a typical listening session.
Finally, make certain that the
Balance Control * is
set to the center “12 o’clock” position.
To assist in making speaker configuration settings, the
icons in the
Speaker/Channel Input Indicators L
change as the speaker type is selected at each posi-
tion. When only the center icon box containing the
abbreviation for the speaker position is lit, the speaker
is set for “small.”When the inner box and the two
outer boxes are lit, the speaker is set for “large.”When
no indicator appears at a speaker location, that posi-
tion is set for “none” or “no” speaker.
For example, in the following figure, the left front and
right front speakers are set for “large,” the center, sur-
round left (SL) and surround right (SR) speakers are
set for small, and a subwoofer is set, as shown by the
box with the abbreviation “LFE”, which stands for “low-
frequency effects.”
To adjust and calibrate the output levels, follow these
steps. For accurate calibration, it is a good idea to
make these adjustments while seated in your favorite
listening position:
LR
C
SL SR
LFE
31
31
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