Harman-Kardon AVR 147 Stereo Receiver User Manual


 
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ADVANCED FUNCTIONS
Manual Setup
The AVR 147 is flexibly designed to be used with almost any loudspeak-
ers available. The flexibility arises from the AVR 147’s capability to be
configured to match the characteristics of your particular speakers, and
to compensate for the acoustic characteristics of your room.
EzSet/EQ automatically detects the capabilities of each speaker, and
optimizes the AVR 147’s performance in your system. However, if for
some reason you are unable to run EzSet/EQ, e.g., you have misplaced
the microphone, or if you wish to make further adjustments to the set-
tings made by EzSet/EQ, you may use the Manual Setup on-screen
menus as described in this section.
Before beginning manual setup you will need to have fully installed your
AVR, placed your loudspeakers in their correct locations within the room
(see Speaker Placement section on page 19), and connected them
to the AVR. You will need the specifications for each of your speakers,
which may usually be found in the owner’s guide for the speakers or
on the manufacturer’s Web site. If necessary, contact the manufacturer
to obtain the frequency range specification. Although the output-level
setting portion of manual setup may be performed “by ear,” we
recommend that you purchase an SPL (sound-pressure level) meter
at a local electronics store.
We suggest that you record your configuration settings in the appropri-
ate places in Tables A3 through A7 in the appendix in case you need to
reenter them after a system reset, or if the AVR’s Master Power Switch
is turned off or the unit is unplugged for more than four weeks.
Step One – Determine Speaker Size
Without using EzSet/EQ, the AVR 147 can’t detect how many speakers
you’ve connected to it; nor can it determine their capabilities. For this
part of the system setup, you will need to consult the speaker’s technical
specifications.
The specification you’re looking for is the frequency response, which
is usually given as a range, e.g., 100Hz – 20kHz (±3dB). This specifi-
cation tells you whether the speaker is able to play sounds that are very
high- or low-pitched, represented by the high and low frequencies.
We are concerned with the lowest frequency that each of your main
speakers is capable of playing, which is 100Hz in this example. Use
the Table A5 worksheet in the appendix to note this number as the
crossover for that speaker (not the same as the crossover frequency
listed in the speaker’s specifications).
Your subwoofer’s frequency response will include only the very
lowest frequencies, since the subwoofer is designed to play only bass
materials. A typical frequency response for a subwoofer is 25Hz –
150Hz. In this case, the higher number is most important and should
be noted in the worksheet.
The purpose of entering this information into the AVR 147is to program
the receiver’s bass management, which determines which speakers the
receiver will use to play back the low-frequency (bass) portion of the
source program.
If you send the lowest notes to small satellite speakers, you won’t hear
these notes very well, and you may even damage the speaker by going
beyond its capabilities. If you send the highest notes to the special-pur-
pose subwoofer, you may not hear them at all.
With proper bass management, the AVR 147 divides the source signal at
a crossover point. All information above the crossover point is played
through the satellite speaker (front left/right, center or surround left/right),
and all information below the crossover point is played through the sub-
woofer. This enables each loudspeaker in your system to perform at its
best, delivering an enjoyable sound experience.
Step Two – Measure Speaker Distances
Ideally, all of your speakers were placed in a circle, each at the same
distance from the listening position. However, your room may not be
ideal, and you may have had to place some speakers a little further
away than others. This could affect the overall sound of the receiver,
as sounds that are supposed to arrive simultaneously from different
speakers blur due to different arrival times.
The AVR 147 has a delay adjustment that enables the receiver to
compensate for real-world speaker placements.
Before you begin making adjustments, measure the distance from each
speaker to the listening position, and note it in the Table A3 worksheet
in the appendix. Even if all of your speakers are the same distance from
the listening position, you should enter your speaker distances into the
Delay Adjust menu, which is described in Step Three.
Step Three – Manual Setup Menu
Now you are ready to program these adjustments into the receiver. It’s
best to sit in the usual listening position and make the room as quiet as
possible. Don’t worry if you make a mistake; you can always go back
and change these settings.
With the receiver and video display turned on, press the OSD Button on
the remote to display the Master Menu (see Figure 39). Use the
¤
Button on the remote to move the cursor to the MANUAL SETUP line,
and press the Set Button to display the Manual Setup menu.
See Figure 80.
Figure 80 – Manual Setup Menu Screen
EzSet ACTIVATE: The first line in the Manual Setup menu indicates
whether you have run EzSet/EQ and whether the settings obtained by
EzSet/EQ have been activated as the starting point for manual setup.
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