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18
CONNECTIONS
There are different types of audio and video connections used to
connect the receiver, the speakers, the video display, and the source
devices.The Consumer Electronics Association has established the
CEA
®
color-coding standard. See Table 1.
Table 1 – Connection Color Guide
Speaker Connections
Speaker cables carry an amplified signal from the receiver’s speaker
terminals to each loudspeaker. They contain two wire conductors,
or leads, inside plastic insulation, that are differentiated in some way,
such as with colors or stripes.
The differentiation preserves polarity, without which low-frequency
performance can suffer. Each speaker is connected to the receiver’s
speaker-output terminals using two wires, one positive (+) and one
negative (–).
Always connect the positive terminal on the loudspeaker,
which is usually
colored red, to the positive terminal on the receiver,
which is colored as shown in the Connection Color Guide (Table 1).
The negative terminals are both black.
The AVR 3550HD uses binding-post
speaker terminals that can accept banana
plugs or bare-wire cables. Banana plugs
are inserted into the hole in the middle of
the terminal cap. See Figure 1.
Figure 1 – Binding-Post Speaker Terminals With Banana Plugs
Bare wire cables are installed as follows (see Figure 2):
1. Unscrew the terminal cap until the pass-through hole in the collar is
revealed.
2. Insert the bare end of the wire into the hole.
3. Hand-tighten the cap until the wire is held snugly.
Figure 2 – Binding-Post Speaker Terminals With Bare Wires
Subwoofer
The subwoofer is dedicated to the low frequencies (bass), which require
more power. To obtain the best results, most speaker manufacturers
offer powered subwoofers that contain their own amplifier. Usually,
a line-level (nonamplified) connection is made from the receiver’s
Subwoofer Output to a corresponding jack on the subwoofer, as shown
in Figure 3.
Although the purple subwoofer output looks similar to full-range analog
audio jacks, it is filtered to allow only the low frequencies to pass. Don’t
connect this output to any other devices.
Figure 3 – Subwoofer
Connecting Source Devices to the AVR
Audio and video signals originate in “source devices,” including your
DVD player, CD player, DVR (digital video recorder) or other recorder,
tape deck, game console, cable or satellite television box or MP3 player.
The AVR’s tuner also counts as a source, even though no external
connections are needed, other than the FM and AM antennas and
the XM antenna module.
Separate connections are required for the audio and video portions of
the signal, except for digital HDMI connections. The types of connections
used depend upon the capabilities of the source device and video display.
Audio Connections
There are two types of audio connections: digital and analog. Digital
audio signals are required for listening to sources encoded with digital
surround modes, such as Dolby Digital and DTS, or for non-compressed
PCM digital audio.There are three types of digital audio connections:
HDMI, coaxial and optical. Never use more than one type of digital
audio connection for each source device. However, it’s okay to make
both analog and digital audio connections to the same source.
NOTE: HDMI signals may carry both audio and video. If your
video display device has an HDMI input, make a single HDMI
connection from each source device to the AVR. Usually, a
separate digital audio connection is not required. Turn the
volume on your television all the way down.
Digital Audio
The AVR 3550HD is equipped with three HDMI (High-Definition
Multimedia Interface) inputs, and one output. HDMI technology enables
digital audio and video information to be carried using a single cable,
delivering the highest quality picture and sound.
The AVR 3550HD uses HDMI (V.1.3a with Deep Color) technology and
is capable of processing both the audio and video components of the
HDMI data, minimizing the number of cable connections in your system.
The AVR 3550HD implements Deep Color, which increases by an order
SubwooferPreout
12 3
+
Audio Connections
Left Right
Front (FL/FR)
Center (C)
Surround (SL/SR)
Surround Back (SBL/SBR)
Subwoofer (SUB)
Digital Audio Connections
Coaxial
Optical
Video Connections
Component Y Pb Pr
Composite
S-Video
HDMI
™
Connections (digital audio/video)
HDMI
Input