6
Preparing Your Receiver
C
onnecting Speakers
Preparing the Speaker Wires
Speaker wire consists of two conductors (individual wires) encased in insulation
and is usually color-coded or marked with a ridge along one side so you can
identify each conductor. Use these markings as a guide to help you properly
connect the speakers to your receiver.
Follow these steps to prepare the speaker wires.
1. Cut the speaker wires to the necessary length.
2. Separate the wires about 4 inches on each end.
3. Using a wire stripper, carefully strip about
3
/
4
inch of insulation from the
end of each conductor.
4. Twist the end of each conductor to secure any loose wire strands.
Follow these guidelines when you select
and connect speakers.
• Only connect speakers that are rated
at between 8 and 16 Ohms.
• Be sure you properly connect all
speakers.
• Do not connect two pairs of speakers
to a single set of terminals at the
same time.
• Realistic, Optimus, and other high-
quality speakers have color-coded
speaker terminals (red for positive po-
larity and black for negative polarity).
Use these color-coded terminals as a
guide to help you properly connect the
speakers to the receiver.
• Use 16-gauge (or larger) speaker wire
for all speaker connections, and con-
sider possible speaker locations be-
fore you decide how much speaker
wire you need.
Wire Stran
d
Wire Strands
Conductor
Conductor
Speaker Wire
Wire Strands
Wire Strands
Conductor