SV Subwoofers
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your sub, getting these bass wave forms to arrive in a complementary, enhancing
fashion is the difficult job of the phase control. Essentially, “phase” varies the tim-
ing of the bass waves coming from the sub. But don’t despair if you don’t hear
much difference with changes to the phase knob — the effect of bass cancellation
will vary by volume and frequency in your room, and no single setting is likely to
ever be “perfect”. One technique to optimize phase is to find a nice “bassy” loop
(such as the menu of “Godzilla”) and measure the loop’s SPL response at various
points. As the loop runs, you can have an assistant adjust the phase control. When
you see the most response on a given bass passage, typically that’s the setting with
the least room-induced cancellation (for the frequencies of the demo loop).
Line In/Out. Use one of the sub’s “Line In” jacks to connect the subwoofer to the
output jack of your receiver/processor. Feeding just one input is enough. If you are
using a conventional amp and/or a stereo setup you can use the “Line Out” jacks to
send sound (filtered of deep bass information) back to your system amp. A simple
RCA to RCA cable is all you need for either type configuration.
Auto On. Your sub allows an “Auto On” mode… or can be on all the time. With
the switch in the “Auto” position your subwoofer will “sense” that a DVD or CD etc.
has begun and switch on immediately (the “hard power switch” mentioned below
must be on, naturally). A few minutes after a movie finishes, the auto-on light will
turn red, switching the sub back off. When running (and sensing a signal) the auto-
on LED will be green. Sometimes, with very low listening levels, your subwoofer
might not get enough of a bass signal from your surround sound processor to “trip”
the auto-on circuit. Should you ever find this to be the case you may leave this
switch to “On”, or turn the receiver’s subwoofer output up, and the sub down.
Crossover enable switch. If you allow your DD/DTS surround-sound receiver
or processor to manage bass frequencies (recommended), this switch should be set to
“Disabled”. This eliminates the effects of the “Crossover Frequency” knob and
allows your sub to reproduce just what it’s fed from the receiver. If you use the sub
in a two channel (stereo only) configuration, then “Enable” the crossover and adjust
the knob to best blend the sub into the low frequency output of your speakers.
High level inputs/outputs. Not commonly used today, but binding posts are
there in case you don’t have low-level inputs/outputs on your receiver/processor.
Typically utilized only if you are not using a DD/DTS compatible system.
Power. This heavy duty two-position switch next to the power cord will com-
pletely cut the power to your sub amp. Flip this switch to off before you ever move
the sub or change inputs or outputs.
A/C Connection. Plug your sub into a dedicated A/C outlet. “Convenience”
outlets of typical receivers often don’t provide the needed current. Avoid them.
Fuse. User replaceable, contact SVS if you have trouble finding one. The fuse
can be accessed by a small round door immediately next to the power cord fitting.