Acoustic Research ARPR1212 Performance series User manual

INTRODUCTION
Checkyoursystemcarefully.If it has
beendamagedin transit, reportthe
damageimmediatelybyca!iingyour
AcousticResearchdealerand/orthe
trucking firm iha! iielivered it.
Observeall warningsdr;dcautions.
WARNING
Topreventfire or shockhazard,DO
NOTEXPOSEthissubwoofersystem
to rainorexcessivemoisture.
Werecommendthatyounotoperate
yourspeakersorsubwooferwith the
bass,treble and loudnesscontrols
set to full boost. This will place
unduestrain on the electronicsand
speakersandcoulddamagethem.
Wheneverchangingcables,pulling
plugs,etc.,ALWAYSTURNOFFALL
EQUIPMENTincludingthe Subwoofer.
Thispreventstransientsfromenter-
ingthe speakersandpreventselec-
trical energy from reaching you,
Keep all connections out of the
reachof children.
Toavoid electricalshock,DO NOT
OPEN THE SUBWOOFER!There
arenouserserviceablepartsinside.
IES
WARNING:SHOCKHAZARD- DONOTOPEN
AVIS:RISQUEDECHOCELECTRIQUE- NEPASOUVRIR
CAUTION:TOREDUCETHERISKOFELECTRICSHOCK,DO
NOTREMOVETHECOVERNOUSERSERVICEABLEPARTS
INSIDE.REFERSERVICINGTOQUALIFIED
SERVICEPERSONNEL
A
Thelightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within an equilateral
k
triangle, is intended to alert the user to the presence of
uninsulated “dangerous voltage” within the product5 enclosure
that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of
electrical shock topersons.
A I
Theexclamationpoint within an equilateral triangle is intendedto
alert the user to the presence of important operating and
0 maintenance(servicing)instructionsintheliteratureaccompanying
theproduct.
RecotonHomeAudio,Inc.1090EmmaOaksTradLakeMafyFL32746
CC2W2RecotonAllrightsresewedAilspeoficat~onsandpricess&ct tochaiqemthoulnotice.
wvwacousiwesearchcorn

YourAcoustrcResearchSubwooferdeliverspowerful,deepbasssound
outputfor a natural.life-like sonicexperience.Pleasefollow the direc-
tions inthis manualto achievethe bestperformancefromyoursystem.
Thehook-upand operatronof the Subwooferis the samefor a Home
Theater surround sound system or a stereo musrc system. The
Subwooferhas Its own built-in amplifier,so it works wrth any sound
system. The Subwoofer’sown crossovernetwork sends bass-only
sianalsto theSubwoofer’sbuilt-inamplifier.ThisletstheSubwooferadd
e&a bassto theoutputfromyourotherspeakers.
Forsimplicity,we call your HomeTheatersystem’sor musicsystem’s
main speakersthe Frontspeakers. We call your AV receiver,stereo
receiver,or integratedamplifierthe Recerver.
PLACEMENT
YourAcousticResearchSubwoofermustsit onthe floor, in a cornerto
workproperly.ThefloorandcornerareactuallyapartoftheSubwoofer’s
design.YourARsubwoofershouldbe placedon the floor.Youshouldbe
awarethat thecloserthe subwooferISplacedto thewall,the morepro-
nouncedthe basswill become,wrthmaximumbassbeingachrevedwith
the subwooferberngplacedin a corner
Tooptrmizeyousystem’selectroniccomponentstryandkeepall speaker
wrreandcablesasshortaspossible.
SUBWOOFERCONTROLS& CONNECTIONS
0
POWERCORD Plugthe powercord Into an
ACwall outlet or other ACoutlet capableof
supplyingat least400Watts.
POWERSWITCH Turnsthe ACsupplycom-
pletelyOFForsetstheSubwoofertoAUTOON
operation. In AUTOON,the Subwooferis in
standbymodeuntrl It detectsan audiosignal
input,then the Subwooferturnson automati-
cally. A few minutesafter audroInputsignals
cease,the Subwooferautomaticallyreturnsto
standbymode.
POWERINDICATORLED YourARSubwoofer
has2 LEDindicators ThePowerLEDmdrcator
ISlocatedon the amplifier on the rear.This
LEDISunlit whenthe ACpowerswitch ISOFF.
It glowsredwhenthe SubwooferISInstandby
modeand greenwhen the Subwoofer IS on.
TheSignalmdrcatorLED IS BlueandISlocated
next to the AR logoon the front of the sub-
woofer.ThisLED IS lit whenthereISan audio
signalpresent
FUSE 250V 4A This fuse protects against
internal and external faults. It the POWER
switch ISONandthe power IndicatorLEDIS
unlit, unplugthe powercordfrom the ACoutlet andcheckthe tuse by
unscrewrngthecenterprecefromtheholder.IMPORTANTIf thefuse1s
blown,replaceIt onlywith a fuseof the sametype andcurrentrating.
1,RSPEAKER-INand OUT TERMINALS SeeConnectionOptron1
Theseterminalsare for makingconnectionsusingspeakerwrre. If you
usethis option,donot useOption2.
L,RLine In and Out Jacks SeeConnectionOption2
Thesejacksarefor inputandoutputconnectionstrmgaudrocables.ll
youusethusoption,donotuseOption1
LFEINPUTJACK Allows directconnectionfromanamplifieriproces-
sorwith aninternallow passfilter.Thrsconnectionbypassesthe sub-
woofer’sinternalcrossovercIrcuitryUseonlywith appropriateSuround
Soundprocessor/amplifier.
LFEOutput Jack Thisconnector IS connectedinternallyto theLFEinput
jack andallowsyouto loopthe LFEinputsignaloutto anotherLFEInput
onanadditionalARpoweredloudspeakeror subwoofer.
LOWPASSFREQUENCYCONTROLAdjuststhe upperfrequencylimit
for audiosignalsgoingto the Subwooferamplifier. Thuscontrolhelps
youadjustthe systemstonalbalance.
LEVELCONTROL Balancesthe loudnessof the Subwooferrelativeto
theFrontspeakersandcompensatesfor roomeffectsontheSubwoofer’s
output.
PHASE SWITCH The Phase Switch controls the phase of the
Subwoofer’soutputrelativeto thefront speakers.Listencarefullyto the
soundqualitywhile playinga CDwith low bass. Selectthe positionof
the switchthat producesthe fullest deepbasswrthoutboommess.You
mayneedto readjustthe LevelandLowPassFrequencycontrolsafter
settingthe PhaseSwitch.
CONNECTINGYOUSUBWOOFER
IMPORTANTWhenyou makeconnectrons.makesurethat the power
switchesof all components,rncludrngthe Subwoofer,areOFF.
AUDIO CABLES If you are connectingthe Subwooferinto a system
madeupof separatecomponents(preamp& poweramps),youwill need
audiocableslongenoughto reachthe Subwooferfromthe preamplifier
andthe poweramplifier.
SPEAKERWIRE Typicalspeakerwrrehasa parrof separateconductors
with insulatingjackets that aremoldedtogether. We recommendthat
youuse16.gaugespeakerwire for hookingyourRecerverto yourFront
speakers. Tomakeconnectronsto the Subwooferin parallelwith the
Frontspeakerseasier,the speakerwire connectingthe Recerverto the
Subwoofercanbe smaller(highergaugenumber),sincethe Subwoofer
doesnotdrawlargeamountsof powerthroughthesewares.
tT0 REDTERMINAL
I I
POLARITY All speakersin a systemmustbeconnectedwith the same
polarity. Speakerwire ISmarkedfor polarity so that you can identify
whichwire rnthe parrISwhich PolarrtyISshownbyacolorstriponthe
insulation,by rrdgedmoldedinto the insulation,or bythe colorsof the
wires onecopperandonesilver
Stripthe msulatronfromspeakerwire endsto revealthebareconductors
beforeconnectrngto Recerver,Subwooferor Speakerterminals
IMPORTANTAlwaysconnectthe red +terniinal onthe Receiverto the
red+terminalontheSubwoofer,andthe black terminalontheReceiver
to the black terminaloh the Subwoofer.Thesame IS truefor hooking
the Receiveroutputsto the Frontspeakersred+to redt, andblack-to
black-.
IMPORTANTUSEOPTION1OROPTION2,NOTBOTH.
OPTION1- CONNECTIONWITHSPEAKERWIRE

OPTION2- CONNECTIONWITHAUDIOCABLE
I~--- ~.
p=T_- /
PRE-AMPLIFIER
iiyouipreamp iecewoi pioces~oi has a cubwooferoormono OUtpUtJaCkthaf IS
controlledby the master volume contioi use a wig/e audio cable to connect that
output to the subwoofer Lnie~h~pch No audio cables from the subwoofers Lme
OMJacks are needed 111ii16 Set iip
SUBWOOFERADJUSTMENT& USE
Subwoofer initial control settings
. Setthe LOWPASSFRFQUENCYControlto Itscenterposrtlon.
. Set the LEVELControlfully counterclockwrseto MIN. You’ll reset
thuscontrolafteryournakeotheradjustments
Adjusting the Subwoofer controls
. Playa programon yoursystem Forthe following adjustments,use
the DolbyProLogrcNormalsurroundmodeand select a movrethat
hasa DolbySurroundsoundtrackwith a lot of musrc,or playa music
CD. Adjust the Recerver’svolumecontrol for a comfortablesound
levelfromthesystemspeakers.
. Increasethe Subwoofer’sLEVELControlsettrng clockwise, so that
you hearthe deepbass Adjust the control for a natural,musical
balancethat has plenty of deep bass sound when rt IS actually
presentin the musrc
. Listencarefullyto bassvoicesand,rf needed,adjustthe LOWPASS
FREQUENCYControl so that they sound natural. Setting the
frequency too high will make deep voices sound excessively
“chesty” or resonantandwill grvethe upperbassrnmusica “one-
note” qualrty. Settingthe frequencytoo low WIIImakedeepvoices
sound“thin” andWIIIgrvemusrca lackof “warmth”.
. Makefine adjustmentsuntrlthe programhassatrsfyrngandnatural
soundqualityonbothbassvorcesandmusic.
Setting the Phase Switch
ThePHASEswatchcontrolsthe phaseof the Subwoofersoutputrela
trveto that of the FrontspeakersInmanymstallattons,it WIIIbedrf
frcultto tell whrchswatchtettrng ISthecorrectone Listencarefully
to the soundqualitywhrlesomeoneelsetogglesthe swatchbetween
Itstwo positions.Thepositronthat producesthefullest deepbass
andthe warmestbassandrnrd-basssoundISthe correctone.You
rmayneedto readjustthe SUBWOOFEROUTLEVELandSUBWOOFER
CROSSOVERFREQUENCYcontrolsafter settingthis swatch
TROUBLESHOOTING
Subwoofer POWERIndicator LEDdoes not light
. CheckthattheSubwooferSPOWERSwatchISintheAUTOONpositron
. If the POWERSwatch15III the AUTOONpositron,checkthe ACout
let the Subwoofer15pluggedIntoto be surethat it ISlive Youcan
usea testeror plug-IIIa lampto checkit
. If the AC outlet 15love,either the powercord or Subwooferhas a
problem Unplugthe powercordfrom the AC outlet andcheckthe
fuse byunscrewrnythe centerpiecefrom the holder. If rt ISblown,
replacethefuseonlywth a fuseof the sametypeandrating. If thus
doesn’thelp,takethe Subwooferto yourdealerfor servrce- THERE
ARENOUSERSERVICEABLEPARTSINSIDE.
No sound from the Front speakers.
. Besurethe ReceiverandSubwooferPOWERSwitchesarein the On
positions.
. Checkthe Recerver’sVolumeControlSetting if it ISail the way
down,therewon’t beanysound
. Checkthat the Receiver’sInputSelectorISsetto an activesourceof
audiosignalsandthat aTapeMonrtorLoopISnotengaged
.
Besurethat the Receiver’sSpeakerSelectorswitch is turnedon to
the terminals [A or B, lor 21that you have your Front speakers
connectedto. If the Receiverhas a headphonejack, you can use
headphonesto checkthe Receiverfor output.
. Checkthe wires andconnectionsfrom the Receiver’sFrontSpeaker
Outputterminalsto the Subwoofer’sSPEAKER-INterminals.
. Try removingthe Subwooferfrom the system, leaving your Front
speakersconnectedto the Receiver.If there still is no sound,take
the Receiverto yourdealerfor service.
No sound from the Subwoofer
.
First, be surethere ISsoundfrom the Frontspeakersandthat the
Receiverisworkingcorrectlyasoutlrnedabove.
Checkthe Subwoofer’sLEVELControl. If it is all the way counter
clockwise,theremaybenosound.
The Subwooferonly reproducesdeep bass sound. If the program
has no deepbass,the Subwooferwill not makeany sound. Playa
programwrth plentyof bass,suchasjazz or rockmusic,or an actron
movie.
If everythingelsechecksOK,take the Subwooferto yourdealerfor
service-THEREARENOUSERSERVICEABLEPARTSINSIDE.
SPECIFICATIONS
DroverComplementandEnclosure
12” longthrowwoofer ina down-frrmgslot-loadedconfiguration
with a 12”front firing PassiveRadiator
FrequencyResponse
20Hr-150Hz
Amplrfrcatron
Poweroutput:250WattsRMS,LFEIn/Out
TotalHarmonicDistortion
10%@250Wattsoutput
Signal-to-NorseRatio
>87dB
Crossoverfrequency(-3dB)
50Hz@MIN150Hz@MAX
SpecialFeatures:
2 parrs5 -waygoldbindingpostsfor highleveloutput
2 parrs5 -waygoldbrndrngpostsfor hrghlevelinput
2 RCAlow levelinputs
2 RCAlow leveloutputs
1 RCALFEInput
1 RCALFEoutput
Frmsh Blackashlaminate
Drmensrons(HxWxD).16.75”x 14”x 18.75”.(42.5cmx 35.6cmx 47.6cm)
Weight 35.5Ibs(16.1kgs)
LIMITEDWARRANTY
Ths warranty remainsin effect for five yearsfrom date of purchasefor
speakercomponents,oneyearonsubwooferamplifiersandelectromccom-
ponents.
TIIISwarranty protectsthe orrgrnalowner providingthat the producthas
beenpurchasedfromanauthorizedAcousticResearchdealerin the Unrted
States Theoriginalbill of salemustbepresentedwheneverwarrantyserv-
IceISrequired. Forwarrantyservrceouts/detheUnrtedStates,contactthe
authorizedAcousticResearchdistributorin the countrywherethe product
was purchased
Exceptas specrfredbelow,this warrantycoversall defectsin materialand
workmanshrp.Thefollowingarenotcovered:Damagecausedbyaccident,
mrsuse,abuse,productmodifrcatronor neglect,damageoccurringduring
shipment,damagefromfailureto follow instructionscontainedinthe own-
ersmanual,damageresultingfromthe performanceof repairsbysomeone
notauthorizedbyAcousbcResearch,or anyclarmsbasedonmisrepresen-
tationsbytheseller. Thiswarrantydoesnotcoverincidentalorconsequen-
tealdamages It doesnotcoverthecostof removrngorrernstallingtheunrt.

This warranty is void if the serial number has been removedor
defaced.
Thiswarrantygivesyouspecificlegalrights. Youmayalsohaveother
rightswhich varyfrom state to state. Somestates do not allow the
exclusionor limitation of incidentalorconsequentialdamagesor limr-
tations onhow longan impliedwarrantylasts,sothe abovemaynot
applyto you.
HOWTOOBTAINSERVICE
Pleasecall usat (800)2259847
Wewill promptlyadviseyouofwhatactiontotake. Wemaydirectyou
to anauthorizedAcousticResearchServiceCenteroraskyouto send
yourspeakertothefactoryfor repair Youwill needto presenttheorig-
inalbill of saleto establishthe dateof purchase.PLEASEDONOT
SHIP YOUR ACOUSTIC RESEARCHPRODUCT FOR REPAIR
WITHOUTPRIORAUTHORIZATION. PLEASEDO NOT RETURN
PRODUCTTO THE ABOVE ADDRESS, IT IS NOT A SERVICE
LOCATION. You are responsiblefor transportingyour productfor
repairandfor paymentof any initial shippingcharges. However,we
will paythe returnshippingchargesif the repairsare coveredunder
warranty.
IMPORTANTSAFETYPRECAUTIONS
ATTENTION:
Please read these instructions thoroughly before
attem
R
ting to operateyourARSubwoofer. Besureto
savet ismanualforfuturereference.Alsosaveyourbill
of sale,asit mayberequiredfor warrantyservice.
CAUTION:
Pleaseensurethat the correctplugis usedonyourAC
outlet.
CLEANING- Unplugthe AR subwooferfrom the wall
outlet beforecleanrng. Do not use liquid cleanersor
aerosolcleaners.Useadampclothfor cleaning.
ATTACHMENTS- DonotplacetheARSubwooferon
anunstablecart,stand,tripod,bracket,ortable. The
productmayfall, causingseriousinjuryto a childor
adult,andseriousdamageto the product.Theideal
locationfor yoursubwooferisonthefloor.
VENTILATION - Slots and o enings in the AR
Subwooferare providedfor ventiation, to ensurereli-
P
ableoperationandto rotectit fromoverheating,these
openingsmustnotbei lockedbyplacingthe producton
a bed, sofa ru , or other similar surface. The AR
Subwoofershoud notbeplacedina built in installation
9
suchasa bookcaseor rackunlessproperventilationis
providedor AcousticResearch’sinstructionshavebeen
adheredto.
POWER SOURCES- The AR Subwoofershould be
operatedonlyfrom the type of powersourceindicated
onthe markinglabel. If youarenotsureof powersup-
plyto yourhome,consultyourAcousticResearchdealer
or localpowercompany.
GROUNDINGORPOLARIZATION-TheARSubwoofer
may be equi
lineplug(apuP
ped with a polarizedalternating-current
This plugwill 9 havingonebladewiderthantheother). it into the poweroutlet only one way.
Thisis a safetyfeature. If youareunableto insertthe
099.23599
plugfully into the outlet,try reversingthe plug. If the
plu
f is still unableto fit, contact your electricianto repaceyourobsoleteoutlet.
POWER-CORDPROTECTION Power-supplycords
shouldberoutedsothattheyarenotlikelyto bewalked
on or pinchedby items placeduponor againstthem,
payingparticularattention to cordsat plugs,conven-
iencereceptacles,andthepointwheretheyexitfromthe
Subwoofer.
LIGHTNING - For added protection for the AR
Subwooferduringa lightningstorm,or when left unat-
tendedand unusedfor long periodsof time, unplu
%
it
fromthewall outletanddisconnecttheantennaorca le
system. Thiswill preventdamageto theARSubwoofer
dueto a lightningandpower-linesurges,
OVERLOADING- Donot overloadwall outlets,exten-
sioncords,or integralconveniencereceptaclesas this
canresultin a riskof fire orelectricshock.
OBJECTAND LIQUIDENTRY- Neverpushobjectsof
anykindintothis productthroughopeningsastheymay
touchdan
couldresut inafire or electricshock. Neverspill liquid9
erousvoltagepointsor short-outpartsthat
of anykindontheARSubwoofer.
SERVICING- Do not attemptto servicethe AR sub-
woofer yourself as openingor removingcovers may
exposeyouto dangerousvoltageorotherhazards.Refer
all servrcingto qualifiedAcousticResearchserviceper-
sonnel.
DAMAGE REQUIRINGSERVICE- Unplug the AR
subwooferfromthewalloutletandreferservicinto quali-
fiedservicepersonnelunderthefollowingcon
2
itions:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
When‘thepower-sup
P
lycordor plugisdamaged.
If liquidhasbeenspiled,orobjectshavefallen
intothe product.
Ifthe producthasbeenexposedto rainorwater.
Iftheproductdoesnotoperatenormallybyfollow-
ingthe operatinginstructions. Adjustonlythose
controls that are covered by the operating
instructionsas an improper adJUStI?Ient of other
controls may result In damageand will often
requireextensiveworkbyaqualifiedtechnicianto
restoretheARsubwooferto its normaloperation.
IftheARsubwooferhasbeendroppedordamaged
inanyway.
Whenthe productexhibitsa distinctchangein a
performance this indicatesneedfor service.
REPLACEMENTPARTS- Whenreplacementpartsare
required, be sure the service technician has used
replacementparts specifiedby Acoustic Researchor
have the same characteristicsas the original part.
Unauthorizedsubstitutionsmay result in fire, electric
shock,orotherhazards.
SAFETYCHECK- Uponcompletionof any serviceor
repairsto this
performsafetyc
R
roduct,ask the servicetechnicianto
ecksto determinethattheproductisin
properoperatingcondition.
HEAT TheARsubwoofershouldbesituatedawayfrom
heatsourcessuchasradiators,heatregisters,stoves,or
otherproducts(includingamplifiers)that produceheat.
SPKlZOllS 91

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