ALLNIC AUDIO H?1500 II PLUS PHONO STAGE User manual

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ALLNICAUDIO
H‐1500IIPLUSPHONOSTAGE
OWNER’SMANUAL

ALLNIC AUDIO
H-1500 II PLUS PHONO STAGE
ThankyouforpurchasingthisAllnicAudioH‐1500IIPLUSPhonoStage.We
arecertainyourtrustinAllnicAudioandHammertoneAudio,aswellas
yourappreciationforthesoundofthishigh‐qualitydevice,willbe
rewardedbyitsexcellentoperationforyearstocome.
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PleasereadthisentiremanualbeforeyouconnecttheH‐1500IIPLUSto
theothercomponentsofyoursystemandthewalloutlet.
2

TABLEOFCONTENTS:
___________________________________________________________________
INTRODUCING THE H‐1500IIPLUSPHONO STAGE 4
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WHAT’S IN THE BOX? 5
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SAFETY 5
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CLEANING
Chassis
Connectors 5
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INITIAL SET-UP
Location, Location, Location
Power Connection
Inputs
Outputs
Moving Coil (MC) Transformer Controls
A Note On Phase
Impedance 5
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INITIAL POWER ON 7
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OPERATION 7
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TUBES 8
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SPECIFICATIONS 8
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WARRANTY 9
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FIGURES 10
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PleasereadaboutSAFETYbeforeyouattempttousetheH‐1500IIPLUS‐
wecareaboutourcustomersandtheequipment,andwewantyouto
enjoythisproductforalongtime!

3

INTRODUCINGTHEH‐1500IIPLUSPHONOSTAGE
TheH‐1500IIPLUSisAllnicAudio’smid‐linephono
stagemodel,justunderthetopofthelineH‐3000.
LikeallAllnicAudioproducts,itusesPermalloy(iron
andnickelalloy)foritstransformercores.Allnicis
gratefultoMr.G.W.ElmenofWesternElectricfor
inventingPermalloyfortransformercoreuse,andin
sodoing,providinganenormousserviceto
recordedmusiclistenerseverywhere.
TheH‐1500IIPLUShasthefollowingfeatures:
•LCRTYPERIAAEQUALIZATION:
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RIAAequalizationisaspecificationforthecorrect
playbackofvinylrecords,establishedbythe
RecordingIndustryAssociationofAmerica.The
purposeoftheequalizationistopermitlonger
playbacktimesandimprovesoundquality.
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RIAAequalizationisaformofestablishingaflat
frequencyresponsefortheplaybackofrecorded
music.Thenecessityforthisequalizationprocess
arisesfrommechanicaldifficultiesinherentin
recordproduction.Inordertopreventthe
cuttingneedlefromover‐cuttingintothenext
recordgrooveinthebass,asarecordiscut,
somebassfrequenciesareattenuated.Inthe
trebleregion,inorderforhighfrequencysounds
nottobemaskedbythenoiseinherentin
movingastylusoverandthroughamodulated
vinylsurface,sometreblefrequenciesare
boosted.Withtheapplicationofthecorrect
filteringtechniquesonplayback,theresultisa
flatfrequencyresponsewithbettersignalto
noiseratios.
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Therearefourde‐emphasismethodsthatcanbe
appliedatplayback:
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A. Activefilters(Negativefeedbacktypes):
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Differentquantitiesofnegativefeedbackare
applied,withdeeperfeedbacktothehigh
frequenciesandshallowertothelow
frequencies.Thebenefitsofthismethodare
improvedsignaltonoiseratios,lowcostand
consistentoperation.Someoftheshortfallsare
looserbassreproductionandpossiblyapinched
andcompressedhighfrequencyplaybackdueto
excessfeedbackratios.
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B.Passivefilters(CRtype):
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‐ ThefrequenciesarefilteredtofittheRIAA
specificationbyvaryingtheamountofattenuation
atdifferentfrequenciesthroughacomplex
capacitor‐resistornetwork.Thistechniqueresults
innovoltageoverload,purerreproduction
(becausethereisnofeedback),andmoreaccurate
RIAAcompensation.However,thereareproblems
becausethesystemprovidesnogain,and
insertionlossandimpedancematchingissues
arise.
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C. Hybridfilters(useofbothCRandnegative
feedbacktypes):
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Inthismethod,bothtypesoffiltersapplied
separately;anactivefilterisappliedtothelow
frequenciesandapassivefiltertothehigh
frequencies.Unfortunately,boththeadvantages
anddisadvantagesofeachofthesetwotypesof
filters,alreadydiscussed,affecttheplayback
systematthesametime.
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D. LCRfilters,whichareusedintheH‐1500II
PLUS:
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Twopiecesofalinearreactor(akindofchokecoil)
comprisethemainpartofthesefilters,assistedby
preciseCRfilters,inordertolowerimpedances
andinsertionloss.Invacuumtubecircuits,active
andpassivefiltersusuallyareoperatedonone
hundredpluskiloohmsofimpedance.AnLCR
RIAAfilter'simpedanceisaconstant600ohms.
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Furthermore,anLCRRIAAfilter'sseriesresistance
islessthan13ohms(asacomparative,some
famousonesare31ohms).Thelowerthe
impedance,themoredynamicisthesound
reproduction,withbetterbassresponseand
speed.
4

ButLCRRIAAunitshavedrawbacksaswell.
Thesedrawbacksarehighcostandthe
difficultyofimpedancematching;thelatter
hasbeentheprimaryhindrancetothe
commercializationofthissuperbmethodin
theconstructionofphonostageamplifiers.
However,AllnicAudiomanufacturesahigh
qualityLCRRIAAunitandhasdevelopeda
600ohmsimpedancematchingmethod.
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•Forsuperiorsignaltonoiseratios,theH‐1500
IIPLUSisequippedwithpurevacuumtube,
highvoltageregulationforeachchanneland
apowersupplyunitseparatefromthephono
stageitself.
•HighqualityMCStep‐upTransformerswith
PermalloycoresareusedfortheH‐1500II
PLUS’sdualMCinputs.
•Newvacuumtubedampingtechnology–Allnic
Audio’spatented"AbsorbGELtubedamper"
technologypreventsharmfulvibrationsfrom
reachingthesignal/gaintubesand,therefore,
preventsmicro‐phonicnoisepropagationinthe
tubes.TheAllnicAudioAbsorbGeldamper
technologyeffectivelysolvesaproblemthat
plaguesmosttubeamplificationsystems.
Providedothertubecomponentsdonot
introducemicro‐phonicnoiseintoyoursystem,
withtheAbsorbGeldampingsystem,youwill
enjoyadegreeoftransparentsoundthatwill
surpriseandpleaseyou.
•PureClassAoperation
•AsareallAllnicAudioproducts,theH‐1500II
PLUSisfullyRoHS(EUReductionofHazardous
Substancesregulation)compliantin
constructionandmaterials

WHAT’SINTHEBOX?

Pleasecheckthattheshippingboxcontainsthe
following:

•One(1)AllnicH‐1500IIPLUSphonostage–
innaturalaluminumorblack,dependingon
yourorderspecification
•One(1)PowerSupplyforH‐1500II/H‐3000
innaturalaluminumorblack,dependingon
yourorderspecification
•One(1)powerumbilicalcord
•One(1)IECtypepowercord
•One(1)Owner’sManual

Note:
1) TheH‐1500IIPLUSanditspowersupplyshipwith
thetubesinstalled.
2) TheH‐1500IIPLUSpowersupplywillworkwith
mostIECtypeaftermarketpowercords.Of
course,onlyyoucandeterminethepowercord
thatworksmostsynergisticallywiththeH‐1500II
PLUSinyoursystem.
3) BesuretheH‐1500IIPLUSpowersupplyunitis
labeledfortheACvoltageofyourlocation.Ifitis
not,pleasecontactHammertoneAudio.

Weadvisethatyoukeeptheboxesandotherpacking
materialsthatyourH‐1500IIPLUScamein.Itwillbe
usefulifyousellyourH‐1500IIPLUSorintheunlikely
eventyouneedtoshipitorthepowersupplyfor
service.

SAFETY

•Disconnectthepowercordbypullingthe
plug,notthecable.
•Donotattemptanyrepairs.Donotremove
theunits’chassiscoverswithoutspecific
authorizationfromHammertoneAudio.
•Keepthepowercordsawayfromheatsources
•Keeptheunitsawayfromliquids–donot
allowanyliquidtoentertheinteriorofthe
units.
•Whentheunitsaremovedfromacoldtoawarm
environment,allowsufficienttimeforany
condensationtoevaporateinbothunitsbefore
pluggingthepowersupplyunitintoanAC
connection.
•Donotattemptanyrepairs.
•Donotremovetheunits’chassiscoverswithout
specificauthorizationfromHammertoneAudio.
•Seethenoteson“Location,Location,Location”.

CLEANING

A. Chassis

Useonlyasoft,lint‐freeclothdampenedslightlywith
5

wateronly(NOcleaningfluids!)tocleanthe
faceplateandchassisoftheH‐1500IIPLUSandits
powersupply.

B. Connectors

Youmayuseanygoodqualitycontactcleaner
recommendedforsuchapplicationstocleanthe
contactsfromtimetotime,asyoudeem
appropriate.

INITIALSET‐UP

A.LOCATION,LOCATION,LOCATION

Likeallaudioproductsusingtubes,theAllnicAudio
H‐1500IIPLUSanditspowersupplyneedtobe
placedonasolidstandinalocationthatprovides
goodaircirculationaroundboththephonostage
andthepowersupply.
supply(PleaserefertoFigures1and2).

•DONOTcoverthetopoftheH‐1500IIPLUS
phonostageortheventilationslotsinthe
topofthepowersupplychassis.
•DONOTplacetheunitsoncarpetorfoam.
•DONOTsubjecttheunitstoknocksand
shocksasyoumovethemaround.This
adviceismeantparticularlyforthosewho
maywanttoplacetheH‐1500IIPLUSorits
powersupplyonsomekindofafter‐market
isolationfeetorsimilardevices.Dropping
onesideofeitheroftheH‐1500IIPLUS
units,orthewholeofeitherunit,isnota
goodthingtodo.
•DONOTplacetheunitsnearastronglight
orheat.
•DONOTplaceanythingheavyontheunits.
•DONOTallowrubberorvinylmaterialsto
restoneitherunits’chassisforlongperiods
oftime.Thiscoulddiscolourthemetal.

•DOplacetheunitsonashelforstandthatis
stableandnotsubjecttovibrationor
suddenshock.
•DOconsiderusingahighqualitypowercord
andinter‐connects,forbothinputsand
outputs.TheH‐1500IIPLUSisahighly
sensitivepieceofelectronicdesignedforneutrality
andwilloutputwhatyouputintoit.
•DOtrytoplacetheH‐1500IIPLUSanditspower
supplyawayfrommajorsourcesofRFIandEMI;
thoughwellshielded,theH‐1500IIPLUSunitswill
functionbestawayfromlargepowertransformers
andothersourcesofsuchinterference.

B. POWERCONNECTIONS

TheH‐1500IIPLUSpowersupplyusesastandardthree
prongmaleIECconnectionforACinput.Youneedtousea
powercordwithafemalethreeprongIECconnectorat
oneend.

TheH‐1500IIPLUSpowersupplyconnectstothephono
stageitselfusingthesuppliedumbilicalcable.Connectthe
unitstoeachotherusingtheprovidedumbilicalcable,
withtheappropriatescrew‐onconnectionstothe
receptaclelabeled“DCSourceInput”ontherearofthe
phonostageandtheconnectionterminallabeled“DC
SourceOutput”ontheleftsideoftherearofthepower

TheH‐1500IIPLUSpowersupplyyouhavepurchased
issetinternallyforAC110/120volt–60HZ
operation.Thereisnowaytochangethistoanother
ACsettingwithoutreturnoftheunittothefactory
forre‐wiring,attheowner’scost,includingtransport
bothdirections.

C.INPUTS

Therearetwo(2)setsoftwo(2)pairsofsingle‐ended
(RCA)inputs.Thesetwopairsarelocatedontheleft
handsideoftherearofthephonostage(SeeFigure1).
Eachchannelpairofinputsisalignedvertically,withthe
leftchannelinputatthetopandtherightchannelinput
onthebottom.Thetwolefthandpairofinputs(facing
thebackofthephonostage,havean“MC”labelbelow
thetworightchannelconnectors;thesearethetwo
inputpairsforamovingcoilcartridge.Therighthand
pairofinputshasan“MM”labelabovetheleftchannel
connectorandbelowtherightchannelconnector;thisis
theinputpairforamovingmagnetcartridge.

Ineachcase,forbothMCandMMconnections,theleft
handverticallyalignedpairofconnections(again,facing
thebackoftheunit)correspondstoinput1forthe
6

buttonswitchonthefrontpanelofthephono
stage,whiletherighthandverticallyalignedpair
isinput2.

TotheleftofthefourMCRCAinputconnections
isascrewtypeconnector.Thisconnectoristhe
groundconnectionforagroundwirefroma
cartridgeand/orturntableifyouareusinga
movingcoilcartridge.TotherightofthefourMM
RCAinputconnectionsisanotherscrewtype
connector.Thisconnectoristheground
connectionforagroundwirefromacartridge
and/orturntableifyouareusingamovingmagnet
cartridge.

WhenyouarefacingthefrontoftheH‐1500IIPLUS,
thetwopairsofMCconnectionsareonthefarright
oftheunit,withthetwoMMconnections
immediatelytotheirleft.

TheH‐1500IIPLUShasbeendesignedand
manufacturedtoworkmostsynergisticallywith
AllnicAudiopreamplifiers,pre‐phonostagesand
equalizationproducts.

D.OUTPUTS

TheH‐1500IIPLUSisequippedwithonepairof
single‐ended(RCA)outputs.Therightandleft
channeloutputconnectionsarealsoaligned
verticallyunderthelabel“Output”justtothe
leftoftheDCSourceInput(SeeFigure1),with
theleftchanneloutputatthetopandtheright
channeloutputconnectionatthebottom.
Facingthefrontofthephonostage,theoutput
connectionsaretotheimmediaterightofthe
powerumbilicalcordconnection.

E. MovingCoil(MC)TransformerControls

Onthetopofthechassis,ontherightifyouare
lookingdownfacingthefrontofthephonostage,
twotransformercontrolsareaccessiblethrough
cutoutsinthetopofthechassis.Thereisacontrol
foreachchannel.

The“X#”scalecorrespondstothefactorthatyou
willselectforthemillivoltoutputofyourselected
MCcartridge.EachpositionontheX#scalecorresponds
toanincreaseingain,indicatedonthe+#dBscale.You
shoulduseidenticalsettingsforbothtransformersto
avoidchannelimbalance.

Useacoinorotherappropriatelyshapedobjecttoselect
thegainfactor.Weencourageexperimentationforeach
ofyourfavouritemovingcoilcartridges.

F.ANOTEONPHASE

Phaseissuesgenerallywillresultinlackofbassand/or
focusofthestereoimage.Youmayneedtoreverse
connectionsonyourcartridgeifyouarehavingphase
issues.Asisusualinthesecircumstances,sometrialand
errorexperimentationmayberequiredtofindthecorrect
position..Ofcourse,theentireprocessissimplifiedif
yourpreamplifierhasaphasecontrol,asdotheAllnic
AudioL‐1500andL‐4000preamplifiers.

G.IMPEDANCE

IntheSpecificationsattheendofthismanual,you
willreadthatthemovingcoil(MC)inputimpedance
fortheH‐1500IIPLUSisupto117ohms.Thisvalue
representstheinternalimpedanceofthecartridge
itself,andisattheextremeupperendofwhatwould
beexpectedfortheinternalimpedanceofanMC
cartridge.Itwouldbeexceptionallyunusualtofinda
cartridgewithinternalimpedancegreaterthanthat
value.Infact,however,theMCstep‐uptransformerin
theH‐1500IIPLUScanacceptcartridgeswithupto
470ohmsinternalimpedance.

INITIALPOWER‐ON

OnceyouhaveyourH‐1500IIPLUSinplaceandall
connectionshavebeenmadetoyourturntableand
preamplifier,youarereadytoturnonthepowerfor
yourH‐1500IIPLUS.BeforeyoupoweruptheH‐1500
IIPLUS,though,besureyouhave:

•turnedthevolumedownorotherwisemutedyour
preamplifier
•pressedthebuttonswitchonthelefthandsideof
thefrontpanelofthephonostage,labeled
“muting”belowandhavingbuttoninandout
iconsforoperateandmute,respectively,tothe
7

in/down“mute”position(seeFigure3).
•pressedthebuttonswitchesontheright
handsideofthefrontpanelofthephono
stagetotheappropriatepositionsforthe
cartridgetype,eitherMCorMM,andthe
input(“1”or“2”)thatyouwilluseinitially
(SeeFigure3).Theleftofthetwobutton
switchesisforchoosingMM(button
pressedin)orMC(buttonout).Thebutton
switchontherightistochoosetheinput
forthattypeofcartridge,eitherMMor
MC.Thepositionforinput1iswiththe
buttonpresseddowninthelowposition,
andthepositionforinput2iswiththe
buttonpushedtoreturntotheraised
position.
•ifyouareusingamovingcoilcartridge,set
theMCtransformercontrolsonthetopof
thechassistothefactorthatyouwilltry
initially
•checkedthatallyourconnectionsaresnug

ToturnontheH‐1500IIPLUS,pressinthe
buttonswitchonthefrontofthepowersupply
markedwithonandofficons(seeFigure4).Of
course,theoffpositionisthereverse,pressing
thebuttonagainsoitisreturnstothemaximum
raisedposition.

•OPERATION

Whenthepowersupplyison,thelightonitsfront
panelwillilluminate,andthelightabovetheword
“ALLNIC”onthefrontpaneloftheAllnicAudioH‐
1500IIPLUSphonostagewillilluminate.

Afteraforty(40)secondautomaticprotective
“mute”period,theAllnicAudioH‐1500IIPLUSwill
bereadyforoperation.

Toavoidsurgestothespeakers,itisbesttoswitch
betweenMMorMCinput,orbetweeninputs1and
2ofeither,onlywiththeH‐1500IIPLUSin“mute”
modeandwithyourpreamplifiervolumedownor
otherwisemuted.

Fromthispointon,operationisstraight‐forward.All
functionsexceptforMCtransformers’gainselection
arecontrolledfromthefrontpanel.Ofcourse,BE
CAREFULaboutdifferencesingainbetweenyoursources.
Generally,discplayersandtunerswillhavegreatergain
thanphonostages.Thatmeansthevolumesettingfor
listeningtoyourturntablemightbetoohighforlistening
toCD’s.

Whenyouarefinishedlistening,turnoffyourpower
amplifier(s);thenturnoffyourpreamplifierandthenturn
offtheH‐1500IIPLUSlastbypressingtheon‐offswitchon
thefrontpanelofthepowersupplysoitreturnstothe
outposition.

Inthecaseofanyfailure,pleasecontactHammertone
Audioforassistance.

TUBES

TheH‐1500IIPLUSusesthefollowingtubes(pleasesee
Figure6):

•Six(6)x5842
•Two(2)xE282F
•Two(2)x7233
•Two(2)x6485
•One(1)x5AR4(in,andtheonlytubein,the
powersupply)

Allconsequencesofchangingorattemptingtochange
tubesarebornebytheuserunlessbyexpress
agreementbetweentheownerandHammertone
Audio.NeitherAllnicAudionorHammertoneAudio
willacceptanyliabilitywhatsoeverforanyinjuryto
theuserordamagetotheH‐1500IIPLUS,anyofits
parts,ortubesorreplacementtubesresultingfrom
theuserchangingorattemptingtochangetubes.












8

SPECIFICATIONSFORTHEALLNICAUDIOH‐
1500IIPLUSPHONOSTAGE

•Inputs:MovingCoil(MC)
×two(2)pairs
unbalanced(RCA)
MovingMagnet(MM)
xtwo(2)pairs
unbalanced(RCA)

•Ground:Two(2)xscrewtype
terminal

•Outputs:One(1)pairx
unbalanced(RCA)

•Frequency(RIAA):20Hz~20KHz
(±0.3db)

•VoltageGain:+40db(1KHz)MM
+66db(1Khz)MC

•InputImpedance:MCupto117Ω(see
“Impedance”inthe
InitialSet‐Upsection,
above)
MM47kΩ

•MaximumInput
Voltage
(MM,non‐clipping):20Hz/30mV
100Hz/100mV
1KHz/240mV
10KHz/280mV

•THD
(TotalHarmonic
Distortion):Lessthan0.17%
(1KHz,Output1V)

•OutputImpedance:430Ω(On‐off
method)

•S/NRatio:‐86db(CCIR,1KHz)

Tubes:
5842x2,signalgain
(similartoWE417A).
E282Fx2,driverandimpedance
matching(noequivalent).
7233x2,seriesvoltageregulator
(similartoCV4079).
6485x2,automaticvoltage
regulator(similarto6AH6,
6AH6WA,6AH6S.
5AR4x1,rectifier‐inthe
powersupply(sameasGZ34).

•PowerConsumption:70W–110/120/60Hz

•Fuse:AC2A,250V

•Dimensions:
‐PhonoStage:430mm(16.9inches)x275mm
(10.8inches)x118mm(4.65
inches)(WxDxH)
‐Powersupply:170mm(6.7inches)x275mm
(10.8inches)x118mm(4.65
inches)(WxDxH)

•Weight:PhonoStage:7.2Kg(16lbs)
unpacked
Powersupply:8.1Kg(18lbs)
unpacked
Bothunitsinoriginalpacking:
20Kg(44lbs)
9

WARRANTY

AllAllnicAudioamplifierandphonostageproducts,includingtubes,arewarranted,includingpartsandlabour,for
twelvemonthsfromdateofpurchase.Dateofpurchaseisthedateindicatedontheinvoicefortheproductissued
byHammertoneAudio.Subjecttoapplicablelaws,warrantyisnon‐transferableandvalidonlyfororiginal
purchaser.

Forthewarrantytobevalid,adefectiveproductmustbereturnedtoHammertoneAudioforservicepriortoany
unauthorizedattempttorepair.AnyrepairworkonanAllnicAudioproductnotspecificallyauthorizedby
HammertoneAudiowillvoidthewarrantyontheproduct.
Figure 1 – H-1500 II PLUS Rear Panel View
Figure 2 – H-1500 II PLUS Power Supply Rear Panel View
10

Figure 3 – H-1500 II PLUS Chassis Top View - MC Transformer Control
Figure 4 – H-1500 II PLUS Front Panel View
Figure 5 - H-1500 II PLUS Power Supply Front Panel View
11

Figure 6 – H-1500 II PLUS Internal View
12