Anthem PVA 2 User manual

“… EXCEEDS ALL EXPECTATIONS for its price category.”
– Shane Buettner, The Perfect Vision
www.anthemAV.com
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ANTHEM®PVA 2 |4 |5 |7 |8multichannel amplifiers

“… musically right … timbrally accurate … what do you say about a
product that exceeds all expectations for its price category … I’ve
not heard an amplifier that’s significantly better at anywhere near
its price … a stone-cold bargain.”
– Shane Buettner, The Perfect Vision
“… fleet-of-foot nature maintained the recording’s quality with ease
… kept pace with complex soundtrack material … excellent impact
and transient speed … could easily handle the format,and seven
speakers, without losing control. This is pretty incredible.”
– Jeff Fritz, Home Theater & Sound
“… a remarkable product … The ability to complement any component
with its velvety silence and poise under demanding conditions,along
with its musicality, put it at the top of its peer group.”
– Tim Hart,AudioVideo Revolution
Some highlights are from a previous generation.Model has been further improved for even better sound.
RAVE REVIEWS
Unlocking the incredible sound sculptures, special effects and
dynamics of today’s home theater and multichannel music recordings
is no small feat,at least for the average amplifier.But then,Anthem’s
PVA 2,PVA 5 and PVA 7 amplifiers are anything but average.They are
equally at home delivering all of the thundering impact and excite-
ment of a surround sound movie experience as they are imparting
the subtle nuances of a multichannel music performance or paying
rich sonic tribute to the sweeping highs and lows of your favorite
two-channel recording.
And there’s more … in a category dominated by low-quality, low-
power distribution amps, with very few audiophile-quality products
to choose from, PVA 4 and PVA 8 are truly exciting alternatives.
They offer ultra-affordable Anthem-quality solutions for achieving
“real performance” from your high-fidelity Zone 2 and 3 distributed
audio applications.Add the four-channel PVA 4 to cover Zones 2 and 3
on your multizoneAnthem processor or add the eight-channel PVA 8
for twice the stereo amplification channels—power more speakers,
or more zones.
ANYTHING BUT AVERAGE

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37
ANTHEM®PVA 2 |4 |5 |7 |8multichannel amplifiers
A PASSION FOR BETTER SOUND!
Before pragmatic design, before performance testing and long before
production comes passion! A passion to produce something exceptional.
Anthem products are extraordinary, meeting and exceeding the needs
and expectations of audiophiles everywhere.Whether for personal or
professional use,Anthem products are worldclass leaders in high-end
performance and value.
EXPERT CRAFTSMANSHIP.
SUPERIOR QUALITY CONTROL
Our products are award-winning and internationally recognized not
only for their exceptional sonic performance,but also for their superb
craftsmanship and reliability. Every product must meet our rigorous
standards of performance before it is released to market.The result is a
truly superb selection of products that are guaranteed to provide their
owners with complete and lasting satisfaction. It’s not surprising that
Anthem products are highly sought after around the world!
SUPERIOR COMPONENT PARTS AND MATERIALS
Superior performance demands superior components and materials. PVA
amps are designed and built in North America using the finest quality parts
and materials.From military-spec (FR-4-rated) epoxy circuit boards to
multiple
high-current bipolar-output transistors; from oversized, computer-
designed
heatsinks to our own custom-designed robust binding posts,
the build quality of these amps ranks among the finest in the world!
EXEMPLARY CIRCUIT DESIGN
The sonic purity of the PVA amplifier design is the result of our intensive
research and development in high-end design. Superior high-end sound
begins with a superior power supply. These amplifiers use custom-built,
low-noise,high-power toroidal transformers and advanced power supply
regulators with high-quality, low-ESL/low-ESR filter capacitors and
huge storage capacity.
Our proprietary and patented circuit designs follow Anthem’s‘Keep-It-
Simple’principle,using the fewest number of parts in the signal path to
maintain the integrity of sound.These amplifiers provide the finesse and
instantaneous output power to effortlessly reproduce the challenging
variety of special effects in movies and demanding musical passages.
They are stable as a rock, even into difficult loads.
PVA amplifiers can be powered On/Off three ways: manually,with the
On/Off switch on the front panel; remotely, via the 12-volt trigger input;
or automatically, with our patented Auto-On/Off circuit—an incoming
audio signal immediately switches it on, and approximately 20 minutes
after the audio signal ends, it simply switches off.
122 dB SIGNAL-TO-NOISE RATIO
“… an incredible S/N ratio of 122 dB. Good grief! That’s as good as no
noise at all,” said Brian Florian,Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity,
commenting on the PVA 7.Whether it’s the subtle (or not-so-subtle)
special effects in a movie, or the tonal subtleties produced by the strings
of a single violin, PVA amplifiers capture it all! Ultra-low distortion and
a truly incredible signal-to-noise ratio place these amplifiers among the
cleanest and quietest on the market. From a silent black background,
sound appears in its purest form to envelop you in powerful emotion.

PVA 2
PVA 5
PVA 7
(See Dealer for more information)
Optional Rack Kits
Available for most models
INPUTS
PVA 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Single-Ended, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Single-Ended, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Single-Ended, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Single-Ended, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Single-Ended, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
OUTPUTS
PVA 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Pairs Speaker Binding Posts, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Pairs Speaker Binding Posts, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Pairs Speaker Binding Posts, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Pairs Speaker Binding Posts, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
PVA 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Pairs Speaker Binding Posts, 1 Relay Trigger (3.5-mm Mono Jack)
SWITCHES
Front Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Power On/Off
Rear Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 On/Off Modes (Trigger, Manual, Auto)
THD + N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.002% at 1 kHz, 0.03% at 20 kHz (125 W into 8 Ω)
POWER OUTPUT
(Continuous RMS, 20 Hz to 20 kHz, <1.0% THD)
Impedance 8 Ω4 Ω2 Ω
# of Channels Driven 1 All 1 All 1 All
PVA 2 / 5 / 7 125 W 105 W 200 W 140 W 300 W —
PVA 4 125 W 125 W 200 W 165 W 300 W —
PVA 8 125 W 90 W 200 W 120 W 300 W —
HEADROOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.25 dB (8 Ω), 2.13 dB (4 Ω)
POWER BANDWIDTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Hz to 80 kHz (+0 -3 dB) (125 W at 8 Ω)
FREQUENCY RESPONSE . . . . . . 20 Hz to 20 kHz (+0 -0.20 dB), 5 Hz to 100 kHz (+0 -2.5 dB)
INPUT SENSITIVITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.12 Vrms in for 125 W into 8 Ω
INPUT IMPEDANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 kΩ
DAMPING FACTOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 at 1 kHz (ref. 8 Ω)
S/N RATIO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 dB, A-weighted (ref. 125 W)
CHANNEL SEPARATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . >65 dB (100 Hz to 10 kHz)
VOLTAGE GAIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 dB
SLEW RATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 V/µs
PVA 2 |4 |5 |7 |8
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Audio measurements were performed with an Audio Precision System Two @ 120 VAC. Specifications and/or features are subject to change without notice as design improvements are incorporated.
POWER REQUIREMENTS
Supply Voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 to 130 V, 60 Hz
Power Consumption (at maximum power output) (8 Ωload)
PVA 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 W
PVA 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125 W
PVA 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125 W
PVA 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1500 W
PVA 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1500 W
DIMENSIONS (H x W x D; heights include feet)
PVA 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7/8˝ (14.9 cm) High x 17-1/4˝ (43.8 cm) Wide x 11˝ (28 cm) Deep
PVA 4 . . . . . . . . 5-7/8˝ (14.9 cm) High x 17-1/4˝ (43.8 cm) Wide x 13-1/4˝ (33.5 cm) Deep
PVA 5 . . . . . . . . 5-7/8˝ (14.9 cm) High x 17-1/4˝ (43.8 cm) Wide x 13-1/4˝ (33.5 cm) Deep
PVA 7 . . . . . . . . . 5-7/8˝ (14.9 cm) High x 17-1/4˝ (43.8 cm) Wide x 16-3/8˝ (42 cm) Deep
PVA 8 . . . . . . . . . 5-7/8˝ (14.9 cm) High x 17-1/4˝ (43.8 cm) Wide x 16-3/8˝ (42 cm) Deep
All Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rack-mounting: 3 rack units, without feet
WEIGHT (unpacked)
PVA 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 lb (12 kg)
PVA 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.1 lb (16.4 kg)
PVA 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.3 lb (16.5 kg)
PVA 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47.3 lb (21.5 kg)
PVA 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47.5 lb (21.6 kg)
ADVANCED LOAD MONITORING (ALM)
All Anthem®amplifiers are designed to perform flawlessly—offering stunning musicality, tonal
neutrality and incredible dynamics while driving any speaker load reliably under real-world conditions!
The power supply is conservatively rated and the amplifiers run cool for greater reliability, but we
didn’t stop there.
These amplifiers feature our ALM (Advanced Load Monitoring) circuitry which protects
sensitive output devices by constantly monitoring temperature, currentand voltage to ensure
optimum long-term performance. ALM is totally non-invasive—it is not in the signal path and
only engages in the most extreme circumstances to protect the amplifier from damage by
maintaining the safe operating area of the output devices. Buyer beware however! Not all
amplifier manufacturers have sophisticated load-monitoring provisions. Many have saved the
added cost, leaving their output devices unprotected, choosing instead to use the amplifier’s
output devices as “fuses.” At Anthem, ALM is just one of the ways in which our products
provide owners with years of reliable service.
PVA 4
PVA 8