Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 3 User manual

Guide
BeoLab 3

Acoustic Lens Technology –
manufactured under license from
Sausalito Audio Works.
To get access to the approval labels,
remove the BeoLab 3 top cap.
NOTE! Prolonged listening at high
volume levels may cause hearing
damages
WARNING: To prevent fire or electric
shock, do not expose this appliance
to rain or moisture. Do not expose
this equipment to dripping or
splashing and ensure that no objects
filled with liquids, such as vases, are
placed on the equipment.
To completely disconnect this
equipment from the AC Mains,
disconnect the power supply cord
plug from the AC receptacle.
This symbol indicates that a
dangerous voltage
constituting a risk of electric
shock is present within this
unit.
This symbol indicates that there
are important operating and
maintenance instructions in the
literature accompanying this
unit.
CAUTION: To reduce the risk of
electric shock, do not remove
cover (or back).
No User-serviceable parts inside.
Refer servicing to qualified
service personnel.

Daily use
When you have finished setting up the loudspeakers as described on
the following pages, connect the entire system to the mains. The
loudspeakers are designed to be left in standby when not in use.
Switching on and off
When you switch on your system,
the loudspeaker switches on
simultaneously, and the indicator
light shines green.
When you switch off your system,
or mute the sound, the indicator
light turns red.
Cleaning
Clean the loudspeaker surfaces
using a soft, lint-free cloth which
you have dipped in lukewarm
water and wrung firmly.
Never use alcohol or other solvents to
clean any parts of the loudspeaker!
Loudspeaker protection
The loudspeaker is equipped with a
thermal protection system which
prevents overheating. If an error
occurs – or the speaker units
become overheated – the system
automatically switches the
loudspeaker to standby, and the
indicator light turns yellow.
To restore the situation:
> Disconnect the loudspeaker from
the mains.
> Allow the system time to reset
(approximately 3–5 minutes).
> Reconnect the loudspeaker to
the mains again.
Should the problem persist, contact
your Bang & Olufsen retailer.
!
3
Indicator light: In daily use the
indicator light shines either red
(standby) or greAen (playing). If an
error occurs – or the speaker units
become overheated – the light
switches to yellow.
Caution: Do not touch the BeoLab 3
top speaker membrane!

Setting up BeoLab 3
We recommend that you follow
this procedure:
– Disconnect your system from the
mains.
– Place the loudspeaker according
to the guidelines on these two
pages. For information on how
to fasten the loudspeaker to
the optional accessories, refer to
the Guide enclosed with the
accessory.
– Connect the loudspeaker and set
the SETUP switch as explained in
‘Cable connections’ (pp. 6–7).
– Set the POSITION switch to the
correct setting on each
loudspeaker. This is explained in
‘Adapt BeoLab 3 to your room’ (pp.
8–10).
– Connect the entire system to the
mains again.
Cautions
– Make sure that the loudspeaker
is placed and connected in
accordance with the instructions
in this Guide.
– Do not attempt to open the
loudspeaker. Leave such
operations to qualified service
personnel!
– The loudspeaker is designed for
indoor use in dry, domestic
environments only, and for use
within a temperature range of
10–40º C (50–105º F).
– Do not in any way block the free
movement of the speaker units,
and do not apply any force to
them, as this may result in
permanent damage!
– Do not lift the loudspeaker by
gripping the top part (the
acoustic lens).
– Do not place any items on top of
the loudspeaker.
– Do not place the loudspeaker
enclosed in, for example, a small
bookcase.
– Leave a minimum of 20 cm (8")
free space at the sides, and never
place anything directly in front of
the loudspeaker.
– Always place the loudspeaker in
an upright position.
4
The loudspeaker must be placed on either the black rubber base, a floor
stand, a table stand, or a wall bracket.

a
b
c
~ 3 m (10')
30 cm (12")
0
150 cm (60")
90 cm (35")
a
b
c
5
For optimal sound performance
make sure that the loudspeaker is
directed towards your preferred
listening position.
The heights shown are guidelines,
and will vary according to the
distance from your preferred
listening position to the loudspeaker.
When mounted correctly on the
floor stand, the loudspeaker ‘leans’
slightly backwards.
The mounting holes (b and c) are
blocked by two small screws, and
before you can use either of these
holes, the screw must be removed.
Note: When mounting the
loudspeaker on the floor stand,
use mounting hole (a) only!

Cable connections
POSITION switch
This switch has three settings: FREE,
WALL, and CORNER. Which setting to
use is explained in ‘Adapt BeoLab 3
to your room’ (pp. 8–10).
SETUP switch
This switch has three settings:
RIGHT, LEFT, and LINE.
Set the switch to RIGHT or LEFT,
when connecting loudspeakers in a
Bang & Olufsen system. Set the
switch to LINE when connecting
loudspeakers in a non-Bang &
Olufsen system.
POWER LINK and LINE socket
Use this socket to connect the
loudspeaker to your system…
…To a Bang & Olufsen system:
Use the enclosed Power Link cable
to connect the loudspeaker to your
system. Remember to set the SETUP
switch to RIGHT and LEFT (the right
and left sound channel), respectively.
…To a non-Bang & Olufsen
system:
Use a special adapter with an
ordinary phono/RCA plug in one
end, and a DIN-plug in the other
(optional accessory, available from
your Bang & Olufsen retailer).
Remember to set the SETUP switch
to LINE.
The LINE signal must be a volume-
controlled line-level signal not
exceeding 3 VRMS.
The loudspeaker can be used
with Bang & Olufsen audio,
video and link systems. It may
also be used with non-Bang &
Olufsen systems.
A
1
2
6
Cover for socket panel: Run the
two cables through the hole (A),
before you connect them to the
loudspeaker.
POSITION switch SETUP switch
POWER LINK and
LINE socket
The socket panel is located on the bottom part of the loudspeaker.

Power Lin
k
Mk 3
LEFT RIGHT
1
LEFT RIGHT
2
7
Power Link connections: These
connections carry both the right
and left sound signals. Therefore,
the cables may be run in two ways:
1Run a Power Link cable from the
Bang & Olufsen system directly
to each loudspeaker.
Or
2Use a Power Link adapter (optional
accessory, available from your
Bang & Olufsen retailer). Run a
cable from the Bang & Olufsen
system to the first loudspeaker,
and then run another cable from
the first loudspeaker to the next
(this will often minimize cable
clutter).
Power Link cables: The enclosed
Power Link cables are of a new
type. The new type has a triangular
mark on the plug.
Do not use any cables of the older
type, as this will cause noise, and
therefore not give optimum sound
quality!
Cable Clamp: For safety reasons,
the mains lead must be secured to
the loudspeaker. Use the enclosed
small cable clamp and screw.

Adapt BeoLab 3 to your room
The POSITION switch
When a loudspeaker is placed in a corner, the bass level is boosted
compared to the bass level from a loudspeaker placed in a more
free-standing position.
To filter out this natural bass boost, the loudspeaker has a switch
marked POSITION. The purpose of the switch is to ensure that the
bass level suits the placement of the loudspeaker. The appropriate
switch setting depends on the distance from the loudspeaker to
the walls and corners of the room.
The POSITION switch has three settings:
• FREE
Use this setting if the loudspeaker is
placed more than 30 cm (12") from
the wall, and no closer to a corner
than 65 cm (25") – shown by the
large light grey area in the
illustration on the next page.
• WALL
Use this setting if the loudspeaker is
placed less than 20 cm (8") from a
wall, and no closer to a corner than
65 cm (25") – shown by the grey
areas along the walls in the
illustration on the next page.
The loudspeaker may be placed
almost anywhere in your room.
However, the most natural
sound and best stereo
perspective is obtained if it is
set up as explained on these
pages.
• CORNER
Use this setting if the loudspeaker
is placed in a corner – shown by the
dark grey areas in the illustration on
the next page.
However, we do not recommend
that you place the loudspeaker
closer to the corner than 30 cm
(12") – shown by the black areas in
the illustration on the next page.
POSITION SETUP
WALL
FREE
CORNER
LEFT
RIGHT
LINE
8
The POSITION switch is located on
the socket panel.
Note: It is important that you set the
SETUP switch to the correct setting
on each of the loudspeakers – as
explained on page 6.

FREE
WALL
CORNER
~ 3 m
10'
~ 3 m
10'
9
How to measure? The distances
referred to, are measured as shown
here (the loudspeaker seen from
above).
The distances are meant as
guidelines, and you may, of course,
set the POSITION switch to any of
the three settings you prefer.
To obtain the most natural sound
and best stereo perspective, set up
your favourite listening position as
shown here.
The ‘Acoustic Lens Technology’
system ensures better balance in
the high tone frequencies coming
directly from the loudspeaker, and
the sound reflected by the room.
The system also ensures correct
tonal balance in the whole area in
front of the loudspeaker.

>> Adapt BeoLab 3 to your room
Setup examples
Here are three examples which
show how to set the POSITION
switch on each loudspeaker in
different setups.
If you have a BeoLab 2
subwoofer setup…
As explained in the BeoLab 2 Guide,
the subwoofer has a SETUP switch
which can be set to 1, 2, or 3. This
will adapt the output from BeoLab 2
to the sensitivity levels of different
BeoLab loudspeakers.
If you connect a pair of BeoLab 3
loudspeakers to the BeoLab 2
subwoofer, we recommend that you
set the BeoLab 2 SETUP switch to
2.
10
Example 1: The loudspeakers are
placed in one end of the room (but
not against the back wall), and not
near the side walls.
Therefore, the POSITION switch
should be set to FREE on both
loudspeakers.
Example 2: One loudspeaker is
placed against the wall, and the
other is placed in a corner.
Therefore, the left loudspeaker
should be set to WALL, and the
right loudspeaker should be set to
CORNER.
Example 3: As in example 2, one
loudspeaker is placed against the
wall, and the other is placed in a
corner. The shape of the room has
no influence on which setting to
select.
Therefore, the left loudspeaker
should be set to WALL, and the
right loudspeaker should be set to
CORNER.