BRAX Matrix X4 User manual

MATRIX X4
Bedienungsanleitung
Instruction Manual

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Congratulations on your purchase of this high-quality BRAX amplifier.
With the amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 you have chosen a product which combines ultimate perfection in sound and technical
maturity with a maximum of individuality. Only hand selected components and finest materials are used in the amplifier‘s
production process and thus guarantee a top-class high-end music experience.
For more than 30 years we have been working on the development and manufacturing of top-notch audio components. By
now, the brand BRAX has gained worldwide reputation for being superior quality. Various honours by the world‘s major car
audio magazines and, last but not least, numerous world wide innovation awards give proof of our excellent work.
We have provided the amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 with everything it requires in order to set new standards concerning sound
quality, manufacturing, and longevity. We are very proud to offer you this high-end product MADE IN GERMANY.
We wish you many hours of enjoyment with your BRAX Matrix X4.
AUDIOTEC FISCHER GMBH
Heinz Fischer
Founder und Managing Director
DEAR CUSTOMER
Your amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 has the serial number:

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Based on our basic principles “handmade” and “made in Germany” we have designed the amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 accor-
ding to the latest technical knowledge. The result is both a top-class amplifier and a true high-end statement: A long lasting
period of research and development, innovative technologies and an extremely fastidious manufacturing combined with
the love for music as the driving force for our work make the BRAX Matrix X4 doubtlessly to the most powerful and best
sounding 4-channel amplifier of the world.
Concerning the straight design of the X4-amplifier and the sophisticated layout of the circuit board, we have deliberately set
crossovers and filter functions aside. Short signal paths combined with selected components “made in Germany” ensure
pristine listening pleasure and underline the puristical high-end philosophy of the BRAX Matrix X4.
In order to completely eliminate power differences and manufacturing tolerances, we only use hand-selected transistors
for the production of each X4-amplifier. Concerning power-, voltage- and resistance data we select them in more than 300
categories. Thus, all transistors harmonize perfectly in terms of technical specifications. In doing so, our BRAX amplifiers
obtain a worldwide reference status. Striving for ultimate perfection, Audiotec Fischer is the only manufacturer of audiophile
products on the globe that conducts this extensive and time-consuming hand-selection. Of course, all the instruments that
are necessary for this procedure are in-house developments.
Two separate power supplies for the channels A/B and C/D account for an endlessly stable power output. The amplifier’s
output is even stable when you connect loudspeakers and a woofer with different impedances to the BRAX Matrix X4. In
order to control voltage fluctuations, an external power stabilizer can directly be connected to the power supply. Moreover,
the solid and gold-plated terminals for cables up to 50mm² make another contribution to an ideal power supply of the BRAX
Matrix X4.
At the end of the day, the BRAX Matrix X4 can be described as an amplifier with a sound rendition that is highly dynamic,
powerful in an awsome way and swift as an arrow. The underlying philosophy is topped-off by a packaging in a precious
wooden box. Furthermore, each single amplifier is manufactured individually and its respective serial number is recor-
ded in our data-base. The amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 is only produced on demand and of course we can respond to our
customer’s requirements. In this way, each amplifier is a valuable individual item that rightly deserves the title “high-end
made in Germany”.
THE BRAX PHILOSOPHY

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CONNECTION AND CONTROL ELEMENTS
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Connection remote lead
Connection ground cable
Connection BRAX Power Stabilizer (plus)
Connection battery cable
8 986
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13101013
12 1111 12
1 2 3
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Signal inputs
Balanced signal inputs
Level controls for input sensitivity
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4
5
Stereo/Bridged/Mono selector
CPS - Colour Protection System
CPS - Colour Protection System
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11
12
Connection BRAX Power Stabilizer (minus)
Loudspeaker terminals
9Impedance selection 13

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THE DESIGN OF THE AMPLIFIER
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Ultra-low internal resistance due to solid, gold-pla-
ted terminals; for power cables up to 50mm² and
speaker cables up to 6mm².
Interference-free power supply due to optimized
suppression coil up to 300 A with ultra-low internal
resistance.
External connection for BRAX-Power-Stabilizers,
directly connected to the switching transistors,
guarantee exceptional high efficiency and opti-
mum power stabilization.
Eight capacitors, each with 5000μF (in total
40000μF), take care of an extremely high current
impulse load. Especially designed capacitors with
8-times-contacted wound foils minimize the inter-
nal resistance.
High efficiency due to super-fast Schottky-power
diodes with more than 160 A in total.
Especially developed transformers with highly-effi-
cient core materials guarantee a total performance
of more than 1800 Watts.
Optimum power supply of the amplifier transistors
due to newly developed storage coils that bridge
the switching delay dead times.
200 A high-performance switching transistors.
Software-controlled switching power supply for ge-
nerating a distortion-free amplifier driver voltage.
Optimum power supply of the transistors due to
8-times-contacted low-impedance capacitors with
a total capacity of 26400μF.
Best signal processing due to a newly developed
and discretely designed driver.
1Below the lateral PC-boards there are in total
32 hand-selected high-end MOS-FET transis-
tors which account for brilliant sound.
Protection electronics
The PSoC controller is responsible for the five
switching power supplies and thus takes care of
a constant power supply of the MOS-FET tran-
sistors. Moreover, it monitors the entire amplifier
by means of the protection electronics. Malfunc-
tions are detected immediately and the spea-
kers are protected.
Power supply for the controllers and its integra-
ted circuits.
Signal inputs with high-end signal condensors
make an essential contribution to a perfect and
pure sound rendition.
Gold-plated RCA (cinch) inputs and outputs gua-
rantee an interference-free signal transmission.
Premium Alps potentiometers adjust the input
sensitivity to the output voltage of the connected
head-unit.
Siemens high-current relays with Degussa-con-
tacts account for the internal and external pro-
tection of the amplifier.
The solid heatsink, made of a special aluminium
alloy takes care of a perfect cooling of power
supply transistors and those of the amplifier.
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In order to maintain the quality of this product and to ensure safe operation, we strongly recommend that our
amplifiers should be installed by an authorized BRAX-dealer. The installation by a qualified an an accredited
technician will qualify you for our special lifetime warranty. Your BRAX-dealer will also assist you in selecting
the correct additional components and in ensuring that proper consideration is given to all the safety and sound
related aspects.
General instructions: Installation of BRAX amplifiers
To find out how BRAX Matrix X4 works best for you, read this manual carefully and follow the instructions for installation.
We guarantee that this product has been checked for proper functioning before shipping. Before you start installation, dis-
connect the car battery at the minus pole. Once again we would like to urge you to have the installation work carried out by
a specialist, as a verification of correct installation and connection of the unit is a prerequisite for warranty cover of BRAX
by AUDIOTEC FISCHER Germany.
1. Install your amplifier at a dry location in the car where there is sufficient air circulation to ensure adequate cooling of
the equipment. Also ensure that there is sufficient clearance available for making the cable connections and operating the
controlls.
2. For safety reasons the amplifier must be secured in a professional manner. This is performed by means of four fixing
screws screwed into a mounting surface. Before drilling the holes for the screws, carefully examine the area around the
installation position and make sure that there are no electrical cables or components, hydraulic brake lines or any part of
the petrol tank located behind the mounting surface - otherwise these could be damaged. You should be aware of the fact
that such components may also be concealed in the double-skin trim panels/mouldings.
General instructions: Connection of BRAX amplifiers
The amplifier may only be installed in motor vehicles which have a 12V negative terminal connected to the chassis ground.
Any other system could cause damage to the amplifier and the electrical system of the vehicle. The positive lead from the
battery for the complete system should be provided with a line fuse at a distance of max. 30 cm from the battery. The am-
perage rating of the fuse is calculated from the maximum total current input of the car/vehicle audio system.
INITIAL SETUP
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Never bridge fuses or replace them with fuses with a higher amperage rating as such actions can destroy both of
the amplifier and the entire electrical system of the vehicle.
Install the cabling in a manner which preludes any danger of the leads being exposed to shear, crushing or rupture forces.
If there are sharp edges in the vicinity (e.g. holes in the body work), all cables must be cushioned and protected to prevent
fraying. Never lay the power supply cables adjacent to leads and lines connecting other vehicle equipment (fan motors, fire
detection modules, gas/petrol lines etc.). In order to ensure safe installation, use only high-quality connection materials.
As an aid to calculating the cross-sectional requirements of power cables which are not longer than 5 m, we recommend
max. 5 A per mm². For the amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 we suggest a minimum cross section of 35 mm² for the positive 12-volt
supply lead and for the ground (chassis) cable. The remote lead should have a cross section of at least 1 mm². In order to
ensure the ideal sound quality and a distortion-free music rendition, please make sure that all cables are securely fixed in
the respective terminals.
Connection of the power supply
1 Connecting the remote lead
The remote lead is connected to the automatic antenna (aerial positive) output of the head unit (radio). This is only activa-
ted if the head unit is switched ON. Thus the amplifier is switched on and off with the head unit.
2 Connecting the ground cable
The ground cable should be connected to a central ground reference point (this is located where the negative terminal of
the battery is grounded at the metal body of the vehicle), or to a bright bare-metal location on the vehicle chassis, i.e. an
area which has been cleaned of all paint residues.
3 Connecting the battery cable
Connect the +12 V power cable to the positive terminal of the battery. Recommended cross section: min. 35 mm². The sup-
plied 130 A BRAX-fuse has to be installed at a distance of max. 30 cm from the positive terminal of the battery.
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4-5 Connectors for a BRAX Power Stabilizer
By connecting a BRAX Power Stabilizer peak loads in the power supply will be eliminated. Thus, the amplifier has always
enough power for a perfect performance.
Equipment and control units
6 Signal inputs
The amplifier has RCA connectors for RCA cables that can be connected with the pre-amplifier output of the line outputs of
the headunit or with a pre-amplifier. The connectors are gold-plated to ensure a better signal transmission.
7 Balanced signal inputs
The amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 has four balanced signal inputs which account for the elimination of distortions on the signal
path.
8 Level controls for input sensitivity
These controls can be used to match the input sensitivity of the individual channels to the output voltage of the connected
head unit. These controls are no volume controls and are solely intended for the purpose of sensitivity trimming. The con-
trol range extends from 600 mV to 8,0 V.
9 Loudspeaker terminals
To connect the speaker cables. Never connect the loudspeaker cables with the car chassis ground. It damages your
amplifier. All speaker systems must be connected in-phase, this means plus to plus and minus to minus. Inverting plus and
minus will result in the loss of bass rendition. The positive terminal is marked on most speakers.
10 Stereo/Bridged/Mono selector
To select the mode of the amplifier.
Stereo: Select the STEREO MODE for using the channels A/B or C/D in the 2-channel mode. The respective LED (STE-
REO) lights up blue.
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Stereo Bridged: Select the stereo bridged mode for using the channels A/B or C/D in the mono mode. In this mode both
channels are bridged to one channel (mono). The respective LED (ST.BRGD) lights up blue. At position STEREO BRID-
GED both inputs of A/B or of C/D respectively have to be used.
Mono Bridged: According to the mode stereo bridged the amplifier is switched to mono and both channels will be bridged
to one channel. If you select MONO BRIDGED only the input A or C respectively has to be used. This can be neces-
sary if there is only one mono signal available. The respective LED (MONO BRGD) lights up blue.
11-12 CPS - Colour Protection System
The LEDs show the operation status of the amplifier. Yellow (11) = malfunction: short-circuit at speaker output;
Red (12) = overheated: If the amp shuts off due to overheating it will take some time (depending on the outside tempera-
ture) until it switches on again.
13 Impedance selection
The output power of the amplifier BRAX Matrix X4 is independent from impedance. By using the impedance selector (13)
the impedance of the connected loudspeaker system (4 Ohms, 2 Ohms or 1 Ohm) has to be selected. If several loudspea-
kers are connected to one channel, the impedance can be approximately calculated as follows:
series connection: Z total= Z x n (n= amount of loudspeakers; Z= loudspeaker impedance)
parallel connection: Z total= Z / n
Please note: A special case of calculating the impedance is the bridged mode, i.e. the operation of the channels A/B or
C/D in the mode stereo bridged or mono bridged. In this case the total impedance has to be divided by two once more.
Please note that the total impedance is not lower than 1 Ohm per channel. If the connected loudspeaker impedance is
below the selected impedance, the amplifier turns into protection mode.
Example: Two 4 Ohms loudspeakers are connected parallely to the channels A and B and the channels C/D are operated
with two parallely connected 4 Ohms loudspeakers in the bridged mono mode.
Impedance Lsp. A and Lsp. B = 4 Ohms / 2 = 2 Ohms
Impedance Lsp. C/D = (4Ohms / 2) / 2 = 1 Ohms
Thus, for channels A/B you have to select an impedance of 2 Ohms and for channels C/D you have to select an impedance
of 1 Ohm.

Continous power rating at 4 Ohms per channel ...... 4 x 280 Watts RMS ................................... Impedance setting: 4 Ohms
Continous power rating at 2 Ohms per channel ...... 4 x 280 Watts RMS ................................... Impedance setting: 2 Ohms
Continous power rating at 1 Ohm per channel ....... 4 x 280 Watts RMS ...................................Impedance setting: 1 Ohm
Continous power rating, bridged at 4 Ohms............ 2 x 560 Watts RMS ...................................Impedance setting: 2 Ohms
Continous power rating, bridged at 2 Ohms............ 2 x 560 Watts RMS ...................................Impedance setting: 1 Ohm
TECHNICAL DATA
TROUBLE-SHOOTING
Damping factor..........................................................>800
Input impedance.................................................10 kOhm
Input sensitivity..........................................600 mV - 8,0 V
External fuse............................................................130 A
Weight net...............................................................8,5 kg
The BRAX Matrix X4 is in protection mode and the respective LED lights up yellow.
Cause: The speaker wiring is faulty (short circuit between the wires or to the chassis of the vehicle).
Remedy: Check the speaker wires or the speakers themselves for short-circuiting (p.8-9).
Cause: The impedance setting does not correspond to the impedance of the installed loudspeakers.
Remedy: Check the impedance setting (p.10).
For further support concerning matters of trouble-shooting, please visit our website:
www.audiotec-fischer.com/trouble-shooting.html
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Frequency response...................................10Hz - 80 kHz
Total harmonic distortion (THD).........................< 0,001%
TIM.....................................................................< 0,006%
Signal to noise ratio............................................> 110 dB
Dimensions (H x B x T) in mm...................74 x 330 x 330

Due to their high quality standards, BRAX products achieved an excellent international reputation. Therefore, we grant a
warranty period of 2 years. Additionally, we provide a lifetime warranty (max. 30 years) to each original owner who
can varify a professional installation of BRAX Matrix X4. The products are checked and tested carefully during the
entire production process. In the case of service, please note the following:
1. The 2 years warranty period begins with the purchase of the product and is applicable only to the original owner.
2. During the warranty period we will rectify any defects due to faulty material or workmanship by replacing or repai-
ring the defective part at our decision. Further claims, and in particular those for price reduction, cancellation of sale,
compensation for damages or subsequential damages, are excluded. All replaced parts removed from the system in
connection with any services become the property of Audiotec Fischer GmbH upon their replacement. The warranty
period is not altered by the fact that we have carried out warranty work.
3. Unauthorized tampering with the product will invalidate this warranty.
4. Consult your authorized dealer first, if warranty service is needed. Should it be necessary to return the product to
the factory, please ensure that:
a) the product is packed in original factory packing in good condition.
b) the warranty card has been filled out and attached to the product.
c) the product is shipped prepaid, i.e. at your expense and risk.
d) the receipt/invoice as proof of purchase is enclosed.
5 Excluded from the warranty are:
a) Shipping damages, either readily apparent or concealed (claims for such damages must be immediately
notified to the forwarding agent).
b) Scratches in metal parts, front panels or covers etc. This must be notified to your dealer within 5 days of
purchase.
c) Defects caused by incorrect installation or connection, by operation errors, by overloading or by external force.
d) Products which have been repaired incorrectly or modified or where the product has been opened by other
persons than us.
e) Consoquential damages to other equipments.
f) Reimbursement when repairing damages by third parties without our previous permission.
g) Products with removed serial numbers.
WARRANTY REGULATIONS
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Audiotec Fischer GmbH
Gewerbegebiet Lake II · Hünegräben 26 · D-57392 Schmallenberg
Tel.: [phone] · Fax: [phone]
E-mail: brax@audiotec-fischer.com · Internet: www.audiotec-fischer.com