Harman Kardon CA260 User manual

Congratulationson your purchaseof a HarmanKardonCA260
High Fidelity Car Amplifier.
The CA260is the result of an extensive engineering project
to create the finest automotive high fidelity product available.
It issuperior inperformance and hasthe ability tooperate under
extreme environmental conditions.
To fully understand the CA260's capability, please read this
manual carefully and follow all of the instructions regarding its
use and installation.
Power Output, RMS 60 watts per channel into 4 Ohms,
20
- 20,000Hz
: 90 watts per channel into 2 Ohms,
20
- 20.000Hz
. 180 watts bridged mono into 4 Ohms,
20- 20,000Hz
HCC (High Instantaneous Current
. 230A
Capability)
THD (4Ohms12 Ohms)
: No more than 0.1%10.2%
Negative Feedback
: 25dB
Power Bandwidth
. 10Hz to 100,000Hz
Frequency Response 10Hz to 100,000Hz + 0, - 3dB
Signal-to-Noise Ratio
: 80dB
lnput Sensitivity
L~neLevel
: 0.1V10.5V (switchable)
High Level
: 1V
Active Crossover Characteristics
High Pass
. 200Hz, 12dBlOctave
Low Pass
: 200Hz, 6dBlOctave
Power Supply
. DC +13.8V (11-16V usable),
negative ground
Typical lnput Current
Requirements
At Idle . 2.5A
Full Power MUSICS~gnal
6 7A (4Ohmslch.)
10A
(2 Ohrnsich 1
Full Power Sine Wave
. 20A (4 Ohmslch I
30A (2Ohrnslch.)
Dimensions (W
x H x D)
. 15-518" x 3-718'' x 7-1!8"
(396x98~180rnm)
We~ght
. 1Olbs. 202. 14.6kgl
All specifications arltf features subject to change w~rhournonce
Accessories
Spare Fuse I1 pc I
Spade Lug with Tube (10 pcs
Power Cord (Red) (1 pc
1 Installation Template (1 pc.)
Ground Cord (Black1 (1 pc )
Mounting Screws and Washers (1 set)

30Amperes of HCC (HighInstantaneous Current Capab~lity)ma~nta~nsa
wide dynamic range and lowdistortion when driving low impedance or reac-
tive loads.
High Power Output of 60watts per channel Into
4 Ohms, 90 watts per
channel into
2 Ohms and 180 watts bridged-mono into 4 Ohms.
Ultrawide Bandwidth is achieved by the use of inherently fast open-loop
circuitry This improves transient accuracy and phase
linearity
Low Negative Feedback
Highly linear circuitry produces low
distortion w~thonly 25dB of negative feed-
back. Thls further improves dynamic accuracy.
Discrete Component Audio
Circuitry is used because ~twas found to be
the only way to provide HCC, Ultrawide Bandwidth and Low Negarive
Feedback.
H~ghCapacity Power Supply
Two 10,000pF capacitors, six 80watt switching transistors, and a sophisti-
cated transformer coil design enable stable operating voltages even under
h~ghpower conditions. This results In lmproved low frequency sound quality.
High Heat Diss~pat~onCapability is provided by a large heatsink, efficient
circuitry and rugged circuit components
Protection Circuitry assures high reliability under high temperature, over-
voltage, reverse-voltageand short-circuit conditions, without degrading the
sound quality during normal high power operation. When the internal tem-
perature reaches 175" F (80' C), the maximum output power
IS reduced,
which In turn reduces the operating temperature
Built-in Active Crossover and Bridged-monofeatures prov~deoperating flex-
ibility, system s~mplicityand added value.
Be sure that metal objects or other fore~gnmater~alsdo not enter the unlt
This can cause immediate trouble or reduce the unit's long-term reliability.
It
IS natural for thls unlt to become warm whlle operating It ~ncorporates
two thermal protection circuits: One to prevent excessive temperatures from
being developed under normal operation, and another to shut off the unit
when operating abnormally When the thermal protection system is operat-
mg, the amber mdcator wdl illuminate
It is recommended that th~sunlt be operated in a vehcle only whde the
engine (and electrical charging system) is running. At high power output,
it typically draws about as muchcurrent as an automobile's headlights, and
therefore can eventually discharge the battery.
The speaker output terminals are protectedfrom damagedue to short-cir-
cuited speakers or speaker wires. When this protection circuitry
IS momen-
tarlly actlvlated, the power output
IS muted for several seconds and is then
restored. When the terminals are continuouslyshort-circuited, the power out-
put w~llremaln muted Should the latter occur, shut off the unit and check
the speakers and speaker wires.
The heat generated by this amplif~eris dissipated into the alr by the entire
chassls If it
IS covered, or becomes d~rtyso that the clrculatlon of the alr
around it is reduced, the unit's ability to dissipate heat will also be reduced.
Under most conditions, the heat dissipating capability of this unit is more
than enough to provlde uninterrupted operation However, when full power
is drawn in analready hot environment, any loss in heat dissipating capability
is likely to result in activating one of the thermal protection circuits
Th~sunlt uses a 30ampere auto fuse
When replacing the fuse, be sure to use
an identical 30ampere (green)auto fuse.
To replacethe fuse, remove the cover by
pushing down on the top of the fuse
cover Use the spare fuse which is stored
above In the fuse compartment.
If your unit behaves abnormally, turn it off immediately and consult an
authorized Harman Kardon Service Station

6?J@
-\ Installatlor1
Location
The locations shown inthe above illustration are recommendedfor the CA260
installation. If you prefer another location, consult an authorized Harman
Kardon Dealer or Service Station before making the installation.
The recommended installation positions all result in vertical orientation of the
heatsink fins. This provides the maximum heat dissipation capability. If pos-
sible, mount the CA260 chassis directly to a vertical or near-vertical surface,
such as the lns~dewall beh~ndthe rear seat. If this is not possible, use the
optional
Vertical Mounting Bracket (BRI) to mountthe CA260to a horizon-
tal surface, such as the trunk floor. The brackets permitvertical heatsink orien-
tation when mountinq to a horizontal surface.
Inaddition to vertical orientation, the recommended installat~onlocationsal-
low air toflow freely through the heatsink fins. This convection, or "chimney
effect", provides maximum heat dissipation.
Horizontal heatsink orientation, such as when the unit is mounted under a
seat or directly to the trunk floor, reduces heat dissipation and causes the
unit to runhotter At low temperatures (below70'
F, 20" C)or at low power
levels, these positionsmay beacceptable. But at higher temperatures andlor
power levels, these positions are likely to cause one of the thermal protec-
tion systems to activate.

Note
: Drill undersized holes in the car chassis so that the 5rnm tapping
Mountingto a Horizontal Surface withthe Optional Brackets (BR1)
screws fit t~ghtly.We recommend 3 5mm or 118 inch diameter Usingthe template, locate and drill 6 holes corresponding tothose in the short
holes. ends of the vertical mounting brackets. Mount the brackets to the surface
Note 2: A template is enclosed so that the precise hole locations for the with the six 5mm hexagon-head tapping screws and spring washers. Then
tapp~ngscrews can be easily determ~ned mount the
CA260 to the brackets using the six 5mmhexagon-head nutsand
bolts.
,Tern plate
Directly Mounting to a Vertical Surface
Using the template, locate and drill 6 holes corresponding to those In the
CA260 chass~sSecurely mount the CA260 to the surface with the six 5mm
hexagon-head tapping screws and sprlng washers
Spr~ngWasher ,&!$%a
Vertical Mounting
. Spring Washer

Speaker System 11
u
Car Battery
D+J
Left channel Right channel
Leir channel
0
OUtOUl
v
Car Stereo
ii
Chassis
Right channel outout
Left channel output
TunerIDeck
Note. A tunerideck with line level outputs and a car stereo w~th ngh
level (soeaker)outouts should not he connected simultaneously,
as shown in this diagram.

Caution# 1 : The ignition key switch should be turned off before any con-
nections are made to the car electrical system.
Caution#2: The last connection to be made should be that between the
positive terminal of the car battery and the
" + B" terminal on
the CA260.
Connect the CA260to the car electrical system and to the other components
in the audio system as per the following ~nstructions:
Remote
This terminal enables the power switch of the car stereo or tunerldeck to
also turn on the CA260. Connect it to the appropriate wire on the car stereo
or tunerldeck
If a specific wire for this purpose is not provided, usethe wire for controlling
the power antenna. If that wire is already connected to the power antenna,
the CA260 can be connected In addition
Should no power antenna wire be provided, an SPST (Single-Pole. Single-
Throw) switch and a pair of wires can be connected between the remote
terminal and the
" + B" terminal. When the switch is closed, the CA260 will
turn on.
+B
The + Bterminal is the positive power input terminal. It should be connect-
ed to the positive
( + ) terminal of the car battery by the enclosed 12gauge
wire or an
equivalent type. It is good practicetoadd a linefuse near the bat-
tery terminal to protect the battery from a short circuit along the wire.
GND
This is the negative power input terminal It should be connected directly
to the car chassis by a short, heavy gauge wire. It is not necessary to con-
nect this terminal to the negative battery terminal.
Speaker Systems
For a conventional stereo system with one or twospeaker systems per chan-
nel, connect the speaker systems to these termlnals Be careful to connect
the positive speaker terminals to the positive CA260 terminals. Do not con-
nect the negative speaker terminals to the car chassis
When one pair of speakers is used, each one may have an impedance in
the range of 2
- 8 Ohmsand a power rating of at least 60watts If two palrs
of speakers are used, each one may have an impedance inthe range of
4 - 8
Ohms and a power rating of at least
45 watts.
High Level lnput
These input terminals are
only to be used when connecting a car stereo unit
that has a built-ln amplifier and does not have lme level (or preamp level)
output jacks (orwires).Connect the output wires that would normally be con-
nected to the speakers to these terminals. Be careful to connect the car
stereo's positive output wires to the CA260's positive input terminals
If the car stereo's negative output wires are actually ground wires, they can
be twisted together and connected to the CA260's high level negative
(-
terminal.
However, if the car stereo unit has a power rating of more than 8 watts per
channel (withlow distortion), it is likely that its negative output wires are not
actually ground wires, but instead are "live." In this case, do not connect
these wires to the CA260 at all. Instead, connect a wire from the chassis
of the car stereo unit to the CA260's negative high level input terminal. If
electrical noise results from this connection method, contact the Harman
Kardon service department for a special bulletin regarding this matter.
Note: The line Input
sensitivity switch must be set to the "low" position when
the h~ghlevel lnput termlnals are connected
Line Level lnput Jacks
These inputterminals are for connection to the line level (or preamp) output
jacks on the car stereo or tunerldeck It is recommended that hlgh quality
shielded coaxial cableswithtight-fitting RCA plugs be used for this connection.
Line lnput Sensitivity Switch
This switchmatches the line input sensitivity of the CA260 tothe line output
level of the car stereo or tunerldeck. If the rated output level is equal to or
more than 0.8 volts (800 millivolts), set this switch in the "low" position.
Otherwise, set it in the "high" position.
If the line output level of the car stereo or tunerldeck is not known, assume
that itis morethan 0.8volts. When operating the total system, if it is neces-
sary to turn the volume control of the car stereo or tunerldeck to maximum
in order to obtain a desired
listening level, then the line output level is likely
to be less than 0.8 volts, and the line input sensitivity switch should be put
in the "high" position.

The CA260 is capableof operating as a 180watt mono power amplifier when
driving a
4 Ohm speaker system.When usedthis way, two unitsare required
for a stereo system The instructions for connecting a stereo system using
two CA260's in the bridged-mono mode follow:
1. Eachamplifierwill have one speaker system connected from the left chan-
nel positive(
t ) terminal to the right channel positive (+ ) terminal. The
left channel positive terminal should be connected to the positive terml-
nal of the speaker system. No connections are made to either of the
CA260's negative speaker termlnals.
2. The input to each CA260 is made to its left channel input jack. In other
words, the left channel output of the tunerldeck is connected to the left
channel input jack of the CA260 driving the "left" speaker, and the right
channel output of the tunerldeck is made to the left channel input jack
of the CA260 driving the "right" speaker.
3. The bridged-mono swltch on each CA260 IS placed In the "on" position.
Note: Only one speaker system with an impedance of 4Ohms,or two speak-
ers with an impedance of 8 Ohms each, can be used in the bridged-mono
mode. Also, only speaker systems with a sufficiently high power rating can
be safely used.
Systcm
Left channel
Speaker
System
9
Left chaririel
Tuner,Deck

Two CA260's can be used with two woofers (lowfrequency speakers) and
two mid-high (orfull-range) speakers to make up an "active" system, both
amplifiers bemg drwen by the same tunerldeck. This type of system is con
nected as follows.
1 Set the filter onloff switch of one CA260 to the
"on" position. Then set the high passllow pass
switch to the "low pass" position Connect the
FILTER
woofers (low frequency speakers) to thrs
amplifier
2. Set the filter onloff switchof the other CA260 to
the "on" position Then set the h~ghpassllow
pass switch tothe'lhigh pass" position Connect
the mid-high (or full range) speakers to this
ampl~fier
3. Connect the left channel input jacks of each ampl~fierto the left channel
output of the tunerldeck. Connect the right channel input jacks of each
amplifier to the r~ghtchannel output of the tunerldeck
Note: If the tonal balance seems to be favoring either the high or low
Ire-
quency range, try usingdifferent line input sensitivity switch positions to make
the best balance. For example, if the sound is bass heavy, set the line input
sensitivity switch for the "low pass" amplifier to the "low" pos~tion.This
will reduce the signal to the woofers
200Hz
LOW PASS HIGH PASS
Right channel
(pJ
Left channel
Speaker System
/ \
Right
channel
12dBloctave 6dBioctave
Left
channel
Right channel
ou~put
.- -
Left channel output
TunerlDeck