Krell Industries MD-20 Quick start guide

MD-20 OWNER’S REFERENCE

A. INTRODUCTION
Congratulations on your purchase of the MD-20CD
turntable and welcometo the KRELLfamily of audio
components.Youhave joined a select groupof listeners
whoenjoy only the finest in musicreproduction.
Weare dedicated to the~ developmentof technologically
advancedcomponentstor the reproductiono,f diglt~ly
recordedmusicand continuingthe Krell tradition ot
uncompromisedperformancethrough leading-edge tecla-
nology.
This Owner’sReferenceis divided into several sections,
eachdesignedto performa different function. Basic
installation, operation anda Questionand Answersection
are included, whereanswers to commonquestions are
provided. Shouldyouhave any questions or suggestipns,
i~leasefeel free to contactyourauthorizeddealeror tlae
KRELLstaff for assistance.
In the unlikely, event that your.MD-20shouldrequire
service youwill be pleased~to ~nowthat it is backedbya
c.omprehensiveCustomerbatistaction policy and one of
toe mostadvancedservic.e facilities in the industry. For
detailed informationon the terms andconditions of ser-
vice please consult yourwarra,ntyregistration card or
your authorized KRELLDistributor.
2

B. TABLE OF CONTENTS
3
4
6
8
10
11
15
16
18
19
UNPACKING AND ASSEMBLY
CUSTOMDUST COVER INSTALLATION
BASIC INSTALLATION ANDCONNECTIONS
OPERATION OF THE CD TRANSPORT
REMOTE CONTROL
TRACK AND FTS PROGRAMMING
MAINTENANCE
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
SPECIFICATIONS
WARRANTYAND SERVICE INFORMATION
C. UNPACKING AND ASSEMBLY
1. Openthe boxand removethe top layer of protective
foam. Thefollowing items will nowbe visibIe:
1 CDStabilizer
1 ACpower cord
1 MD-20RCRemote Control
1 Packet containing the Owner’sReferenceand warranty
card
NOTE:Ifanyof these items are not included, please
contact yourauthorized dealer immediatelyf6r assis-
tance.
2. Removethe layer of foamcontaining these items and
set it aside for later use. Carefully removethe MD-20
fromits boxandremovethe protective plastic wrap.
NOTE:Saveall packingmate.rials. If youmustship your
MD-20in the future, repacktlae unit in its original pa.ck-
agingto preventtransit damage.If the unit is returnecl to
KRELLfor service, please send the cover and the remote
controlunit.
CAUTION:If your MD-20has the Customcover do not
removethe acrylic dust coverfromits protective sleeve
at this time! Thiscoveris extremelydelicate andc.an be
permanentlyscarred if mishandled.Please followtlae
1.nstructionsprovidedin this Referenceafter safe installa-
tion. 3

D. CUSTOM DUST COVER
INSTALLATION
1. Standard Version SmokedTopCover:
Removethe top cover, in its protective sleeve, fromthe
s.hippingfoam.Toprevents.c.ra.tching, leavetlae protective
sl.eeve ontlae top coveruntil t~lae covermountingis com-
plete. T.here are twopairs ot screws.with w~asher-type
receptaclesattachedto t-he backpanelof the unit tor mount-
i.ng the topcover.Centerthe hingepinsonthe top coverov.er
toe twopairs of screws.Carefullyslide the hingesinto tlae
.slots formedbythe washers.Pusti the coverdownevenlyon
both sides until it is fully seated. Finally, removethe
protective sleeve.
2. CustomVersion Clear Lucite TopCover:
Removethe top cover from the protective foamand its
protectivesleeve. Th.ere are twopairs of.screwswithwasher-
typelainge receptacl.esonthe ba.ckof tlae unit. Removethe
four screwsfromtlae unit and take off the black .hin.ge
receptacles. Carefullyplacethe lucite top coversucla tlaat
the circular milled-out portionis centeredover the trans-
port. Alignthe slots in the cover’s hinge blockswith the
holesin the backof the chassis. Threadthe four screwsinto
the chassist.hroughthe hingeblocks:Tigh.ten dow~nlight.ly
andadjust the coverso it is centerec~onthe unit. Oncethe
cover as aligned, tighten downthe supportingscrews.
NOTE:Theclear lucite cover mustbe loweredmanually,as
it is very heavyand does not have a dampingmechanism.
4

INSTALLATION OF THE CUSTOM ACRYLIC DUSTCOVER FOR MD-20
REMOVEABLE MOLDED COVER
MD-20
MADEINU.S.A.
NOU~ERSERVICEABLEPARTSINSIDE XLR OSPECIAL
1. Toremovemoldedcover, slide the coverassemblyupwarduntil the hingesare cleared frombothsets of
screwsandwashers.
2. Besureto saveall the screwsandwashersafter disassembly.
E PARTSINSIDE ~ ~ SPECIAL
CUSTOMACRYLIC COVER
1. Removethe four original hingeretaining screwsfromthe backof the unit.
2. Removethe three washersfromeach screw.
3. Gentlyplace acrylic coveron the chassis top, centerthe hingesto matchthe holes in the chassis.
4. Insert the four screwswithoutwashersinto the hingeandfasten loosely.
5. Centerthe coverwiththe chassis andsecurehingeblockscrews.
SEPT.EMBER1, 1992

E. BASIC INSTALLATIONAND
CONNECTIONS
1. Place the unit on a clean, level surface awayfrom
excessiveheat, moist,ure or light. Ideally, the MD-20
should be placedon tlae top of an audio componentcabi-
net or other "openair" rigid platform.
2. TheMD-20may.be. placedin a cabinet. It will require.
17.0 inches of vertical clearancebetweenthe bottomancl
top shelves for proper operationof the cover.
3. I.f spaceis limited, the MD-20can be operatedwithout
its clust cover. Sixinchesvertical clearanceis adequateto
allowconvenientaccessto the disc transport area.
4. Thelocation of the unit shouldbe within2 metersof
the digital signalprocessor.If longerdistanc,e is re~quired,
werecommendusing an AT&Tfibre optic clata linl~ o.r an
AES/EBUbalancedi:lata link, as they are moresuitecl to
longdistance runs.
5. Connectthe ACpowercord to the backof the unit.
Oncethe powercord is secured, plug the cord into an AC
outlet.
6. Press the POWERbutton on the front panel. Thedis-
play will illuminate and the transport willnowbe active.
NOTE:While the MD-20has superb regulation and does
not require a dedicatedACcircuit, westrongly advise
against any. connectionsthroughextension cords or mul-
tiple ACai:laptors. Highquality 15 ampgroundedAC
sti-ips are acceptable.
7. Connectthe Digital Outputfromthe MD-20to a Krell
Dig!tal Processoror other compatibledigital-to-analog
aualo processor.
TheMD-20is compatible with industry standard Fibre
~Optic, Coaxial RCA,AT&Twide bandwidthFibre Optic
bl’ type and AES/EBUXLRoutput connectors.
NOTE:Care shouldbe taken in selecting the type_ of
cable usedto lin.k the MD-20to your processor. We
recommendbotla the AT&TFibre Optic due to its supe-
rior bandwidthand, signal isolation properties, andtile
AES/EBUformat clue to its higher voltage transmission
andnoise rejection dueto balancedformat.
6

CAUTION:TheMD-20is a CDTransport only. It is not
designedto connect directly to any preampor analog
signal processor.
TheMD-20is equippedwith a special termination sys-
tem called TimeSync.TimeSyncis a systemthat locks.
the clock betweenthe MD-20andspecific Krell digital-
to-analog processors. This connectionis labeled SIRE,
CIALon the back of the MD-20.Thetermination is via
an AT&Tfibre op.tic cable onlyandis usedin con.junc-
tion withanyof the other digital links like the AT&Tor
AES/EBU.
TheTimeSyn.coption c.an be ordered with the MD-20or
installed at a later timebyan authorizedKrell dealer or
distributer.
NOTE:The TimeSyn¢syst.em can ~ be utilized with
certain Krell digital-to-analog convertersandwill not
workwith any other makeor model.Please consult your
dealer or the Krell staff for specific information.
NOTE:TheTimeSyncoutput can not be used as an addi-
tional digital output.
TIMESYNC CONNECTION
The TimeSyncsystem is terminated via an AT&TST
fibre optic cable.
1. Connectthe AT&Tfibre optic cable to the termination
labeled SPECIALon the MD-20.Makesure the small
keyat the top of the fibre optic cableis uprightandfits
smoothlyinto the AT&Treceptacle, twist the collar
clockwiseto lock the cable in place.
2. Connectthe free endof the fibre optic cableto the
termination labeled Time.Sync/Extclock on the back of
yourKrell digital-to-analog converter.
3. Connectyourdigital interlink betweenthe transport .
anddigital-to-analog converter, if not alreadyconnectecl.
4. Select a digital sourceandpress the TimeSyncbutton
onthe front of yourdigital-to- analog,converter. The
correspondingIed wilFilluminate indicating the
TimeS-yncis Iocked. Shouldthe TimeSy_ncLEDflash,
this meansthe TimeSyncclock has not.locked and. re-
quires,resettin.g. Selectanyoth.erdigital input.ontlae
cfigital-tg-analog converterancl thenreselect the input.
youwisla to use. TheTimeSyncLEDwill nowbe steacly
and the clock will be locked.
7

F. OPERATIONOF THE CD
TRANSPORT
1. Turn the CDtransport ONby pressing the Power
b.utton. Thedisplay will illuminate. Select a disc and.
p.lace it o.n the spindl_e, label side up. Put the disc staN-
Iizer on the center of the CDso it fits securely on the
drive spindle.
CAUTIONS:Never operate the CDtransport without the
disc stabilizer. This can result in damageto the transport
or your valuable compactdiscs.
b. Never place the disc stabilizer wherethe cover may
accidentally close on it and damagethe cover.
c. Donot use anydisc stabilizing tool besides the Krell
CDStabilizer. This device has been specially machined
to precisely matchthe CDtransport. Failure to heed this
warning maycause damageto the laser transport.
2. Thefunctions of the front panel buttons that control
the transport are described below.
POWER
STOP
PLAY
PAUSE
TRACK I<
TRACK >l
INDEX I<
INDEX >1
SEARCHI<
SEARCH>l
FTS
PROGRAM
REPEAT
Turns unit ONor OFF
Stops the disc from playing
Starts the disc playingat. track 1;
will also restart play of the
current track
Tem.porarily stops play of current
track
Reverse track select
Forwardtrack select
Reverse index select
Forward index select
Fast reverse search
Fast forward search
Programs FTS memory;will also play
FTSencoded discs
Stores selected tracks in memory
Starts play from the beginning once
disc has finished
8

3. Select a track on the CDto play with the remotecon-
trol or via the front panelandpress the Playbutton. The
music will nowbegin.
9

G. REMOTE CONTROL
1. Theoperating functions of the RemoteControl are
describei:l below:
POWER
STOP
PLAY
PAUSE
TRACK I<
TRACK >1
INDEX I<
INDEX >1
Turns unit ONor OFF
Stops the disc from playing
Starts the disc playingat. track 1;
will also restart pIayof the
current track
Tem.porafily stops play of current
track
Reverse track select
Forwardtrack select
Reverse index select
Forward index select
SEARCHI<
SEARCH>1
FTS
PROGRAM
RPT
Fast reverse search
Fast forward search
Programs FTS memory;will also play
FTS encoded discs
Stores selected tracks in memory
Starts play from the beginning once
disc has finished
2. The MD-20remote control has a 10 .dj.git keypad. The
keypadallows for direct access to specific trac.ks. Pu.nch
in the t.rack numberyou want and pressPlay, the tracl~
you selected w~ill begin playing. Thedirect access keypad
is convenient tor track and~FTSprogramming.
10

H. TRACK PROGRAMMING
Theremotecontrol or the front panel of the MD-20can
be usedto programspecific tracks on a disc to be played
in the order you choose. TheMD-20can store up to 20
selections per program.
1. Select the track numberwhichwill start the sequence
into the keypad, then push the PROGRAMor PROGR
button. A"P" will appearnext to the track number.
2. Enterthe rest of the track selections in. yourprogramin
the samemannerrememberingto push the program
buttonafter eachtrack selecte~t.
3. Onceyouhave finished your programming,push the
PROGRAMor PROGRbutton again ending the program
sequence.Themachinewill then reviewthe tracl~s you
haveselected.
4. Press the PLAYbutton and the programwill begin.
Whilethe .programis runningyoucan Pause, Searchand
select trac~:s withinthe program.Youcan start a track
playing fromthe beginningby pressing the Play button.
P.ress STOPonlyto defeat, or erase, ttie programfunc-
tion.
5. Press the REPEATbutton and the machinewill play
yourselected tracks over again in the sameorder they
were programmed.
6. Tocancel your programpush the STOPbutton.
FTS MEMORY
FTS,or Favorite TrackSelection, is a feature that enables
youto store desiredtracks ona CD,in a sp~ecificorder,
into the memoryof the MD-20.Onceyou have pr
9-
grammeda disc with FTS,the machinewill give that
specific CDa reference number.The machineremembers
.tfiis inform.ationandwill playthe tracks youhavese-
lected for that CDwith a simple command.Themachine
can also play the entire disc shouldyouchoose.
11

FTS PROGRAMMING
To program tracks in the FTSmemory:
NO.TE:Before you begin,place disc to be progra.mmed
on tl~e unit and press PLAY.Oncetl~e unit reads tl~e table
of contents and displays the disc’s playing time,press
STOEYou can now begin programming fhe FTS
memory.
1. Programthe selections in the standard form described
above.
~
. After you have progra.mmedthe tracks, press the FTS
utton on the front panel or on the remote control. The
FTSindicator in the display will flash.
~
. Whilethe indicator is flashing press the PROGRA.M
utton. Themachinewill then display a numberon tl~e
screen briefly. This is the FTSdesignation number. When
this number appears the FTSprogrammingis complete.
NOTE:You may want to label the disc you programmed
with the FTSdesignation numberso it can easiIy be
erased or changed-in the future.
4. Youcan nowstart playing your FTSprogrammeddisc.
TO PLAY AN FTS DISC
1. Press the FTSbutton on the remote or front panel
before you press PLAY.
2. TheFTSindicator on the display will flash.
3. Whileit is flashing, press the PLAYbutton and the
.MD-10wi.ll play_ only trie tracks in FTSmemqry.If you
do not wisl~ to play.only the FTSselected tracl~s on a
disc, press Play wltl~ out pressing the FTSbutton first.
Theentire disc will nowplay.
12

TO ERASE FTS PROGRAM MEMORY
NOT.E:FTSmemorycan only be .erased via the front
panel controls. The remote control cannot erase FTS
memory.
NOTE:The disc does not have to be on the MD-20to
erase FTSmemory.Erasure can be completed with no
disc on the drive spindle.
~
. Press the FTSbutton on the front panel. Holdthe .
u.tton in while pressingthe forward or backwardtrack
select. Youwill notice the machineis scrolling through
FTSdes!gnation numbers. Once you have found the FTS
bdesignatlo.n numberyou want to erase, press the STOP
utton and the programwill be erased.
13

I. MAINTENANCE
.B. ecauseof its superbbuild quality the MD-20requires
little maintenance.Shouldthe unit becomeexcesslvly
dirty, clean the lens assemblywith a cameralens brush
madeof a soft material like camelhair. Theacrylic top
plate anddust covershouldbe cleanedwith the polistiing
kit provided.Readthe directions on the containersfor
best polishingresults.
REMOTECONTROLBATTERYINSTALLATION
AND REMOVAL
Thebatteries in the remotecontrol should be changed
whenthe tran.sport is nolongerunderstan~ding9r cor-
rectly respondingto the commandssent tromthe unit.
R~e.movethe four socketcapscrewsfromthe backportion
ot tlae remotecontrol. Removethe back plate to expose
the battery storage compartment.Refer to the polarity
drawingwhileinserting the batteries. Replacethe back
plate andinsert the four socketcapscrews.
FUSE INSTALLATION AND REMOVAL
~the MD-20does not seemto power-up, unplugthe unit
omthe ACwall socketandcl’/eck tlae tuse.
1. Locatethe fuse holderon the backof the unit labled
FUSE.Turn the fuse holder counterclockwiseand gently
pull the fuse free fromthe chassis.
2. Checkto makesure the foil in the center of the fuse is
still connected.If youare still unsure,measurethe fuse
with an ohmmeterto determineif it is intact. TheMD-20
uses a 1 ampfast-blow fuse. Shouldthe fuse need replac-
ing, use onlythe fuse specified.
3. Placethe fuse into .the receptacleandp_ushandtu.m
gently, clockwiseuntil the fuse holderis ~ullyseated.
Plugtlae unit into the ACwall socket andpress the Power
button.
CAUTION:Should the MD-20n.ot power-up and
con.tinous.ly blowfuses, unplugtlae unit tromthe ACwall
outlet andcontactyourKre-ll dealer or distributor.
15

J. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q. MyDigital to Analogprocessor will accommodate
eather fibre optic or coaxial digital inputs. Whichoutput
should I use on the MD-20?
A. Whilea high quality coaxial willperformquite well,
were.commendglass fibre optic cabledueto its ab.ility to
completelyisolate the grouni:ling planesbetweentlae
transport andprocessor,andits resistance to RFinterfer-
ence. If an AT&Tor AES/EBUinput is available, we
recommendone of these interfaces be utilized.
IQ. Whenlistening to certain discs I hear skippingnoises.
s there somethingwrongwith the MD-20?
A. Dueto the accuracyof the laser readingsystemin the
MD-20,discs mustbe kept reasonablyclean. If the disc
is mistracking,it couldbe becauseof excessivedirt or
fingerprints.Cleanthe discandretry. If the disc still
skips, try severalothers.If it is onlythefirst disc that is
skipping, the disc mayneedto be replaced. If the unit
mistracksonseveral discs, contact yourKrell dealer or
distributor.
Q. I can not seemto get the FTSprogrammingfeature to
programmydiscs, is there somethingwrong?
A. Makesure the disc youwishto programis indexed, or
read, by the machinebefore youstart your program.
Referto the FTSprogramminginstructions in this refer-
e.nce..Make sure whenyou are playing FTSencoded
cliscs tlaat the FTSbuttonis pr.esseit andthe displayreads
FTS.If the sequenceis alterecl the MD-20can not cor-
rectly correlate the FTSinformation.
Q. Doyou recommendI leave the MD-20ONat all
times?
A. Yes, Thesecircuits are mostaccurate andstable when
left to idle whennot in use. In fact, discrete parts age
.faster whencycled ONand OFEThe MD-20will sound
better andlast longerif left ON.
NOTE:Youshould disconnect the ACcord from the wall
outlet beforeanyelectrical stormsor if youplanto be
awayfrom your homefor prolongedperiods of time.
Q.Will the MD-20play if the dust coveris fully raised?
A. Certainly. Theunit will functionperfectly evenwith
the dust cover removed.
16

Q. Dueto the exposednature of the laser assemblyis
there a possibility of damagethroughlaser radiation?
A. No.Thereis an optical sensor underthe CDwhenit is
positioned on the transport hub. This allows the MD-20
to prohibit the laser fromturning on whenit is not cov-
ered with a CD.
a~I ownmanyCDsthat have CDRings on them. AmI
le to use these discs with the MD-20?
A. Yes, TheMD-20will accept discs with :’CDRin.gs".
Dueto their very lowmass, they will not damagethe
MD-20’stransport. Whilewecan neither affirm nor deny
the b.enefits derived fromthe use of CDRing.s, wedo not
fee! that anytype of disc equilibriumdeviceis require.d
with the MD-20whenproperly used with our CDStabi-
lizer.
CAUTION:Westrongly advise against the use of any
type of additional disc stabilizer. Theseitems addtoo
muchmassto the laser servo systemand mayburn out
the drive.
Q. Doyou recommendthe use of Conesor other damp-
ing feet with the MD-20?
A. Dueto the extraordinary rigidit.y of our machiningand
internal damping,wedo not fgel that the MD-20requires
additionalrn.ass co.uplingor isolation. If youwisht.o use
an atter-market isolation device youmaydo so without
fear of dam.agingthe MD-20.Anydevice whichaffixes
permanentlyto t-he chassis or requires a breachof the
external chassis will voidthe warranty.
NOTE:Beforeanytype of after marketdevice is to be
utilized in conjunctionwith the MD-20,please consult
yourdealer or the Krellstaff for assistance.
Q.CanI use morethan onedigital output at the same
time?
A. Yes, TheMD-20can drive up to four different digital
to analogconverters.
Q. Will the MD-20play CDsingles?
A. Yes, the MD-20will play CDsingles.
17

K. SPECIFICATIONS
TRANSPORT
Modified Philips CDM-1MK11with Hall effect motor,
swing-armdesign in a unicast frame.
LASER
Single Beamwith glass lens
OUTPUT
Digital only in industry standard SPDIFformat.
1 FIBREOPTICvia standard interface
1 COAXIALvia RCAconnector
1 AT&Tvia ST connector
1 AES/EBUvia XLRconnector
REMOTE CONTROL
Wireless infrared
DIMENSIONS
19.0" wide,
12.5" deep
6.0" high, cover closed
15.0" high with cover open
WEIGHT
20 pound_sunit only
33 pounds in box
18

L. WARRANTYAND SERVICE
INFORMATION
Thereare no user-serviceable parts inside the MD-20.
TheMD-20has a limited warrantyof three years parts
andlabor ontransport-related parts; five years parts and
labor onelectronic parts. Returnfreight is includedin the
warranty. Thewarrantyperiod b.egins on t~e date of
p_u_rchaseandis activated withthe return ot the enclosed
Warran.tyCardanda copyof the Sales receipt. Please
return the warrantycard immediatelyafter successful
installation andoperation are completed.
Thewarrantyfor Krell products is valid ~ in t,he coun-
t~ry to whichtheywereoriginally shippeda.ndat tlae
ta.ctory. If youthink there are prgblemsw!tla yourunit
please contactyourdealer, distributor or the tactory
immediately.
~a
heoperatingvoltageof this unitis determ,inedbythe
cto_ry_andc.a.n onlybe changedby_anautl~.orized.
KRELLdistributer or the KR-ELLfactory. Anyunautlao-
ihzed voltage cooversio~nwill voidthe warranty.Should
e operating voltage ot your MD-20require changing,
contact KRELLIndustries.
Plea~s.edonot retur9, anyunit to KRELLfor repair with-
out first calling to discuss the problemandto obtain a
ReturnAuthorizationnumber.-Freightto the factory or
distributor is yourresponsibili.ty. R.~turnfreight to you
will be paidbythe factoryor dlstrit)utor. Anyunautlao-
ri.’zed disassembly,.updatesor modificationsperformedto
tlae unit will voidtlaewarranty.
19

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KRELL DIGITAL INC.
35 HIGGINSDRIVEMILFORD,CT 06460
SALES203-874-3139 FAX[phone]
COPYRIGHT1992 KRELLDIGITAL INC.
(MD209209)