Podium Pro Audio VX1000 User manual

Podium Pro Audio
Audio at its highest level
http://www.podiumproaudio.com
© 2010
Podium Pro Audio
Model VX1000 & VX2000
Professional Amplifier
User’s Manual
INTRODUCTION 2
FEATURES 2
PRECAUTIONS 2
INSTALLATION 2
FRONT PANEL CONTROLS 3
INPUT / OUTPUT CONNECTIONS 4
STEREO, MONO AND BRIDGE MODES EXPLAINED 5
SELECT THE BEST MODE FOR YOUR APPLICATION 6-7
SPEAKER WIRING 8
USING SPEAKON® CONNECTORS 8
SPECIFICATIONS 9
NOTES 9

INTRODUCTION
The Podium Pro Audio VX1000 & VX2000 are high performance two
channel power amplifiers intended for professional sound
reinforcement and public address applications. Sophisticated
protection circuitry is employed to ensure that your audience and
speakers are fully protected from all typical fault conditions. Used in
accordance with the information provided in this manual, this product
will give years of trouble free use.
FEATURES
•DC protection disconnects speakers if a DC fault is detected
•Over-temperature protection shuts down amplifier if
overheated
•Output short-circuit protection
•Cooling fan varies speed in response to operating conditions
•“SPEAKON” speaker connectors
•Rugged steel construction
PRECAUTIONS
•Do not use where the amplifier may get wet.
•Never place the amplifier near any heat source.
•Do not obstruct the air vents. Doing so may cause the
amplifier to overheat.
•The third, round pin on the AC cord is an essential safety
feature. Never defeat the safety ground on the AC cord.
•Be certain all equipment is OFF before making or
breaking connections.
•Refer all service needs to qualified personnel. There
are no user serviceable components inside.
INSTALLATION
The VX amplifier is designed for either shelf or equipment rack
installations. If you plan to place the amplifier into an equipment rack
with other pieces of equipment, you will need to remove the four
rubber feet. They are easily removed with a #2 Phillips screwdriver.
If the equipment rack contains numerous amplifiers, you must ensure
adequate ventilation or overheating may result.
2
11

10
FRONT PANEL CONTROLS
①AC POWER SWITCH
②POWER LED
This blue LED lights whenever the amplifier is on.
③FAN LED
This blue LED lights whenever the cooling fan is on.
④MODE SELECT
This three position switch selects one of the three available operating modes. A
summary is provided here. For a detailed explanation of all MODES, see “STEREO,
MONO AND BRIDGE MODES EXPLAINED” on page 6.
•STEREO In this position the amplifier operates as a normal two channel amplifier.
Channel A = LEFT, channel B = RIGHT.
•MONO In this position the signal applied to the channel Ainput will be present on
both A and Boutputs. Each channel’s volume control (VOL) will continue to operate
independently.
•BRIDGE In “BRIDGE” mode, the amplifier is configured to operate as a single high
power channel. Connect your source to the channel A input. Connect your speaker to
the center Speakon®jack or use the five-way binding posts. The RED channel A
binding post = speaker (+). The RED channel Bbinding post = speaker (-). Use the
CHANNEL A VOLcontrol to adjust amplifier volume.
⑤CHANNEL A VOL [ LEFT CHANNEL ]
This rotary control adjusts the volume of channel A only. The control is detented,
allowing a precise volume match between channel A and B.
⑥CHANNEL A [ LEFT ] SIGNAL LED
This green LED lights whenever signal is present on channel A.
⑦CHANNEL A [LEFT ] CLIP LED
This yellow LED lights whenever channel A is driven above its maximum output
voltage.
⑧CHANNEL A PROTECT LED
This red LED lights whenever channel A encounters an excessive load, i.e. shorted
speaker cable. When this occurs you must correct the fault.
⑨CHANNEL B VOL [ Right Channel ]
This rotary control adjusts the volume of channel B only. The control is detented,
allowing a precise volume match between channel A and B.
⑩CHANNEL B SIGNAL LED
This green LED lights whenever signal is present on channel B.
⑪CHANNEL B CLIP LED
This yellow LED lights whenever channel B is driven above its maximum output
voltage.
⑫CHANNEL B PROTECT LED
This red LED lights whenever channel B encounters an excessive load, i.e. shorted
speaker cable. When this occurs you must correct the fault.
3

INPUT / OUTPUT CONNECTIONS
It is essential that all input and output connections are wired correctly and are
of high quality. We recommend using only pre-fabricated cables which
adhere to the wiring conventions detailed here.
NOTE: Although each input channel has three connector types you must
only use one at a time. Use an audio mixing console if you want to combine
multiple sources.
①LINE A XLR INPUT
Balanced: PIN 1 = ground, PIN 2 = (+), PIN 3 = (-). Unbalanced: PIN 1 =
ground, PIN 2 = (+), PIN 3 = ground.
②LINE B XLR INPUT
Balanced: PIN 1 = ground, PIN 2 = (+), PIN 3 = (-). Unbalanced: PIN 1 =
ground, PIN 2 = (+), PIN 3 = ground.
③LINE A ¼” PHONE JACK INPUT
Balanced: TIP = (+), RING = (-), SLEEVE = ground. Unbalanced: TIP = (+),
RING = ground, SLEEVE = ground.
④LINE B ¼” PHONE JACK INPUT
Balanced: TIP = (+), RING = (-), SLEEVE = ground. Unbalanced: TIP = (+),
RING = ground, SLEEVE = ground.
⑤STEREO “CD” INPUT
Unbalanced phono (RCA) jacks. WHITE = LEFT IN = CHANNEL A OUT,
RED = RIGHT IN = CHANNEL B OUT. The second pair of phono jacks are
provided as a convenient pass through of the input signal. NOTE: this input
can be used with any unbalanced analog line level audio source. This
includes tape players, iPods, MP3 players and computers.
⑥INPUT GROUND “FLOAT” SWITCH
Normally, amplifier circuit “ground” is connected to chassis ground. It is
recommended that you leave this switch in the “GND” position at all times. In
some rare cases it may be beneficial to isolate, or “FLOAT” the amplifier
circuit grounds from the chassis ground. To do this, set this switch to the
“FLOAT” position.
⑦CHANNEL A SPEAKON®OUTPUT
See “USING SPEAKON®CONNECTORS” on page 4 for details.
⑧CHANNEL B SPEAKON® OUTPUT
See “USING SPEAKON®CONNECTORS” on page 4 for details.
⑨BRIDGE MODE SPEAKON® OUTPUT
See “USING SPEAKON®CONNECTORS” on page 4 for details.
⑩CHANNEL A “5-WAY” BINDING POST OUTPUT
RED binding post = speaker (+), BLACK binding post = speaker (-). See
“SPEAKER WIRING” on page 4 for detailed information.
⑪CHANNEL B “5-WAY” BINDING POST OUTPUT
RED binding post = speaker (+), BLACK binding post = speaker (-). See
“SPEAKER WIRING” on page 4 for detailed information.
4
SPECIFICATIONS
VX1000
VX2000
Class
AB
Peak power, 4Ω
2x500W
2x1000W
Peak power, 8Ω
2x250W
2x500W
Peak power, BRIDGED, 4Ω
1000W
2000W
Balanced input sensitivity
700mV
Unbalanced input sensitivity
350mV
Signal to noise ratio
≥96dB
Frequency response
15Hz – 25kHz
Distortion (THD+N)
≤0.5%
Balanced input impedance
20kΩ
Unbalanced input impedance
10kΩ
AC power requirement
115V/60Hz or 230V/50Hz
AC Fuse T10A H250V T5A H250V
NOTES
9

SPEAKER WIRING
To get the best results it is important to use the correct gauge wire. Use the
following table to determine the appropriate wire gauge for your installation.
When in doubt, go to a larger gauge.
Wire Gauge 8Ω Speaker
Maximum Length 4Ω Speaker Maximum Length
18
10 feet
5 feet
16
20 feet
10 feet
14
35 feet
18 feet
12
60 feet
30 feet
10
100 feet
50 feet
USING SPEAKON®CONNECTORS
Podium Pro Audio recommends using Speakon®style connectors for
speaker connections. There are numerous reasons why this is a good idea.
•Regulatory requirements in Europe have outlawed the use of dual
banana plugs for high powered amplifiers and it is likely that similar
regulatory controls will eventually appear worldwide.
•Connectors cannot be reversed, eliminating accidental speaker
phase reversal.
•Connectors lock onto the plug and cannot be accidentally
disconnected.
•Connectors are completely shock proof.
•Speakon® connectors meets all safety regulations currently in effect.
The VX Series amplifiers use four pin Speakon®connectors (Neutrik model
NL4FC or equivalent). See Figure 1 for wiring details.
If your speakers also have Speakon®connectors, do not assume
they use the same wiring convention. Check with the manufacturer of
your speakers for more information.
8
STEREO, MONO AND BRIDGE MODES EXPLAINED
To fully appreciate the potential benefits of operating the amplifier in “bridge” mode it is helpful to
briefly examine all three modes of operation.
STEREO MODE:
In STEREO MODE, the amplifier exhibits the following characteristics. . .
Normally, the amplifier is operated in STEREO MODE. In STEREO MODE the
two channels of amplification are independent of one another. See Figure A below.
•Signals applied to the channel A (left) input are amplified only by channel A.
•Signals applied to the channel B (right) input are amplified only by channel B.
•Channel A has no influence on channel B and vice versa.
•NOTE: Both channel A and B outputs are non-inverting: If the input signal goes
positive (+), the output signal also goes positive (+).
MONO MODE:
In MONO MODE, the amplifier exhibits the following characteristics. . .
When the amplifier is operated in MONO MODE, signals applied to the channel
A input are amplified by channel A and B. See Figure Babove.
•Signals applied to the channel A input are amplified by channel A and B.
•The channel B input is disabled.
•Effectively you now have two independent amplifiers sharing the same input channel.
•Although both A and B output channels will be identical, each channels’ volume level
can be independently adjusted. See page 6 “FRONT PANEL CONTROLS”.
•NOTE:Both channel A and B outputs are non-inverting: If the input signal goes
positive (+), the output signal also goes positive (+).
BRIDGE MODE:
BRIDGE MODE operation has the following characteristics. . .
In BRIDGE MODE, channel A and B amplify the signal applied to the channel
A input. Unlike MONO MODE, the channel B output is inverted. See Figure Cbelow.
•The signal applied to the channel A input is amplified by channel A and B.
oThe output of channel A is non-inverted: If the input signal goes positive (+),
the output signal also goes positive (+).
oThe output of channel B is inverted: If the input signal goes positive (+), the
output signal goes negative (-).
•Channel A and B are now operating as one channel. The channel A volume control
adjusts the output level of both A and B together.
oThe channel B volume control is disabled.
oThe channel B input is disabled.
•The loudspeaker is not connected to ground.
oThe speaker (+) lead is connected to channel A (RED connector).
oThe speaker (-) lead is connected to channel B (RED connector).
See page 3, “INPUT / OUTPUT CONNECTIONS”
5
Figure 1

SELECT THE BEST MODE FOR YOUR APPLICATION
STEREO MODE: For most applications, STEREO MODE is the best choice. This
gives you two independent, high power channels of amplification. STEREO MODE is
your best choice for the following conditions.
You have a stereo source and. . .
•Will be connecting one 4Ω or 8Ω speaker to each output channel.
•Will be connecting two 8Ω speakers in parallel to each output channel.
MONO MODE: There are a number of circumstances where MONO MODE is the
best option.
You have a single channel source or two amplifiers for a stereo source and. . .
•A very large venue where speaker wire lengths are excessive. MONO
MODE allows amplifier placement much closer to the speakers.
•Sound reinforcement: Driving a cluster of several speakers. MONO MODE
allows a single amplifier to drive up to four 8Ω speakers or two 4Ω speakers.
6
BRIDGE MODE: When the highest possible power output is desired, BRIDGE MODE
is the best choice. This is an excellent way to power a large subwoofer.
You have a single channel source or two amplifiers for a stereo source and. . .
•Will be connecting one speaker, minimum impedance: 4Ω.
•Will be connecting one or two 8Ω speakers in parallel.
7