Sony MHC-RG55 User manual

1
Mini Hi-Fi
Component
System
4-239-875-12(2)
MHC-RG66
MHC-RG55S
MHC-RG55
© 2002 Sony Corporation
Operating Instructions

2
GB
WARNING
To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not
expose the unit to rain or moisture.
To prevent fire, do not cover the ventilation of the
apparatus with news papers, table-cloths, curtains,
etc. And don’t place lighted candles on the apparatus.
To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not place objects
filled with liquids, such as vases, on the apparatus.
Do not install the appliance in a confined space,
such as a bookcase or built-in cabinet.
This appliance is classified as
a CLASS 1 LASER product.
This label is located on the
rear exterior.
Don’t throw away the battery with
general house waste, dispose of it
correctly as chemical waste.
ExceptforEuropeanmodels
ENERGY STAR®is a U.S.
registered mark.
As an ENERGY STAR®Partner,
Sony Corporation has determined
that this product meets the ENERGY
STAR®guidelines for energy
efficiency.
Table of Contents
List of Button Locations
and Reference Pages
Main unit ............................................... 4
Sub woofer ............................................ 5
Remote Control ..................................... 6
Getting Started
Hooking up the system .......................... 7
Inserting two R6 (size AA) batteries
into the remote .............................. 10
Setting the clock .................................. 11
CD
Loading a CD ...................................... 11
Playing a CD — Normal Play/
Shuffle Play/Repeat Play............... 12
Programing CD tracks
— Program Play ............................ 13
Tuner
Presetting radio stations....................... 14
Listening to the radio
— Preset Tuning/
Manual Tuning .............................. 16
Using the Radio Data System
(RDS)* .......................................... 17

3
GB
Tape
Loading a tape ..................................... 17
Playing a tape ...................................... 18
Recording to a tape
— CD Synchro Recording/
Recording Manually/
Program Edit ................................. 19
Timer-recording radio programs ......... 20
Sound Adjustment
Selecting the sound system.................. 21
Using the sub woofer........................... 21
Adjusting the sound............................. 22
Selecting the sound effect.................... 22
Adjusting the graphic equalizer and
storing............................................ 23
Selecting the surround effect ............... 23
Display
Turning off the display
— Power Saving Mode ................. 24
Using the CD display .......................... 24
Other Features
Enhancing video game sound
— Game Sync ............................... 25
Changing the spectrum analyzer
display ........................................... 25
Mixing video game sound with other
sound source — Game Mixing ..... 25
Singing along....................................... 26
Falling asleep to music
— Sleep Timer .............................. 27
Waking up to music — Daily Timer ...27
Optional Components
Hooking up optional components........ 29
Listening to audio from a connected
component ..................................... 30
Recording on a connected
component ..................................... 30
Troubleshooting
Problems and remedies........................ 31
Messages ............................................. 32
Additional Information
Precautions .......................................... 33
Specifications ...................................... 34
* European model only

4
GB
List of Button Locations and Reference Pages
How to use this page
Use this page to find the location of buttons and other
parts of the system that are mentioned in the text.
Illustration number
r
TUNER/BAND ea (14 – 16, 19)
RR
Name of button/part Reference page
Main unit
ALPHABETICAL ORDER
A – G
AUDIO jacks wh (29)
CD es (12, 13, 19, 20)
CD SYNC qj (19, 20)
Deck Awd (17, 18)
Deck Bqh (17 – 21, 26)
DIRECTION 6(18 – 20, 26)
DISC 1 – 3 0(12, 13, 20)
DISC SKIP/EX-CHANGE qa (11,
12)
Disc tray 9(11)
DISPLAY 6(17, 24)
EDIT 6(20)
EFFECT ON/OFF 3(22)
ENTER qs (11, 13 – 15, 20, 23,
27, 28)
FM MODE 6(16)
GAME wk (25)
GAME EQ wa (22)
GAME MIXING ws (25)
GROOVE 2(22)
M – Z
MD (VIDEO) wl (30)
MIC jack*1wg (26)
MIC LEVEL control*1wg (26)
MOVIE EQ 7(22)
MUSIC EQ 4(22)
P FILE ql (23)
PHONES jack qf
PLAY MODE 6(12, 13, 20)
REC PAUSE/START qk (19, 20,
26)
REPEAT 6(12)
SPECTRUM 6(25)
SURROUND SPEAKER
MODE*28(21)
TAPE A/B e; (17, 19)
TUNER MEMORY 6(14, 15)
TUNER/BAND ea (14 – 16, 19)
VIDEO jack wj (29)
VOLUME control qd
BUTTON DESCRIPTIONS
?/1 (power) 1
v/V/b/B5
ZOPEN/CLOSE qa
Z(deck B) qg
Mw;
.w;
xw;
hH w;
Xw;
>w;
mw;
Z(deck A) wf
*1Except for European models
*2MHC-RG66 only
12345 6 78 9
0
qd
qs
qf
qg
qh
qjqkql
qa
w;waws
wd
wf
wg
wj
wh
wk
e;
wl
ea
es

List of Button Locations and Reference Pages
5
GB
Sub woofer
(MHC-RG55S only)
ALPHABETICAL ORDER
A – Z
Indicator 1(21)
ON/OFF 2(21)
1
2

6
GB
Remote Control
ALPHABETICAL ORDER
A – G
CD qj (12, 13, 19, 20)
CLEAR 6(13)
CLOCK/TIMER SELECT 2
(21, 28)
CLOCK/TIMER SET 3(11, 20,
27)
D.SKIP ql (12)
EFFECT ON/OFF qa (22)
ENTER qf (11, 13 – 15, 20, 23,
27, 28)
GAME qk (25)
M – Z
MD (VIDEO) 9(30)
P FILE qd (23)
PRESET +/– 5(14 – 16)
PRESET EQ qg (22)
SLEEP 1(27)
SURROUND 0(23)
TAPE A/B 8(17, 19)
TUNER/BAND qh (14 – 16, 19)
TUNING +/– 5(14 – 16)
VOL +/– 7
BUTTON DESCRIPTIONS
?/1 (power) 4
M5
.5
x5
nN 5
X5
>5
m5
v/V/b/Bqs
5
6
7
8
9
0
qa
qs
12 34
qd
qf
qg
qh
ql
qk
qj

Getting Started
7
GB
FM antenna
Getting Started
Hooking up the system
Perform the following procedure 1to 5to hook up your system using the supplied cords and
accessories.
AM loop antenna
Sub woofer speaker**
Front speaker (Right) Front speaker (Left)
Surround speaker (Right)*Surround speaker (Left)*
*MHC-RG66 only
** MHC-RG55S only
continued

8
GB
Hooking up the system (continued)
Red/Solid
(3)
Black/Stripe (#)
2For MHC-RG66
Connect the surround speakers.
Connect the speaker cords to the
SURROUND SPEAKER jacks as shown
below.
Insert only the stripped portion
R
+
L
+
–
Red/Solid
(3)
Black/Stripe (#)
AM loop antenna Extend the FM lead antenna
horizontally
Jack type B
AM
FM75
COAXIAL
AM loop antenna
Extend the FM lead
antenna horizontally
1Connect the front speakers.
Connect the speaker cords to the SPEAKER
jacks as shown below.
Insert only the stripped portion
R
+
L
+
–
3Connect the FM/AM antennas.
Set up the AM loop antenna, then connect
it.
Jack type A
FM75
AM
For MHC-RG55S
Connect the sub woofer speaker.
Connect the speaker cords to the SUB
WOOFER OUT jack and SUB WOOFER
CONTROL jack as shown below.
SUB WOOFER
CONTROL jack
SUB WOOFER
OUT jack
For MHC-RG55
Go to the procedure 3.
4For models with a voltage selector, set
VOLTAGE SELECTOR to the local
power line voltage.
120V220V230 - 240V

Getting Started
9
GB
Positioning the speakers (MHC-RG66
only)
1Place the front speakers at an angle of
45 degrees from your listening
position.
5Connect the power cord to a wall outlet.
The demonstration appears in the display.
When you press ?/1, the system turns on
and the demonstration automatically ends.
If the supplied adapter on the plug does not
fit your wall outlet, detach it from the plug
(only for models equipped with an adapter).
To connect optional components
See page 29.
To attach the front speaker pads
Attach the supplied front speaker pads to the
bottom of the speakers to stabilize the speakers
and prevent them from slipping.
Notes
•Keep the speaker cords away from the antennas to
prevent noise.
•Do not place the surround speakers on top of a TV.
This may cause distortion of the colors in the TV
screen.
•Be sure to connect both left and right surround
speakers. Otherwise, the sound will not be heard.
Front
speaker
(L)
Front
speaker
(R)
Surround
speaker
(L)
Surround
speaker
(R)
2Place the surround speakers facing
each other at about 60 to 90 cm above
your listening position.
continued
Surround
speaker
60 to 90 cm

10
GB
Hooking up the system (continued)
Inserting two R6 (size AA)
batteries into the remote
E
e
eE
Tip
With normal use, the batteries should last for about
six months. When the remote no longer operates the
system, replace both batteries with new ones.
Note
If you do not use the remote for a long period of time,
remove the batteries to avoid possible damage from
battery leakage.
Positioning the sub woofer (MHC-
RG55S only)
Since the human ear cannot detect the direction
and position where the bass sound being
reproduced by a woofer (below 150 Hz) comes
from, you can place the woofer wherever you
like in your room. To obtain a better bass
reproduction, we recommend you to place the
woofer on a solid floor where the resonance is
unlikely to occur.
Notes
•Always place the woofer vertically, keeping a few
centimeters from away the wall.
•If the woofer is placed in the center of a room, the
bass could be extremely weakened. This is due to
the influence of the standing wave of the room. If
this happened, move the woofer away from the
center of a room or eliminate the cause of the
standing wave, by placing a bookshelf on the wall,
etc.
When carrying this system
Perform the following procedure to protect
the CD mechanism.
1Make sure that all discs are removed
from the system.
2Hold down CD and then press ?/1 until
“STANDBY” appears.
When you release the buttons, “LOCK”
appears.
3Unplug the power cord.

CD
11
GB
Setting the clock
1Press ?/1 to turn on the system.
2Press CLOCK/TIMER SET on the
remote.
3Press vor Vrepeatedly to set the hour.
4Press B.
The minute indication flashes.
5Press vor Vrepeatedly to set the
minute.
6Press ENTER.
The clock starts working.
To adjust the clock
1Press CLOCK/TIMER SET on the remote.
2Press vor Vrepeatedly to select “CLOCK
SET”, then press ENTER.
3Do the same procedures as step 3 to 6
above.
Note
The clock settings are canceled when you disconnect
the power cord or if a power failure occurs.
To insert additional discs, press DISC
SKIP/EX-CHANGE to rotate the disc tray.
3Press ZOPEN/CLOSE to close the disc
tray.
CD
Loading a CD
1Press ZOPEN/CLOSE.
The disc tray opens.
2Place a CD with the label side up on the
disc tray.

12
GB
Stop play Press x.
Pause Press X. Press again to resume
play.
Select a track During play or pause, press >
or ..
Find a point
in a track During play, press and hold Mor m. Release it when you find the
desired point.
Select a CD in
stop mode Press DISC 1 –3 or DISC SKIP/ EX-CHANGE (or D.SKIP on the
remote).
Other Operations
To Do this
1Press CD.
2Press PLAY MODE repeatedly until the
mode you want appears.
Select To play
All CDs in the disc tray
continuously.
The tracks on the CD you
have selected in original
order.
The tracks on all CDs in
random order.
The tracks on the CD you
have selected in random
order.
The tracks on all CDs in the
order you want them to be
played (see “Programing
CD tracks”on page 13).
3Press hH (or nN on the remote).
Disc tray number
Disc presence
indicator Track number Playing time
Playing a CD
— Normal Play/Shuffle Play/Repeat
Play
This system lets you play the CD in different
play modes.
Switch to CD
function from
another source
Press DISC 1 –3 (Automatic
Source Selection).
Remove a CD Press ZOPEN/CLOSE.
Exchange other
CDs while
playing
Press DISC SKIP/EX-CHANGE.
Play repeatedly
(Repeat Play) Press REPEAT during play until “REP”or “REP 1”appears.
REP*: For all the tracks on the CD
up to five times.
REP 1**: For a single track only.
To cancel playing repeatedly, press
REPEAT until “REP”and
“REP 1”disappear.
* You cannot select “REP”and “SHUF ALL
DISCS”at the same time.
**When you select “REP 1”, that track is repeated
endlessly until “REP 1”is canceled.
Note
The play mode cannot be changed while playing a
disc. To change the play mode, press xfirst to stop
play.
ALL DISCS
(Normal Play)
SHUF ALL DISCS
(Shuffle Play)
SHUF 1DISC
(Shuffle Play)
PGM
(Program Play)
1DISC
(Normal Play)

CD
13
GB
Programing CD tracks
— Program Play
You can make a program of up to 25 tracks
from all the CDs in the order you want to play
them.
1Press CD.
2Press PLAY MODE repeatedly until
“PGM” appears.
3Press one of DISC 1 – 3 to select a CD.
To program all the tracks on a CD at once,
proceed to step 5 with “AL”displayed.
4Press . or >until the desired
track appears.
Disc tray number
Total playing time
(including selected track)
Track number
5Press ENTER.
The track is programed. The program step
number appears, followed by the total
playing time.
Clear a track from
the end Press CLEAR on the remote in stop mode.
Tips
•The program you made remains after Program Play
finishes. To play the same program again, press CD,
then press hH (or nN on the remote).
•“––.––” appears when the total CD program time
exceeds 100 minutes, or when you select a CD track
whose number is 21 or over.
Press PLAY MODE repeatedly
until “PGM”and “SHUF”
disappear.
Cancel Program
Play
Other discs 3 and 5
Other tracks on the same disc 4 and 5
Other tracks on other discs 3 to 5
7Press hH (or nN on the remote).
Other Operations
To Do this
6Program additional discs or tracks.
To program Repeat steps

14
GB
Setting presets through
automatic tuning
1Press TUNER/BAND repeatedly to
select “FM”or “AM”.
2Press and hold mor M(or TUNING –
or + on the remote) until the frequency
indication starts to change, then
release it.
Scanning stops automatically when the
system tunes in a station. “TUNED”and
“STEREO”(for an FM stereo program)
appear.
If “TUNED”does not appear and the
scanning does not stop
Set the frequency of the desired radio
station as described in steps 2 through 6 of
“Setting presets through manual tuning”.
3Press TUNER MEMORY.
A preset number appears in the display.
The stations are stored from preset number
1.
Preset number
4Press .or >(or PRESET –or +
on the remote) repeatedly to select the
desired preset number.
5Press ENTER.
6Repeat steps 1 to 5 to store other
stations.
Tuner
Presetting radio stations
You can preset up to 20 FM stations and 10
AM stations. You can then tune in any of those
stations simply by selecting the corresponding
preset number.
There are two ways to store the station presets.
To Method
Automatic Tuning Preset
Manual Tuning Preset
Automatically tune in
all of the stations that
can be received in your
area and store them
manually
Manually tune in and
store the radio frequency
of your favourite stations

Tuner
15
GB
Setting presets through
manual tuning
1Press TUNER/BAND repeatedly to
select “FM”or “AM”.
2Press mor M(or TUNING –or + on
the remote) repeatedly to tune in the
desired station.
3Press TUNER MEMORY.
A preset number appears in the display.
The stations are stored from preset number
1.
4Press .or >(or PRESET –or +
on the remote) repeatedly to select the
desired preset number.
5Press ENTER.
6Repeat steps 1 to 5 to store other
stations.
Other Operations
To Do this
Follow the procedure described in
“Setting presets through manual
tuning”.
Start over from step 1. After step
3, press .or >(or PRESET
–or + on the remote) repeatedly to
select the preset number you want
to store the other station.
Tune in a station
with a weak
signal
Set another
station to an
existing preset
number
To change the AM tuning interval
(except for the European and Middle
Eastern models)
The AM tuning interval is factory-set to 9 kHz
(10 kHz in some areas). To change the AM
tuning interval, tune in any AM station first,
then turn off the system. While holding down
ENTER, turn the system back on. When you
change the interval, all the AM preset stations
are erased. To reset the interval, repeat the
same procedure.
Note
You cannot change the AM tuning interval in the
Power Saving Mode.
Tips
•The preset stations are retained for half a day even
if you disconnect the mains lead or if a power
failure occurs.
•To improve broadcast reception, reorient or move
the supplied antenna near a window or outdoors.

16
GB
Listening to the radio
You can listen to a radio station either by
selecting a preset station, or by manually tuning
in the station.
Listening to a preset station
—Preset Tuning
Preset radio stations in the tuner’s memory first
(see “Presetting radio stations”on page 14).
1Press TUNER/BAND repeatedly to
select “FM”or “AM”.
2Press .or >(or PRESET –or + on
the remote) repeatedly to select the
desired preset station.
Preset number Frequency
Listening to non-preset radio
station
—Manual Tuning
1Press TUNER/BAND repeatedly to
select “FM”or “AM”.
2Press mor M(or TUNING –or + on
the remote) repeatedly to tune in the
desired station.
Tips
•To improve broadcast reception, adjust the supplied
antennas.
•When an FM stereo program has static noise, press
FM MODE repeatedly until “MONO”appears.
There will be no stereo effect, but the reception will
improve.
•Press and hold mor M(or TUNING –or + on
the remote). The frequency indication changes and
scanning stops when the system tunes in a station
(Automatic Tuning).
•To record from the radio, see “Recording to a tape”
on page 19 or “Timer-recording radio programs”on
page 20.

Tape
17
GB
Using the Radio Data
System (RDS)
(European model only)
What is the Radio Data System?
Radio Data System (RDS) is a broadcasting
service that allows radio stations to send
additional information along with the regular
program signal. This tuner offers convenient
RDS features like station name display and
location of stations by program type. RDS is
available only on FM stations.*
Note
RDS may not work properly if the station you tuned
in is not transmitting the RDS signal properly or if the
signal is weak.
* Not all FM stations provide RDS service, nor do
they provide the same types of services. If you are
not familiar with the RDS system, check with your
local radio stations for details on RDS services in
your area.
Receiving RDS broadcasts
Simply select a station from the FM band.
When you tune in a station that provides RDS
services, the station name appears in the
display.
To check the RDS information
Each time you press DISPLAY, the display
changes cyclically as follows:
Station name* tFrequency tProgram type
(for one second)* tClock display (for eight
seconds) tEffect status
* If the RDS broadcast is not received, the station
name and program type may not appear in the
display.
With the side
you want to
play/record
facing forward.
Tape
Loading a tape
1Press TAPE A/B repeatedly to select
deck A or B.
2Press Z.
3Insert a tape in deck A or B with the
side you want to play/record facing
forward.

18
GB
Playing a tape
You can use TYPE I (normal) tape.
1Load a tape.
2Press DIRECTION repeatedly to select
gto play one side. Select j*to
play both sides.
To play both decks in succession, select
RELAY (Relay Play)**.
3Press hH (or nN on the remote).
Press the button again to play the reverse
side*. The tape starts playing.
Tape presence indicator
Reverse
indicator Forward indicator
* For MHC-RG55S, deck A doesn’t play the reverse
side.
**Relay Play always follows this cyclic sequence up
to five times, then stops:
tDeck A (front side) t Deck A (reverse side)
t Deck B (front side) t Deck B (reverse side)
For MHC-RG55S, after the playback of the front
side of deck A, deck B repeats the sequence five
times.
Other Operations
To Do this
Stop play
Pause Press X. Press again to resume
play.
Fast-forward
or rewind Press mor M.
Remove
the cassette Press Z.
Searching for the beginning of the
current or the next track (AMS)*
To go forward
Press >during playback when Hlights.
“TAPE A (or TAPE B) >>> +1”appears.
Press .during playback when hlights.
“TAPE A** (or TAPE B) <<< +1”appears.
To go back
Press .during playback when Hlights.
“TAPE A (or TAPE B) <<< –1”appears.
Press >during playback when hlights.
“TAPE A** (or TAPE B) >>> –1”appears.
* AMS (Automatic Music Sensor)
**For MHC-RG55S, deck A doesn’t play the reverse
side.
Tip
When a tape is inserted, corresponding forward/
reverse indicators light.
Note
The AMS function may not operate correctly under
the following circumstances:
–When the unrecorded space between songs is less
than 4 seconds long.
–When the system is placed near a television.
Press x.

Tape
19
GB
4Press CD SYNC. Press REC PAUSE/START.
Deck B stands by for recording.
“REC”flashes.
2Press CD. Press CD, TAPE A/B or TUNER/BAND.
Recording to a tape
—CD Synchro Recording/Recording Manually/Program Edit
You can record from a CD, tape (or connected components) or radio. You can use TYPE I (normal)
tapes. The recording level is adjusted automatically.
Steps Recording from a CD
(CD Synchro Recording)
Recording from a CD/tape/radio manually
1Load a recordable tape into deck B.
3Load the CD you want to record. Load the CD or tape (or other audio
source), or tune in the station you want
to record.
5Press DIRECTION repeatedly to select gto record on one side. Select j
(or RELAY) to record on both sides.
Note
You cannot listen to other sources while recording.
continued
Press REC PAUSE/START, and then start
playing the desired source to record.
6Press REC PAUSE/START.
Recording starts.
To stop recording
Press x.
Tips
•If you want to record from the reverse side, press
TAPE A/B to select deck B after step 1. Press
hH to start playback of the reverse side, then
press xwhen you want to start recording. The
TAPE B reverse side indicator lights up.
•When you record on both sides, be sure to start
from the front side. If you start from the reverse
side, recording stops at the end of the reverse side.
•For recording from the radio:
If noise is heard while recording from the radio,
move the respective antenna to reduce the noise.

20
GB
Tip
To check the required tape length for recording a CD,
press EDIT until “EDIT”flashes after you have
loaded CD and pressed CD. The required tape length
for the currently selected CD appears, followed by the
total playing time for side A and side B respectively
(Tape Select Edit).
Note
You cannot use Tape Select Edit for discs containing
over 20 tracks.
Timer-recording radio
programs
You can record a preset radio station from a
specified time.
To timer-record, you must first preset the radio
station (see “Presetting radio stations”on
page 14) and set the clock (see “Setting the
clock”on page 11).
1Tune in the preset radio station (see
“Listening to the radio”on page 16).
2Press CLOCK/TIMER SET on the
remote.
“DAILY 1 SET”appears.
3Press v or V repeatedly to select “REC
SET”, then press ENTER.
“ON”appears and the hour indication
flashes.
4Set the time to start recording.
Press v or V repeatedly to set the hour,
then press B.
The minute indication starts flashing.
Press v or V repeatedly to set the minute,
then press ENTER.
Recording to a tape (continued)
Recording a CD by specifying
track order
—Program Edit
When programing, make sure the playing time
for each side do not exceed the length of one
side of the tape.
1Load a CD and load a recordable tape
into deck B.
2Press CD.
3Press PLAY MODE repeatedly until
“PGM”appears.
4Press one of DISC 1 –3 to select a CD.
5Press .or >until the desired
track appears.
6Press ENTER.
The track is programed. The program step
number appears, followed by the total
playing time.
7Repeat steps 5 and 6 for the same disc
or 4 to 6 for tracks from another disc to
program additional discs or tracks.
8Press CD SYNC.
Deck B stands by to record in the direction
of the indication on hH (the right
indicator lights to record on the forward
side and the left indicator lights to record on
the reverse side). The CD player stands by
for playback.
9Press DIRECTION repeatedly to select
gto record on one side. Select j
(or RELAY) to record on both sides.
10 Press REC PAUSE/START.
Recording starts.