Velodyne Servo F-1000 User manual

Servo F-l000, Servo F-1200, Servo F-1500
Ownerls Manual
Velodyne
SERVO CONTROLLED SUB-WOOFER SYSTEM

SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS
IA AI
CAUTION: Tareduce the risk of electric shock, do not remove cover (or back) No user-serviceable parts inside Refer
servicing to qualified service personnel
The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within an equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the presence of
uninsulated "dangerous voltage" within the product's enclosure that may
be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of
electric shock to persons
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and
maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the appliance
Read Instructions -All the safety and operating instructions should
be read before the appliance is operated,
2
Retain Instructions -The safety and operating instructions should be retained for future reference
3 Heed Warnings -All warnings on the appliance and in the operating instructions should
be adhered to
4, Follow Instructions - All operating and use instructions should be followed,
5" Water and Moisture -The appliance should not be used near water -for example, near a bathtub, washbowl, kitchen
sink, laundry tub, in a wet basement, or near a swimming pool, and the like,
6 Carts and Stands -The appliance should be used only with a cart or stand that is recommended by the manufacturer,
7 Wall or Ceiling Mounting -The appliance should be mounted to a
wallar ceiling only as recommended by the
manufacturer
8, Ventilation -The appliance should be situated so that its location or position does not interiere with its proper ventilation,
For example, the appliance should not be situated on a bed, sofa, rug, or similar surface that may block the ventilation
openings; or, placed in a built-in installation, such as a bookcase or cabinet that may impede the flow of air through the
ventilation openings,
9 Heat -The appliance should be situated away from heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other
appliances that produce
heat
10 Power Sources -The appliance should be connected to a power supply only of the type described in the operating
instructions or as marked on the appliance
11, Power-Cord Protection -Power-supply cords should be routed so that they are not likely to be walked on or pinched by
items placed upon or against them, paying particular attention
to cords at plugs, convenience receptacles, and the point
where they exit from the appliance
12 "Caution: To prevent electrical shock, match wide blade of plug to wide slot, fully inserted" "Attention: Pour eviter les
chocs electriques, introduire lame la plus large de la fiche dans la borne correspondante de la prise et pousser jusqu' au
fond"
13 Cleaning -The appliance should be cleaned only as recommended by the manufacturer,
14 Nonuse Periods -The power cord of the appliance should
be unplugged from the outlet when left unused for a long
period of time
15 Object and Liquid Entry -Care should be taken
so that objects do not fall and liquids are not spilled into the enclosure
through openings.
16. Damage Requiring Service -The appliance should be serviced by qualified service personnel when:
a The power-supply cord or the plug has been damaged; or
b. Objects have fallen, or liquid has been spilled into the appliance; or
c. The appliance has been exposed to rain; or
d. The appliance does not appearto operate normally or exhibits a marked change in performance; or
e The appliance has been dropped, or the enclosure damaged
17 Servicing -The user should not attempt
to service the appliance beyond that described in the operating instructions
All other servicing should be referred to qualified service personnel

For Your Records:
Serial Number
____________ _
Date of Purchase ---c---------
Name of Store ____________ _
OWNER'S MANUAL
VELODYNE SERVO F-SERIES
SUBWOOFER SYSTEM
Congratulations on your purchase of a Velodyne Servo F- Series Subwoofer System This system represents the
state of the art in accurate bass reproduction. Read and follow the ·Instructions below to insure safe and proper
system operation. Save this manual for future reference
Warning: To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not expose this equipment to rain or
moisture To avoid electrical shock do not open speaker enclosure
or amp chassis
cover. Please observe all warnings
on the equipment itself There are no user
serviceable parts inside. Please refer all service questions to your authorized
Velodyne dealer
..
Prior to installation: Please unpack the system carefully. Remove all staples used to seal the carton as they can
scratch the cabinet Please save the carton and all packaging materials for future use Record the serial number
in the space provided above and both locations on the warranty card for future reference ..
INSTALLATION
Your new Servo F-Series Subwoofer System provides for a number of installation options. Read all the installation
information below
in order to determine which installation option is best for your system. Remember to perform all
installation procedures with system power turned off
Inputs" The Servo F-Series Subwoofer is equipped with both speaker-level and line-level stereo inputs Use the
LINE
IN jacks when connecting your subwoofer to a pre-amp, signal processor,or line-level crossover. The FROM
AMPLIFIER jacks connect directly to the speaker outputs of your integrated amplifier or receiver. Your amplifier
section will notice no additional loading effects when you use these inputs because of their high impedance
NOTE: Do not use both line and speaker level jacks simultaneously
High Pass Crossover" Because your satellite speakers cannot reproduce bass as accurately as the
Servo F-Series Subwoofer, optimum system performance
is attained by rolling off the low end response of your
satellites. The Servo F-Series is equipped with a high pass crossover for this purpose. To use the crossover,
simply drive your power amplifier
or satellites from the subwoofer's outputs.
Interconnection Cables" When installing your Servo F-Series Subwoofer using FROM AMPLIFIER and
TO
SPEAKERS (as in Figure 1) run the same quality speaker cable to your subwoofer as you do to your satellites If
the speaker level cables to your subwoofer will not be driving any satellites, then a medium guage "zip cord" is
sufficient to supply the subwoofer alone.
Line level cables should
be standard shielded phono cables. Always keep leads between your pre-amp and
power amplifier as short as possible If necessary, cables to the subwoofer unit alone
can be quite long
-1-

INSTALLATION OF SERVO F-SERIES SUBWOOFER
USING FROM AMPLIFIER INPUTS
Figure 1 shows how to connect your Servo F-Series Subwoofer to a receiver or integrated amplifier. When
using the speaker level terminals, note the right and left channel designations above the terminals. Red speaker
jacks are positive, black speaker jacks are negative (common).
AMPLIFIER OR RECEIVER SATELLITE SPEAKERS
o
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Figure 1: Installation Using FROM AMPLIFIER Inputs
Caution: To avoid damage to your main amplifier be sure to make all speaker
connections from RED
(pOSitive) to RED and from BLACK (negative) to BLACK Be
surethatall connections are tight, and thatthere are no loose strands offrayed wires
-2-

•
INSTALLATION OF SERVO F-SERIES SUBWOOFER
USING LINE INPUTS
Figure 2 shows how to install your Servo F-Series Subwoofer between a pre-amplifier and power amplifier
A NOTE ABOUT SURROUND SOUND APPLICATIONS; If your processor has a "subwoofer out' jack
on it, in
most cases
it is best not to use it for connecting your Velodyne By doing so, you will be combining the cross-over
of the Velodyne with the cross-over of the processor. This can result
in low gain and increased noise. Instead, we
suggest that you connect your Velodyne between the main or front speaker outputs of your processor and the
amplifier that will drive them This will generally give you the best results.
PRE-AMPLIFIER
POWER AMPLIFIER SATELLITE SPEAKERS
MAIN OUTPUTS
r-
L R
RIGHT LEFT
58
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Figure 2: Installation Using LINE Inputs
-3-

INSTALLATION OF TWO SERVO F-SERIES SUBWOOFERS
AS A STEREO PAIR
Although a single Servo F-SeriesSubwoofer will improve the performance of any audio system, many
listeners demand the additional power and effect of stereo subwoofers Figure 3 shows stereo connection using
speaker level inputs Note that one pair of inpuVoutput terminals remain unused
on each unit. Stereo connections
can also be made with the line level inputs.
o
VOLUME
<=>
SATELLITE SPEAKER
LOW PASS
CROSSOVER
LEFT
- +
o
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F-SERIES SUBWOOFER
REAR PANEL
AMPLIFIER OR RECIEVER
L R
o
VOLUME
<=)
SATELLITE SPEAKER
lOW PASS
CROSSOVER
o.
RIGHT
+ -
FROM AMPLIFIER
o
F-SERIES SUBWOOFER
REAR PANEL
NOTE: RED TERMINALS ARE POSITIVE
BLACK TERMINALS ARE NEGATIVE
Figure 3: Installation Using STEREO SUBWOOFERS
-4-

I
I
PLACEMENT
The Servo F-Series Subwoofer operates primarily at frequencies below 85 Hz. These frequencies are essen-
tially non-directional such that you may place the subwoofer almost anywhere without degrading the stereo
imaging characteristics of your main speakers.
When using a pair of subwoofers
in stereo, it is preferable to place each subwoofer adjacent to the satellite of
the same channel.
Keep in mind that frequency response and output level can be greatly influenced by placement, depending on
the acoustic properties of the listening room. Typically the Subwoofer will sound louder next to a wall or in a
corner
Caution: The Servo F-Series Subwoofer amplifier is built into the woofer cabinet
Do not place cabinet next to sources of heat such as furnace registers, etc. The
power cord should be routed
in such a way that it will not be walked on, pinched,
or compressed.
CONTROLS
The control panel on the rear of your Servo F-Series Subwoofer includes a power switch, a level control, and
a cross-over adjustment
The power switch is a rocker type that will light the green LED
in the front of the cabinet when turned on.
The subwoofer level control knob is used to adjust the volume level of bass information in relation to the
midrange and treble frequencies. We recommend that you begin listening with the level set
at the point midway
between MAXIMUM (fully clockwise) and MINIMUM (fully counter-clockwise,). Play several selections
of music
and vary the subwoofer level until the bass matches the mids and highs tc vour satisfaction .. Once you set the
subwoofer level, you simply use your system's main volume control and the bass proportion will remain consis-
tent
The LOW PASS crossover control allows you to adjust the upper limit of the subwoofer's frequency response
For example, with the crossover set at 60Hz, the subwoofer begins rolling off above this frequency. Using this
control you may match the Velodyne precisely to your main speakers. If you are using very small bookshelf
speakers you may wish to raise the low pass as high as 100Hz. If you own large full range loudspeakers, you may
find a lower setting more appropriate.
By fine tuning the level and crossover controls, you can create a seamles blend between the subwoofer and
your main speakers, with bass response and output tailored to your listening room and personal preference
-5-

CARE OF YOUR SUBWOOFER
We recommend using a clean damp cloth for cleaning the cabinet Never use detergents or abrasives on your
Servo F-Series Subwoofer.
The Servo F-Series Subwoofer may
be left on continuously without fear of long-term adverse effects. We do
recommend that you turn off the unit and unplug the power cord during extended periods of nonuse.
PROTECTION CIRCUITRY
If you've purchased an F-1500, your unit is equipped with a special ciruit designed to protect the unit from
damage. Either of the two conditions below will power the unit down and keep it off for 5 seconds after the fault is
corrected.
1) If there is a significant drop in the line voltage.
2) If there is an input signal which momentarily exceeds the dynamic range of the unit
TROUBLESHOOTING I SERVICE
Before seeking service for your subwoofer, please re-check all system and power connections Also consider
the protection circuit described above; you may only need to turn the volume down slightly
If you determine that your unit requires service, then please contact your local Velodyne dealer.
The following conditions a/ways require service by qualified personnel:
1) If the power cord is damaged
2) If the unit does not appear to operate normally or exhibits a marked change in performance
3) If the unit has been exposed to water
VELODYNE HGS SYSTEM
Velodyne's prime focus is in providing low distortion loudspeaker systems that impress the dedicated audio-
phile as well as the casual listener. Velodyne developed its patented High Gain Servo (HGS) system to bring
nonlinear distortion down to unprecedented levels on its ULD-15 and ULD-1
il high performance subwoofers. Your
new Servo F-Series Subwoofer uses this same HGS technology to reproduce the music you enjoy without the
excessive nonlinear distoritons that plague conventional loudspeaker designs.
The Problem of Distortion
Nonlinear distortion is defined as any form of distortion that moves energy from one portion of the audio
frequency spectrum to another When a single tone is applied to a nonlinear system, the result
is harmonic
distortion,
in which some of the energy leaves the system at integer multiples of the original input frequency
When multiple tones are applied to the same system, intermodulation tones are produced, usually as simple
combinations of the input frequencies, i.e., sums and differences of integer multiples of the applied tones
In
general, 3% nonlinear distortion is considered a reasonably small amount This means that 3% of the total energy
leaving a loudspeaker is at frequencies other than the intended pure tone applied to the input Our tests, however,
indicate that about 0.5% nonlinear distortion at normal listening le'fels must
be achieved before the average
listener
is truly affected by an improvement in bass response.
In the reproduction of deep bass notes, loudspeakers suffer from a "double-whammy" when it comes to
nonlinear distortion. First, most loudspeakers have much more than even 3% THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) at
-6-

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low frequencies. Even at 1 watt drive levels, many loudspeakers have 8 to 10% THD at 40 Hz. With the 50 watt
drive levels needed to produce realistic bass intensity, these distortion figures rise to astonishing levels. Second,
the distortion products produced by a nonlinear woofer are much easier to hear than is the fundamental fre-
quency. Consider a speaker driven at 30 Hz with 5% 3rd harmonic distortion If the 30 Hz tone is 90 dB SPL
(Sound Pressure Level), equating to about 5 watts into a typical woofer, the 3rd harmonic, at 90 Hz, would be
down 26 dB, or at 64 dB SPL. However, humans are more than 10 times as sensitive to sound at 90 Hz than at
30 Hz The nonlinear distortion produced by a woofer must be weighted by the sensitivity function of the human
ear. When this
is done, it becomes clear that even a small percentage of harmonic distortion is unacceptable in a
bass driver. It
is also clear that high-order (3rd, 4th, 5th, etc.) harmonic distortion products are more serious than
are 2nd harmonic distortion products. These studies have led to the conclusion that 0.5% is the maximum toler-
able amount of nonlinear distortion for a bass driver, and the less distortion the driver produces, the more capable
it is of accurately reproducing live sounds
Since most woofers today have at least 10% THD when 0 5% is the maximum tolerated, minor improvements
in woofer technology are essentially ineffective Servo F-Series Subwoofers have about 90 times less nonlinearity
than a typical 10 inch bookshelf speaker. They have about 3 times less distortion due to their greater size and
power handling capability, and about 30 times less distortion due to the Servo feedback loop The improvement is
even greater if one considers exceptionally loud and deep tones such as organ pedal notes.
An interesting result of this reduced distortion is that much of the bass, when played over a Servo F-Series
Subwoofer, seems to actually
be reduced. The truth, of course, is that the "missing" bass was never really there
on the source material, and was never intended to be played by the artist Distortion products introduced by
conventional woofers actually make the entire bass spectrum sound louder.
Our Solution
The Velodyne Servo F-series Subwoofer System produces sound in the same manner as any conventional
loudspeaker: a cone-shaped piston
is forced to move by means of a linear motor composed of a coil situated
between the poles of a very strong permanent magnet.
In the Servo F-Series, however, this linear motor is a
servo-motor, meaning that the motor
is linked to the power amplifier as part of a control system The basis for the
control action is the signal obtained from an accelerometer which is rigidly fastened to the voice coil. The strategy
of continuously monitoring the cone motion, and using this information as the basis for the corrective action,
is
called motional feedback. This feedback technique is illustrated in the system block diagram, Figure 4,
The signal into the system is a time varying voltage which is an exact analog of the desired acoustic output
from the loudspeaker, The accelerometer output contains sufficient information to deduce the actual acoustical
output of the woofer The servo circuitry compares almost instantaneously how well the acoustic output matches
the command signal coming
in, If and when there is a deviation, the servo circuitry modifies the drive signal to the
amplifier so that the acoustic output from the speaker is a true representation of the input
In conventional loudspeakers, the drive signal into the speaker is virtually free from distortion but the
speaker's acoustical output may be highly distorted,
In Servo F-Series Subwoofers, the speaker coil drive signal is
often highly distorted, or actually pre-distorted,
in exactly such a way that the acoustical output from the speaker is
free from distortion, Motional feedback has been used previously
in an attempt to make small woofers sound like
larger, more powerful ones At Velodyne, the use of motional feedback is applied to make what is already a large
and powerful woofer achieve a level of performance that has never before been reached in a home entertainment
product
HGS System Components
(Refer to Figure 4)
High and Low Pass Crossovers receive the incoming audio signals from your system pre-amp or power amp,
Frequencies above 85 Hz are diverted to your power amplifier while frequencies from the right and left channels
below 40 to 100 Hz (depending on low pass crossover setting) are summed to monaural and passed on to
subsequent stages
in the subwoofer,
Loop/Control Stage Incoming bass signals pass through a variable gain amplification stage designed to protect
the subwoofer from being overdriven (see Supporting Circuits on next page) With a bit of added filtering, the bass
signal is now ready to be compared with the feedback signal of the accelerometer, A composite signal is created
which compensates for erroneous movement of the cone,
-7-

•
INPUT FROM
HOST SYSTEM
PRE-AMPLIFIER
~
HIGH-AND
LOW- PASS
CROSSOVERS
HIGH-PASS OUTPUT
TO HOST SYSTEM
POWER AMPLIFIER
OR SPEAKERS
SUPPORTING CIRCUITRY
t
LOOP / CONTROL
~ 1
----. POWER >--1~
AMP
CUSTOM DRIVER
FEEDBACK SIGNAL
Figure 4: Servo Series System Block Diagram
ACCELEROMETER
AND AMPLIFIER
Power Amplifier .. The Subwoofer's amplifier must provide power for distortion correction as well as basic music
reproduction.
Custom Driver Although our HGS electronics play the most important role in reducing distortion, the Servo
F-Series driver must be carefully engineered and constructed so as not to undo the work that the HGS electronics
have done A large magnet and voice coil are used to improve sensitivity, the cone is specifically shaped to
reduce resonances, and ventilation holes are used liberally to eliminate whistling noises often associated with
long-travel operation (essential for producing low frequencies at listenable volumes)
Accelerometer Perhaps the most critical component of the HGS system, the accelerometer measures the
motion of the cone and relays
it back to the loop circuits by means of an onboard charge amplifier and special
feedback circuitry.
Supporting Circuits A GAIN COMPRESSION circuit evaluates the amplitude of the incoming bass signal. The
gain comrressor is directly linked to the control stage and can thereby limit input signal gain in order to prevent
amplifier clipping. If an extremely loud transient is detected, the gain compressor circuit will signal the COMPARA-
TOR circuit to immediately shut down the subwoofer's power amplifier for five seconds The comparator circuit will
also shut down the power amplifier if
it detects problems with the power supply
VELOOYNE, Servo F-Series, F-1000, F-1200,
and F-1500
ULO-15, and ULO 18 are trademarks of Velodyne Acoustics, Inc
Velodyne Acoustics, Inc ..
1070 Commercial Street, Suite # 101
San Jose, CA 95112
[phone]
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THE SERVO F-SERIES
SUBWOOFER SYSTEM SPECIFICATIONS
F-1000 F-1200 F-1500
Amplifier: 80 Watts RMS 100 Watts RMS 250 Watts
RMS
Class AlB Class AlB Class AlB
Driver: 10" with 1/2"
12" with 9/16"
15" with 5/8"
Linear Travel Linear Travel Linear Travel
Voice oil: 2 3/8" Diameter 2 3/8" Diameter
3" Diameter
Magnet:
560z
560z
96 oz.
Cone: Resin/Fiber Resin/Fiber Resin/Fiber
High Pass: Pasive 85 Hz Pasive 85 Hz Pasive 85
Hz
6 dB Slope 6 dB Slope 6 dB Slope
Low Pass:
Active-Adj
Active-Adj
Active -Adj.
40 to 100 Hz 40 to 100 Hz 40 to 100
Hz
Frecuency Response:
20-85 ±3dB 20-85 ±3dB 18-85 ± 3dB
Distortion
(25 Hz @ 104 dB): Less than 1% Less than 1% Less than .
.7%
Cabinet:
141/4" cube
165/8" cube 20" cube
Finish: Black Vinyl Woodgrain Black Vinyl Woodgrain Black Vinyl Woodgrain
Granite Vinyl Base Granite Vinyl Base Granite Vinyl Base
Weight: 44
Lbs.
55 Lbs.
79 Lbs.
Warranty: 1 Year 1 Year 1 Year
Specifications are subjectto change without notice.