User manual PARASOUND HCA1500A

[. . . ] O W N E R ' S M A N U A L HC A-1500A High Current Power Amplif ier HCA-1500A High Current Power Amplifier LUCASFILM Current Overload Power L R AC Line Standby Normal LUCASFILM R -1- IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS The lightning flash with the arrowhead symbol within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of "dangerous voltage" within the product's enclosure that may constitute a risk of electric shock. The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance instructions in the literature accompanying the product. TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE COVER. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL 1. Read Instructions -- Read all the safety and operating instructions before operating this product. [. . . ] The HCA-1500A occupies three rack spaces (5 1/4") into a standard 19 inch equipment rack. Be sure to use heavy duty mounting bolts to and nylon shoulder washers on both sides of the faceplate to avoid scratching the amplifier's front panel and prevent ground loops. Call Middle Atlantic Products at (201) 839-1011 to obtain information about a wide variety of rack mounting hardware. When mounting equipment into an equipment rack, it is always a good idea to have someone help support the unit while you bolt it to the rack rails. Ventilation Requirements for Your Amplifier To insure safe and reliable operation, it is very important that the amplifier has plenty of ventilation to prevent overheating and automatic shut down from its thermal protection circuitry. Please observe the following ventilation guidelines when installing your Parasound amplifier in a cabinet or other enclosed area: 1) If you are not using a fan, allow at least six inches on each side and above the amplifier, and do not close off the front with a cabinet door or panel. 2) If you are enclosing the amplifier within an equipment cabinet, use a fan to draw in cool air and exhaust warm air. In either case, two vent holes are required: one for intake and one for exhaust. 3) Do not place the amplifier on carpeting that will obstruct the air flow into the bottom of the amplifier chassis and heatsinks. If you do, you must use a fan to circulate the warm air that quickly becomes trapped between them. -4- Making Connections to Your Amplifier Leave the AC cord disconnected before making any signal or speaker connections. When making connections to the amplifier, make sure there is no strain or tension on the input leads, speaker wires, or AC cord that could cause them to pull loose. Input Connections Connect the output of your preamplifier or processor to the right (red) and left (white) channel RCA jacks for stereo operation. For bridged mono operation, use only the right channel input jack and leave the left channel jack disconnected. Output Looping Connections The right (red) and left (white) channel output looping RCA jacks provide you with a convenient way to connect multiple amplifiers together from one source for multi-room/multi-zone applications. Once you have connected the source to input jacks, you can connect these looping output jacks to the input of an additional power amplifier without having to use separate "Y" connectors. Speaker Connections You may connect solid or stranded wire up to AWG 12, 1/4" spade lugs, single or dual banana plugs to the five-way binding posts of your power amplifier. If you use bare wire without terminals, make sure you remove only enough insulation so the wire fits through the hole that runs sideways through the terminal's binding post. Before inserting the wire, twist all its strands tightly to prevent strays that could cause a short circuit. (You may want to "tin" the stripped wire with solder to prevent it from fraying and oxidizing. ) Polarity It is important to observe correct polarity. When you connect speakers to your amplifier, you will notice that one side the two conductor speaker wire will have some sort of mark: either printing, a raised ridge on the insulation or a different color of conductor. This lets you know which wire is connected to the positive and which to the negative speaker terminals so you can do exactly the same at the power amplifier binding posts. Polarity is marked separately on the rear panel for both stereo and bridged connections. [. . . ] Substitution of a larger fuse may create serious stress or damage to internal parts and will void your warranty. In Case of Trouble If you suspect a problem with your amplifier, first turn the amp off and check all your connections. The trouble may be caused by another component or a defective hookup cable. If you are hearing hum out of your speakers, turn off the amplifier and disconnect the inputs to it. [. . . ]