Settings And Adjustments - ELAC Alchemy PPA-2 Operating Instructions Manual

Settings and Adjustments

The PPA-2 has a row of LED status indicators followed by a row of buttons to control the indicated functions.
Please refer to Figure 2.
MUTE lights when the MUTE button is pressed. This feature is convenient when changing tracks or making
some kind of adjustment that could otherwise result in an objectionable noise. Press once to engage, again to
disengage.
1 & 2 refer to the Input numbers on the back of PPA-2. Pressing the INPUT 1 or INPUT 2 button toggles between
them. INPUT 1 is on the far left (as viewed from the back) and INPUT 2 is on the other side of the dip switches
(where you have already selected 47K or adjustable load, and if INPUT 2 is to be balanced or unbalanced, right?)
When lit indicates that the High Pass (i.e. rumble) filter has been selected with the HP button. Toggle to
switch. This mode is useful if your turntable has a bit of low frequency noise, or if the cut you are playing has so
much bass that is causes feedback from your turntable (sometimes known as howling.)
+18db Indicates when the PPA-2 is in high gain (MC) mode and is toggled by the MC/MM button and will
obviously be louder in the lit condition. Pick the position where you have sufficient volume in your system to
play as loud as you need. There is no advantage to high gain mode if you don't need it, it will only be noisier but
not sound any better.
L+R Indicates MONO mode and is toggled by the MONO button. Use mono when playing mono records or
when you are checking channel balance or some other test.
TWEAKING
As noted above, select the gain position you feel gives sufficient volume range for your listening tastes. Don't
use more gain than you need, there is no point.
Once you have sound and are starting to listen critically you should notice great dynamics from the PPA-2, as
well as extended range in both the bass and treble regions. Smoothness and dimensionality will be excellent,
but none of these will be as good as they will be after a week of warmup, perhaps even several weeks.
If you are using the adjustable load feature and you want to, you can start to make fine adjustments to the load
for each channel to see if you like the sound better one way or the other. While valid now for better enjoyment
during the warmup period, ultimately you will want to make these same changes once the PPA-2 stabilizes as
they may be subtly different.
Note that for tweaking the load you do not enter measurement mode; to do so would mute the audio and you
need to be listening for this step. The idea is to put on a record with which you are very familiar and very slightly
increase the left and right loads and listen to the results. Then, reduce the load very slightly and listen again.
You might need to iterate this process a number of times till you feel you have gotten the best sound you can
achieve. At this point the actual load number has likely been altered from the original settings you made. If you
want, you can enter measurement mode and read the settings you have gotten to, for future reference.
MODE SELECTION
Other than gain, the PPA-2 has two modes you can select, as needed, to improve performance under certain
conditions; MONO and HP. Their purpose is described above. Each will be remembered as your preferred
setting upon power off, so be sure to disengage them when not needed.
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