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Remote Control
The remote control can be found in the bottom of
the box. It controls the volume by means of a
motorised volume pot. Pressing "mute" will reduce
the volume to zero. Make sure that you point the
control directly at the sensor on the amplifier front
panel. If you are having difficulty operating the
handset from an oblique angle, try pointing at
something reflective, e.g. the opposite wall, or
Many
problems
associated
involve connecting leads. So it's worth making
sure that you have good connections and that
your leads are the right way round.
Inputs
The amplifier will work with any standard piece of
hi fi e.g. CD, Tuner, Tape Deck, Mini Disc, TV,
Video Recorder, DVD etc having an output of
300mv or more, to get full power.
If you wish to use a turntable you will need a
suitable phono pre-amp. Icon Audio or your dealer
can advise you. Our new all valve phono stage is
an ideal partner.
To use as a power amplifier. See 6a
Connecting a tape deck
The STEREO 60 MKIII will work with any tape
deck having suitable output and it is possible to
record from any connected source using the
terminals marked 'Rec Out'. The STEREO 60
MKIII has a 'Tape Monitor' facility, which enables
you to use a 'three head deck' or an equalizer.
Some tape decks 'Present a load' to the amplifier
terminals, even when not in use, which can affect
sound quality. (You can do an audible check for
this by removing the plugs and listening for a
change). Therefore for best results do not leave
anything
connected
unnecessarily.
Connecting loudspeakers 4or 8 Ohms?
The output impedance of the Stereo 60 MKIII has
been optimised to work with 3-12 ohm speakers.
Many modern speakers use a 4 ohm bass unit
and an 8 ohm tweeter, as this then falls between
the two impedances either 4 or 8 Ohms will be
suitable with the 4 ohm having a slightly heavier
sound. Bear in mind that there a quite a lot of
"spread" with the 4 and 8 Ohm taps, so they
overlap some. If Bi Wiring it is permissible to
connect the tweeter cable to 8 ohms and the bass
unit to 4 ohms, or vice versa
It is important to use good quality loudspeaker
cable. This should be relatively thick and muti-
stranded. i.e. QED 'Original' or better. Take care
to connect the correct polarity. The use of
'Banana plugs' or 'spade' connections will ensure
a good connection whilst minimising the risk of
'shorts'.
In our experience valve amplifiers are more
tolerant of cables; therefore some of the benefits
of very 'exotic' cables may be lost! But this is
personal taste. Icon or your dealer will advise you.
3 Connecting inputs & outputs
with
electronics
to
these
terminals
place a small reflective item at a suitable angle in
front of the amplifier. A small dot of white paint or
"Tippex" will enable the little "dimple" on the
volume control to be more visible if required.
Please note that upon "switch-on" the remote
control unit automatically re-sets to a low volume.
When the blue LED gets dim you should replace
the batteries with 2 x AAA cells.
As all cables have losses, keeping the speaker
cables short is best. It may be better and be
cheaper to re-arrange your room and use shorter
cables than to spend a fortune on longer cables!
You can either 'hard wire' your cable to the
amplifier by baring enough cable to fit in the
connector and twist together to avoid any spare
strands touching anywhere else (soldering the
stands together helps). Be warned this amplifier
does not have an output protection device,
which would degrade the sound. So a
prolonged short due to strands of wire
touching
could
damage
Alternatively use good quality 'banana' plugs,
once fitted they are trouble free.
Speaker polarity.
It is essential that you observe the polarity of the
terminals; they must be the same for the left/right
connections at the amplifier end and at the
loudspeaker end. Otherwise the sound will be 'out
of phase' with the sound stage 'inside out' with
reduced bass. If you are unable to check this or
confirm the polarity (e.g. if you have 'built in'
wiring), try the following; Connect the system up
and play some music with plenty of bass (e.g.
dance music), preferably in mono (FM tuners are
usually switchable to mono) and stand the
speakers close together. If correct you should
hear plenty of bass, if not reverse the terminals
for one channel only, either at the amp or
speaker. You will now hear more, or less bass.
The higher bass output is the correct setting to
use. Another alternative is to use a test disc. If
you are 'bi-wiring' your speakers only two
terminals, you must use only 4 or 8 ohms, not
both, as this will not load the amplifier properly
(see above).
The STEREO 60 MKIII is designed to work with
full range, medium to high efficiency having
impedance of 4 ohms to 8 ohms. Speakers having
efficiency of lower than 83db may have greater
difficulty in providing a high sound level. But this
will also depend upon individual speakers, room
size, type of music and positioning etc.
Do not connect to more than one pair of terminals
for each channel. If two pairs of speakers are
required to be connected, they must both be 8-
ohm and connected 4 ohm terminals. Contact
Icon Audio for more information. Damage could
be occur if care is not taken.
the
valves.
Page 4
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