Installation And Connections - Harman Kardon AVR 140 Owner's Manual

INSTALLATION AND CONNECTIONS

System Installation
After unpacking the unit, locating it in a place with ade-
quate ventilation and placing it on a solid surface capable
of supporting its weight, you will need to make the con-
nections to your audio and video equipment.
IMPORTANT NOTE: For your personal safety and to
avoid possible damage to your equipment and speakers,
it is always a good practice to turn off and unplug the
AVR and ALL source equipment from the AC output
before making any audio or video system connections.
Audio Equipment Connections
We recommend that you use high-quality interconnect
cables when making connections to source equipment
and recorders to preserve the integrity of the signals.
1. Connect the analog outputs of a CD player to the
CD Audio Inputs ™.
NOTE: When the CD player has both fixed and vari-
able audio outputs, it is best to use the fixed output
unless you find that the input to the receiver is so low
that the sound is noisy, or so high that it is distorted.
2. Connect the analog Play/Out jacks of a cassette
deck, MD, CD-R or other audio recorder to the
Tape Input Jacks ¢. Connect the analog
Record/In jacks on the recorder to the Tape
Output Jacks £ on the AVR 140.
3. Connect the output of any digital sources such as
a CD or DVD changer or player, advanced video
game, digital satellite receiver, HDTV tuner or digi-
tal cable set-top box or the output of a compatible
computer sound card to the Optical and Coaxial
Digital Audio Inputs ·d*(. Connecting
the coaxial digital audio output of your DVD player
to the Coax 1 Digital Audio Input · is recom-
mended, since that digital input is assigned to the
DVD source by default. The Video 2/Cable/Sat
source defaults to the Optical 1 Digital Audio
Input d. If your cable television set-top box or
satellite receiver is equipped with an optical digital
audio output, we recommend that you connect it
to this input to obtain the benefits of higher-quality
digital audio (such as PCM, Dolby Digital 2.0 or
Dolby Digital 5.1 signals when broadcast by your
cable or satellite provider).
4. Connect the Coaxial or Optical Digital Audio
Outputs fl‡ on the rear panel of the AVR 140 to
the matching digital input connections on a CD-R or
MiniDisc or other digital recorder.
5. Assemble the AM loop antenna supplied with the
unit so that the tabs at the bottom of the antenna
loop snap into the holes in the base. Connect it to
the AM Antenna Terminals V.
12 INSTALLATION AND CONNECTIONS
6. Connect the supplied FM antenna to the FM (75-
ohm) Connection ¡. The FM antenna may be
an external roof antenna, an inside powered or
wire-lead antenna or a connection from a cable TV
system. If the antenna or connection uses 300-
ohm twin-lead cable, you must use a 300-ohm-
to-75-ohm adapter (not included) to make the
connection.
7. With the AVR 140 turned off, connect the optional
Harman Kardon The Bridge to The Bridge
TM TM
Player (DMP) Connector b. A compatible iPod
The Bridge
may be docked in when you wish to use it
TM
as an audio source device. Video materials stored
on the iPod may not be viewed via
8. Connect the front, center, surround and surround
back speaker outputs §¶•ª to the respec-
tive speakers.
To ensure that all the audio signals are carried to your
speakers without loss of clarity or resolution, we sug-
gest that you use high-quality speaker cable. Many
brands of cable are available and the choice of cable
may be influenced by the distance between your
speakers and the receiver, the type of speakers you
use, personal preferences and other factors. Your dealer
or installer is a valuable resource to consult in select-
ing the proper cable.
Regardless of the brand of cable selected, we recom-
mend that you use a cable constructed of multistrand
copper with a gauge of 14 or smaller. Remember that
in specifying cable, the lower the number, the thicker
the cable.
Cable with a gauge of 16 may be used for short runs
of less than 10 feet. We do not recommend that you
use cables with an AWG equivalent of 18 or higher,
due to the power loss and degradation in performance
that will occur.
Cables that are run inside walls should have the appro-
priate markings to indicate listing with UL, CSA or other
appropriate testing agency standards. Questions about
running cables inside walls should be referred to your
installer or a licensed electrician who is familiar with
the NEC and/or the applicable local building codes in
your area.
When connecting wires to the speakers, observe
proper polarity. Note that the positive (+) terminal of
each speaker connection may carry a specific color
code, as noted on page 7. However, many speakers
still use a red terminal for the positive (+) connection.
Connect the "negative" or "black" wire to the same ter-
minal on both the receiver and the speaker.
NOTE: While most speaker manufacturers adhere to
an industry convention of using black terminals for
negative and red ones for positive, some may vary
from this configuration. To ensure proper phase and
optimal performance, consult the identification plate on
your speaker or the speaker's manual to verify
polarity. If you do not know the polarity of your speak-
er, ask your dealer for advice before proceeding, or
consult the speaker's manufacturer.
We also recommend that the length of cable used
to connect speaker pairs be identical. For example,
use the same length piece of cable to connect the
Digital Media front-left and front-right or surround-left and sur-
® round-right speakers, even if the speakers are a
different distance from the AVR 140.
Note that it is not possible to use the AVR 140 in a
The Bridge .
TM
7.1-channel configuration. Any source information
that the AVR receives or derives for the surround
back left and right channels, e.g. through the 6/8-
Channel Direct Inputs g or during 7-channel
surround mode processing, is combined and out-
putted to the single-channel Surround Back
Speaker Outputs ¶.
9. Connections to a subwoofer are normally made via
a line-level audio connection from the Subwoofer
Output ∞ to the line-level input of a subwoofer
with a built-in amplifier. When a passive subwoofer
is used, the connection first goes to a power ampli-
fier, which will be connected to one or more sub-
woofers. If you are using a powered subwoofer that
does not have line-level input connections, follow
the instructions furnished with the speaker for con-
nection information.
10. If an external multichannel audio source with 5.1,
6.1 or 7.1 outputs (such as an external digital
processor/decoder, DVD-Audio or SACD player)
is used, connect the outputs of that device to
the 6/8-Channel Direct Inputs g.
Video Equipment Connections
Video equipment is connected in the same manner as
audio components. The use of high-quality interconnect
cables is recommended to preserve signal quality.
1. Connect a VCR's, DVD recorder's, personal video
recorder's or other video source's audio and video
Play/Out jacks to the Video 1 Audio/Video and/or
S-Video Input Jacks LS on the rear panel. The
Audio and Video Record/In jacks on the recorder
should be connected to the Video 1 Audio/Video
and/or S-Video Output Jacks NT on the
AVR 140. Although any video device may be