Operation; Basic Operation; Source Selection - Harman Kardon HK3480 Owner's Manual

OPERATION

Basic Operation

Once you have completed the setup and configuration of
your new receiver, it is simple to operate and enjoy. The
following instructions will provide the steps needed to
enjoy the HK 3480:
• Install the two supplied AAA batteries in the remote
as shown. Be certain to observe the (+) and (–)
polarity indicators shown in the bottom of the
battery compartment.
• You may begin a listening session by pressing the
System Power Control 1 on the front panel or the
Main Power On Button å on the remote. The
Power Indicator 2 will turn red, then blue. This will
turn the unit on and return it to the input source that
was last used. The unit may also be turned on from
Standby by pressing any of the Source Selector
buttons on the front panel 68)!#$
or remote ç.
To turn the unit off at the end of a listening session,
simply press the System Power Control 1 on the
front panel or the Main Power Off Button ∫ on the
remote. This places the unit in the Standby mode, and
the Power Indicator 2 will turn amber to remind
you that the unit is ready for operation when a power
command is received from the remote.
When the remote is used to turn the unit "off" it is
actually placing the system in a Standby mode, as
indicated by the amber color of the Power
Indicator 2.
• To dim the brightness of the Information Display
Û, press the Dimmer Button ˙. The first press
will dim the lights to half normal. The Power
Indicator 2 will remain lit, but the light inside the
Volume Control Ú will go out. A second press will
turn the display completely off , but the Power
Indicator 2 will remain lit to remind you that the
unit is on. Press the Dimmer Button ˙ again to
restore the display to normal brightness.

Source Selection

• To select a source at any time, press any of the
Source Selector buttons on the remote ç or
front panel 68)!#$.
• When a video source is selected, if you have
connected a video device to the video input jack for
that source, and if you have connected the Video
Monitor Output · to the composite video input of
14 OPERATION
your TV or video display, you will be able to enjoy
video programs from a broadcast, cable or satellite
television system; a VCR or hard-disk video recorder;
a DVD player; or any other video device with analog
line-level audio outputs and a composite video output.
NOTE: Although the HK 3480 is an audio/video
receiver, it is not a surround sound receiver. Audio
will be played in two-channel stereo or monaural,
depending on how the program material is encoded,
and you will not be able to hear any additional channels
that may be encoded in your source materials. The
HK 3480 offers the versatile VMAx mode, described
below, which enables you to hear a simulated surround
sound presentation. However, VMAx processing uses
different algorithms than conventional surround
decoders to derive the phantom center and surround
speakers, and the presentation will differ from what
you may hear when listening to equipment using other
surround processors. You will not be able to make any
digital audio connections through the HK 3480. The
HK 3480 is designed to provide video entertainment
in a small system application that includes devices
such as a TV, VCR or DVD player located in a bed-
room, office or spare room, or as part of a multiroom
system when used with a multiroom controller.
• During a listening session you may wish to adjust the
Bass Ó, Treble Ô and Balance Ò controls to
suit your listening tastes.
• Adjust the volume to a comfortable level using the
front-panel Volume Control Ú or remote Master
Volume Up/Down π buttons. The volume level is
displayed as a negative number of decibels (dB) in the
Main Information Display B. The volume level is
relative to a maximum volume level that has been
assigned the value of 0dB. It is important that you
make sure never to exceed this maximum volume
level (0dB) at any time, in order to avoid possible
damage to your loudspeakers due to "clipping", a type
of distortion that is not audible to the human ear until
it is severe enough to permanently damage most
loudspeakers. It is also possible, depending upon the
program material, for clipping to occur at volumes
below the maximum volume level.
• To temporarily silence all speaker outputs, press the
Mute Button ®4. This will cut the output to all
speakers, but it will not affect any recording or dub-
bing that may be in progress. When the system is
muted, the Mute Indicator K will flash in the
Information Display Û and MUTE will flash in
the Main Information Display B. Press the Mute
Button ®4 again to return to normal operation.
• For private listening, plug the 1/4" stereo phone plug
from a pair of stereo headphones into the front-panel
Headphone Jack 3.
• One or two separate sets of speakers may be
connected to the HK 3480. To listen to one of
the speaker sets, press the Speaker Selectors
57√∑ corresponding to the desired speakers.
The active speakers will be indicated by the Speaker
Indicators L. Both speakers may be turned off for
private headphone listening.
• To program the HK 3480 for automatic turnoff , press
the Sleep Button *©. Each press of the button
will increase the time before shutdown, displayed by
the Sleep Timer C, in the following sequence:
90 80 70 60
min min min min
40 30 20 10
min min min min
The sleep time will be displayed in the Information
Display Û and it will count down until the time
has elapsed.
When the programmed time has elapsed, the unit will
automatically turn off . The Information Display Û will
dim to one-half brightness when the Sleep function is
programmed. To cancel the Sleep function, press the
Sleep Button *© until the Sleep Timer C num-
bers disappear and the Information Display Û shows
the current source. Pressing any control button while the
Sleep control is activated will momentarily return the
Information Display Û to full brightness for increased
legibility without interrupting the Sleep function.
To take advantage of Harman Kardon's exclusive
VMAx mode, Press the VMAx Button ^†. When
the VMAx circuits are engaged, patented processing
algorithms are used to create a three-dimensional
sound space with the illusion of "phantom" speakers
at the center and surround positions. This spacious
sound will simulate a surround sound presentation with-
out the need to add additional speakers. To return to
standard stereo listening, press the VMAx Button
^† again and the VMAx Mode Indicator A will
go out.
Tuner Operation
The HK 3480's tuner is capable of tuning AM, FM and
FM Stereo broadcast stations. Stations may be tuned
manually, or they may be stored as favorite station
presets and recalled from a 30-position memory.
Station Selection
1. Press the FM/AM Selector &ç to select the
tuner as an input.
2. Press these buttons again at any time to switch
between AM and FM.
3. To select stations, press the Tuning Button 9√
to advance one frequency increment at a time, or press
and hold it, and the tuner will search for the next highest-
or lowest-frequency station that has an acceptable
50
min
OFF