Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 Safety Information Unpacking 5 Front Panel Controls 7 Front Panel Information Display 8 Rear Panel Connections 9 Remote Control Functions 11 Installation and Connections Audio Equipment Connections Video Equipment Connections SCART A/V Connections Speaker Selection and Placement 14 System Configuration First Turn On Settings to be Made...
Introduction Thank you for choosing Harman Kardon! With the purchase of a Harman Kardon AVR 1550 you are about to begin many years of listening enjoyment. The AVR 1550 has been custom designed to provide all the excitement and detail of movie sound tracks and every nuance of musical selections.
Safety Information Important Safety Information Verify Line Voltage Before Use Your AVR 1550 has been designed for use with 220-240-Volt AC current. Connection to a line voltage other than that for which it is intended can create a safety and fire hazard and may damage the unit.
Front Panel Controls Main Power Switch System Power Control Power Indicator Headphone Jack Remote Sensor Window Tone Mode Surround Mode Selector Tuning Main Power Switch: Press this button to apply power to the AVR 1550. When the switch is pressed in, the unit is placed in a Standby mode, as indicated by the orange LED sur- rounding the System Power Control...
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Front Panel Controls Surround Mode Selector: Press this but- ton to change the surround mode by scrolling through the list of available modes. Note that Dolby Digital and DTS modes can be selected only when a digital input is used (See page 20 for more information about surround modes.) Tuning Selector: Press the left side of the button to tune lower frequency stations and the...
Front Panel Information Display Bitstream Indicators Optical Source Indicators DTS Mode Indicator Dolby Digital Indicator Coaxial Digital Input Indicators Dolby Pro Logic II Indicator Analog Input Indicator Bitstream™ Indicators: When the input is a digital source, one of these indicators will light to display the specific type of signal in use.
Rear Panel Connections ª ‚ ¡ fl ⁄ ™ Tape Inputs Tape Outputs Video 1 Audio Inputs AM Antenna Video 1 Audio Outputs Video 2 Audio Inputs FM Antenna Tape Inputs: Connect these jacks to the PLAY/OUT jacks of an audio recorder. Tape Outputs: Connect these jacks to the RECORD/INPUT jacks of an audio recorder.
Remote Control Functions Power On Button IR Transmitter Window Mute Power Off Button Input Selectors AVR Selector AM/FM Tuner Select Test Button Sleep Button Surround Mode Selector Night Mode Channel Select Button Buttons Button Enter Button Digital Select/Direct Button Numeric Keys Tuner Mode Volume Up/Down Tuning Up/Down...
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Remote Control Functions again to operate the AVR’s functions with the remote. AVR Selector: Pressing this button will switch the remote so that it will operate the AVR’s functions. If the AVR is in the Standby mode, it will also turn the AVR on. AM/FM Tuner Select: Press this button to select the AVR’s tuner as the listening choice.
Installation and Connections After unpacking the unit, and placing it on a solid surface capable of supporting its weight, you will need to make the connections to your audio and video equipment. Audio Equipment Connections We recommend that you use high-quality inter- connect cables when making connections to source equipment and recorders to preserve the integrity of the signals.
Installation and Connections SCART A/V Connections For the connections described above your video device needs RCA (cinch) connectors or/and S-Video connectors for all Audio and Video signals: Any normal video device (Not SVHS or High 8) for only playback needs 3 RCA jacks, VCRs for record and playback even 6 RCA jacks.
Installation and Connections Speaker Selection No matter which type or brand of speakers is used, the same model or brand of speaker should be used at least for the front-left, center and front-right speakers. This creates a seamless front soundstage and eliminates the possibility of distracting sonic disturbances that occur when a sound moves across mismatched front-channel speakers.
System Configuration Once the speakers have been placed in the room and connected, the remaining steps are to program the system configuration memories. With the AVR 1550 two kind of memories are used, those associated individually with the input selected, e.g. surround modes, and others working independently from any input selected like speaker output levels, or delay times used by the surround sound processor.
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System Configuration With the AVR 1550 turned on, follow these steps to configure the speakers: 1. Put the AVR 1550 in the Dolby Pro Logic II Movie mode by pressing the Surround Mode Selector button on the front or then the buttons on the remote, until DOLBY PRO LOGIC I I MOVIE...
System Configuration To assist in making these settings, the icons in the Speaker/Channel Input Indicators will change as the speaker type is selected at each position. When only the inner icon box is lit, the speaker is set for “small. ” When the inner box and the two outer boxes with circles inside them are lit, the speaker is set for “large."...
System Configuration the optimal delay time is figured as (3–1) x 3+15=21. Thus, in this example, the Pro Logic II delay should be set at twenty milliseconds. NOTE: The DTS, 5CH Stereo, Hall and Theater modes use a fixed, nonadjustable delay time. The Dolby Digital Mode also includes a separate setting for the center channel delay mode, since the discrete nature of these signals makes the...
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System Configuration 3. The test noise will immediately begin to circu- late in the speakers in a clockwise rotation, pausing at each position for two seconds. As the test noise rotates the speaker positions FL, CEN, FR, SR, SL (Front Left, Center, Front Right, Surround Right, Surround Left) will be shown in the Main Information Display As an added assist, while the test noise is circu-...
Operation Basic Operation Once you have completed the setup and configu- ration of the AVR 1550, it is simple to operate and enjoy. The following instructions should be followed for you to maximize your enjoyment of your new receiver: Turning the AVR 1550 On or Off •...
Operation Surround Mode Chart MODE FEATURES DOLBY DIGITAL Available only with digital input sources encoded with Dolby Digital data. It provides up to five separate main audio channels and a special dedicated Low Frequency Effects channel. Available only with digital input sources encoded with DTS data. Available on special DVD, LD and audio-only discs, DTS provides up to five separate main audio channels and a special dedicated low frequency channel.
Operation Surround Mode Selection One of the most important features of the AVR 1550 is its ability to reproduce a full multichannel surround sound field from digital sources, analog matrix surround encoded programs and standard stereo or even mono programs. In all, a total of eleven listening modes are available on the AVR 1550.
Operation PCM Audio Playback PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) is the non- com- pressed digital audio system used for compact discs, Non-Dolby Digital/DTS Laserdiscs and some special PCM encoded DVDs. The digital cir- cuits in the AVR 1550 are capable of high quality digital-to-analog decoding, and they may be con- nected directly to the digital audio output of your CD/DVD or LD player (LD only for PCM or DTS...
Operation IMPORTANT NOTES ON DIGITAL PLAYBACK: 1. When the digital playback source is stopped, or in a pause, fast forward or chapter search mode, the digital audio data will momentarily stop, and the channel position letters inside the Speaker/Channel Indicators will flash.
Operation Tuner Operation The AVR 1550’s tuner is capable of tuning AM, FM and FM Stereo broadcast stations and receiving RDS data. Stations may be tuned manually, or they may be stored as favorite station presets and recalled from a 30 position memory.
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Operation Program Search (PTY) An important feature of RDS is its capability of encoding broadcasts with Program Type (PTY) codes that indicate the type of material being broadcast. The following list shows the abbrevia- tions used to indicate each PTY, along with an explanation of the PTY: •...
Function List AVR 1550 26 FUNCTION LIST Button Name AVR Function Power On Power On Power Off Power Off AVR Select DVD Select CD Input Select TAPE Tape Input Select VID 1 Video 1 Select VID 2 Video 2 Select VID 3 Video 3 Select TV Input Select...
Troubleshooting Guide SYMPTOM CAUSE Unit does not function when • No AC Power Main Power Switch is pushed Display lights, but no sound • Intermittent input connections or picture • Mute is on • Volume control is down Sound is heard, but Front-Panel •...
Technical Specifications Audio Section Stereo Mode Continuous Average Power (FTC) 50 Watts per channel, 20Hz–20kHz, @ < 0.07% THD, both channels driven into 8 ohms Five-Channel Surround Modes Power Per Individual Channel Front L&R channels: 40 Watts per channel, @ < 0.07% THD, 20Hz–20kHz into 8 ohms Center channel: 40 Watts, @ <...
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