Harman Kardon AVR 340 Service Manual Download

Page: 16 / 186

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 340.

3. Connect the output of any digital sources such as

a CD or DVD changer or player, advanced video
game, a digital satellite receiver, HDTV tuner or
digital cable set-top box or the output of a com-
patible computer sound card to the

Optical

and

Coaxial Digital Audio Inputs

fif

. We

recommend connecting the coaxial digital audio
output of your DVD player to the

Coax 1 Digital

Audio Input

, 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

. 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 broad-
cast by your cable or satellite provider).

NOTE:

If you wish for your digital source device to

be available for use by the multiroom system, you will
need to connect its analog audio outputs to the appro-
priate inputs on the AVR 340, as the multiroom sys-
tem is not capable of distributing digital signals to the
remote zone.

4. Connect the

Coaxial

Optical Digital Audio

Outputs

on the rear panel of the AVR 340 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

6. Connect the supplied FM antenna to the

(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 sys-
tem. If the antenna or connection uses 300-ohm
twin-lead cable, you must use an optional 300-
ohm-to-75-ohm adaptor to make the connection.

7. With the AVR 340 turned off, connect the optional

Harman Kardon

Digital Media

Player (DMP) Connector

. Your compatible

iPod may be docked in

when you wish to

use it as an audio source device. Video materials
stored on the iPod may not be viewed through
The Bridge.

8. Connect the front, center, surround and surround

back speaker outputs

⁄¤‹›

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 8. 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 speaker, 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
front-left and front-right or surround-left and sur-
round-right speakers, even if the speakers are a
different distance from the AVR 340.

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 amplifier, which will be connected to one
or more subwoofers. If you are using a powered
subwoofer that does not have line-level input con-
nections, follow the instructions furnished with the
speaker for connection 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

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

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

on the AVR 340.