8
SPEAKER CONNECTIONS
Speaker Connections
Speaker-Level Connection Guide
IMPORTANT NOTE:
Before making speaker
connections, be certain that your receiver or
audio power amplifier is turned off and prefer-
ably unplugged from its AC power source.
The SUB-TS subwoofer should not be connected
to an AC power source until all speaker wire
connections have been made.
Speakers and electronics terminals have
corresponding (+) and (–) terminals. Most man-
ufacturers of speakers and electronics, including
Harman Kardon, use red to denote the (+)
terminal and black for the (–) terminal.
Newer Harman Kardon receivers conform to the
CEA standard and therefore use a color other
than red or black for the (+) terminal to indicate
some speaker positions: e.g., surround left.
Although the HKTS system has red and black
collars on the individual speaker terminals to
denote the positive and negative connections,
your system includes a colored band on the
positive lead at both ends of every speaker cable
and a matching colored sticker for each of the
five satellite speakers, conforming to the key on
page 6. The center speaker has a green (+)
terminal, and the subwoofer has a purple SUB
input jack. This system is intended to help you
ensure that the speaker in each location is
connected to the correct terminals on your
receiver or amplifier.
The (+) lead of the speaker wire is indicated
with a stripe and has the colored band
corresponding to the speaker’s position. It is
important to connect all speakers identically: (+)
on the speaker to (+) on the amplifier and (–) on
the speaker to (–) on the amplifier. Wiring “out
of phase” results in thin sound, weak bass and a
poor stereo image.
With the advent of multichannel surround-sound
systems, connecting all of the speakers in your
system with the correct polarity remains equally
important in order to preserve the proper
ambience and directionality of the program
material.
To connect the supplied speaker wires to the
satellite and center speaker terminals located on
the bottom of each speaker, press the red or
black tab, insert the bare end of the wire into
the hole, and release the tab. Gently tug on the
wire to make sure that it is fully inserted.
For the best performance, Harman Kardon
recommends that the subwoofer be connected
using either the
Line-Level Subwoofer (SUB)
Input
or the
Line-Level Full-Range
Inputs
. However, if the application requires
the use of the speaker-level connections for the
subwoofer, unscrew the binding-post collar until
the pass-through hole in the center post is
visible under the collar. Insert the bare end of
the wire through this hole; then screw the collar
down until the connection is tight. The hole in
the center of each collar is intended for use with
banana-type connectors.
