Mark Levinson N383, Owner'S Manual

Page 1: ...N 383 Integrated Amplifier Owner s Manual MADRIGAL AUDIO LABORATORIES R...

Page 2: ...5 of the FCC Rules These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation This equipment generates uses and can radiate radio frequency e...

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Page 4: ...Audio Laboratories thank you for choosing the Mark Levinson N 383 Integrated Amplifier A great deal of effort went into the design and construction of this precision device Used properly it will give...

Page 5: ...m up break in period 13 A Quick Start 14 Front Panel 15 sleep timer 18 Rear Panel 19 a note about the inputs and outputs 19 tip polarity for external IR input 21 building a link cable 22 Remote Contro...

Page 6: ...come after the preamp 40 the SSP must not come before the preamp 40 the SSP must not be in a tape loop 41 the SSP the N 383 41 noise in a v systems 41 Linked Functions 43 display intensity 43 standby...

Page 7: ...ly put our name on a product that many would not consider a real Levinson Thus the challenge was clear we needed to create an integrated ampli fier that would do justice to Mark Levinson s reputation...

Page 8: ...nced analog signals Local supply regulation and passive bypass components are used to assure optimum results As with so many of the individual component parts used in Mark Levinson products selections...

Page 9: ...e is 1V If the problem exceeds the servo s range the amplifier will be switched off the remote control user experience A newly designed remote offers complete control in a small and elegant package Ex...

Page 10: ...care and craftsmanship with which they are assembled and the exhaustive inspection and testing we employ help raise the value of Mark Levinson products The N 383 is built to the same high constructio...

Page 11: ...d the screws If at some point you notice that your remote control seems not to be performing as well as it once did its batteries are probably running low Check the batteries periodically and replace...

Page 12: ...pecial installations and custom cabinetry see Dimensions Caution It is extremely important that all components in your system be properly grounded Do not defeat a three prong AC cords with ground lift...

Page 13: ...pere AC mains line If other devices are also powered from the same AC line their additional power consumption should be taken into account Warm up break in period Although your Mark Levinson N 383 Int...

Page 14: ...connect the balanced outputs of your CD player to the Left and Right Input 1 XLR jacks on the rear panel of your N 383 High quality interconnecting cables such as Madrigal CZ Gel will yield superior...

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Page 16: ...section has shut down due to the presence of DC offset at the input or the output For more detailed information on the preamplifier s use of this display please refer to the following section on the u...

Page 17: ...items and make adjustments respectively For more information on this customization please see Customizing Your N 383 8 Enter Button Used in conjunction with the setup button the enter button allows yo...

Page 18: ...the N 383 is in standby indicating that power is still being provided to the unit sleep timer The standby button includes a special function that allows you to use the N 383 as the heart of one of the...

Page 19: ...design mini mizes any possible confusion when changing connections once the unit is installed while also maximizing channel separation in this dual monaural design 1 Speaker Binding Posts The Mark Lev...

Page 20: ...l achieve tight high contact pressure connections with only modest finger tightening and without having to resort to special tools DO NOT FORCE the wings up and over a bent or oversized connector as t...

Page 21: ...ree The N 383 can produce and send from its trigger output either a 5V pulse such as a momentary contact switch might make or a 12V level signal where the presence of 12V forces the unit out of standb...

Page 22: ...eded slave out last transport comm N 383 The RJ 45 cable needed for the Link connection between source components and the preamplifier may be purchased from your Mark Levinson dealer It may also be ma...

Page 23: ...in assignments of their output connec tors correspond to the N 383 If not wire the cables so that the appropriate output pin connects to the equivalent input pin To achieve the best possible results w...

Page 24: ...e wall When power is first applied to the N 383 it will run through an automatic initialization sequence which displays a software identi fication code and then enter standby For optimal sonic perform...

Page 25: ...the N 383 when using the remote For the best results the remote should be within 45 of a line that is perpendicular to the faceplate of the N 383 At more severe angles nearly parallel with the facepla...

Page 26: ...of the N 383 The select buttons are also used when accessing the setup menu system in the N 383 For more information on what you can do with these menus please see Customizing Your N 383 later in the...

Page 27: ...plicates the function of the balance button on the front panel of the N 383 Controller allowing you to then fine tune the rela tive balance of the Left and Right channels from your listening po sition...

Page 28: ...sing enter on either the front panel or the remote control You can avoid saving an unwanted change by leav ing the menu without pressing enter by pressing setup in stead Within the menu system setup a...

Page 29: ...d the preamplifier s gain structure Offset automatic volume adjustments implemented whenever switching to this particular input used to ensure that all sources play back at the same volume even when t...

Page 30: ...changed the item you can then save the change by pressing enter again choose the name you want from the list using the volume knob or use the volume buttons on the remote If this seems a little compl...

Page 31: ...see the section entitled Us ing Surround Sound Processors later in this manual for more detail In brief when the N 383 accesses an input named SSP it defeats the nor mal function of the volume control...

Page 32: ...emote You will hear the changes of 6 decibels per step Save the change by pressing enter For more detailed information on how to navigate to this item see the point by point description under chang in...

Page 33: ...sive teach IR section which has its own major section in this manual immedi ately following this one Please see that section for additional details For now it is enough to know that the N 383 can teac...

Page 34: ...contact switch This menu item allows you to choose which of these two options you want given the needs of your particular system If you are not sure what the receiving component needs for a trigger s...

Page 35: ...e select knob until Teach IR is displayed 3 press enter once to toggle into the edit mode where you can choose which teach ir command you want 4 move the volume knob to select the command you want to...

Page 36: ...Y POLARITY KEY STANDBY KEY ENTER KEY SETUP KEY BALANCE KEY RECORD KEY EXIT STANDBY GO STANDBY GO INPUT 1 GO INPUT 2 GO INPUT 3 GO INPUT 4 GO INPUT 5 GO MUTE GO UNMUTE GO BALANCE EXIT BALANCE DISPLAY O...

Page 37: ...se again This design helps avoid accidental bumps of the preamplifier s volume knob sending potentially dangerous signal levels to your loudspeakers Lastly the corresponding buttons on the remote cont...

Page 38: ...mmon and degrade imaging accuracy To correct this problem play a mono recording or use a Y adapter to send the same signal to both the left and right connectors of the active input Center the resultin...

Page 39: ...it from the ac mains or use the front panel power button standby will not do Wait for a few seconds for the power supply to drain 2 Restore power while holding the setup button This process takes a f...

Page 40: ...P must not come after the preamp Dolby Pro Logic decoders incorporate a form of Dolby noise reduction similar to the Dolby B one finds in cassette decks This form of noise reduction is level sensitive...

Page 41: ...efeated and the preamplifier operates in a unity gain mode pass ing whatever signal enters that input through the preamplifier section of the N 383 without changing its volume in any way In fact the d...

Page 42: ...CR and television as shown below Ground Isolation Adaptor place in line with your cable feed prior to the system connection 75 300 300 75 The assembly shown above may cause some loss of video signal s...

Page 43: ...the N 383 into standby will also place the compatible Mark Levinson digital processor and transport s into standby except dur ing a digital recording session see record link section below Placing eit...

Page 44: ...acing the N 383 into standby while your Mark Levinson digital au dio processor is in record mode and a Mark Levinson transport is in Record Link mode will cause a warning to be displayed on the digita...

Page 45: ...isopropyl alcohol and a soft cloth Apply the alcohol to the cloth first and then lightly clean the surface of the N 383 going with the grain of the brushed aluminum Warning At no time should liquid cl...

Page 46: ...luation Return authorization must first be obtained by either calling or writing the factory prior to shipping the component The factory will pay for return shipping charges only in the event that the...

Page 47: ...aler and the Madrigal Technical Services Department lo cate and repair the difficulty as quickly as possible A copy of the original bill of sale will serve to verify warranty status Please include it...

Page 48: ...3 5mm mini jack for DC trigger out one Mark Levinson Link communications connector one 6 pin RJ 11 RS 232 port two 8 pin RJ 45 control ports PHASTLink compatible Gain 0 6 12 or 18 dB in the line stage...

Page 49: ...p enter balance mute standby volume polarity select MADRIGAL AUDIO LABORATORIES CD 47 3 CD 47 3 MARK LEVINSON N 383 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER RS 232 PHASTLink compatible comm trigger input ir input trigger...

Page 50: ...A is a registered trademark of Madrigal Audio Laboratories Inc a Harman International company MADRIGAL AUDIO LABORATORIES R Madrigal Audio Laboratories Inc 2081 South Main Street P O Box 781 Middleto...