American Audio 4295 User Manual

Revised 4/05

™

Q-D5

Professional Preamp Mixer

American Audio

Los Angeles Ca. 90058

www.AmericanAudio.us

4295 Charter Street

Q-D5™ Unpacking

Every Q-D5™ has been thoroughly tested and has been shipped in perfect operating condition. Care­fully check the shipping carton for damage that may have occurred during shipping. If the carton
appears to be damaged, carefully inspect your mixer for any damage and be sure all equipment nec­essary to operate the mixer has arrived intact. In case damage has been found or parts are missing,
please contact our toll free customer support number for further instructions, please do not return the
mixer to your dealer.

Q-D5™ Introduction

Introduction:

Congratulations and thank you for purchasing the American Audio® Q-D5™ mixer. This mixer is a rep­resentation of American Audio’s continuing commitment to produce the best and highest quality audio
products possible at an affordable price. The Q-D5™ comes with a 2 year limited warranty! Please
read and understand this manual completely before attempting to operate your new mixer. This book­let contains important information concerning the proper and safe operation of your new mixer.

Customer Support:
American Audio® provides a toll free customer support line, to provide set up help and to answer any
question should you encounter problems during your initial set up or operation. You may also visit us
on the web at www.AmericanAudio.us for any comments or suggestions. Service Hours are Monday
through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
Voice: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
To purchase parts online visit http://parts.americandj.com

Caution! There are no user serviceable parts inside this mixer. Do not attempt any repairs yourself,
doing so will void your manufactures warranty. In the unlikely event your mixer may require service,
please contact American Audio® customer support.

Do not discard the packing carton in the trash. Please recycle when ever possible.

Q-D5™ Set-Up Precautions

Please make any connections before you plug the mixer in. Be sure the Power switch is in the OFF
position before connecting other devices to the mixer. All fader and volume controls should be set to
0 or minimum position, before the device is switched on. If the device has been exposed to drastic
temperature fluctuation (e.g. after transportation), do not switch on the mixer immediately. The arising
condensation of water might damage your device. Leave the device switched off until it has reached
room temperature.

Operating Determinations:

• When installing this mixer, please make sure that the device is not exposed to extreme heat,
moisture or dust!

• There should not be any cables lying around. Doing so endangers you as well as others.

• Do not operate the mixer in extremely hot (more than 30° / 100°F) or extremely cold (less than
5°C/ 40°F) surroundings.

• Keep the unit out of direct sunlight and away from heaters.

• Operate the mixer only after becoming familiar with its functions. Do not permit operation by
persons not qualified for operating the mixer. Most damages are the result of unprofessional
operation!

©American Audio® - www.AmericanAudio.us - Q-D5™ Instruction Manual Page 2

Q-D5™ Safety Precautions

• For adult use only - Keep out of the reach of children.

• Be sure that the local power outlet match that of the required voltage of the unit.

• Disconnect from main power before making any type of connection.

• Do not attempt any service. There are no user serviceable parts inside.

• Never plug this mixer in to a dimmer pack

• Always be sure to mount this mixer in an area that will allow proper ventilation.

• Do not attempt to operate this mixer, if it becomes damaged in any way.

• Never operate this mixer when it’s covers are removed

• To reduce the risk of electrical shock or fire, do not expose this mixer rain or moisture

• This mixer is intended for indoor use only, use of this product outdoors voids all warranties.

• During long periods of non-use, disconnect the mixer’s main power.

• Always mount this mixer in safe and stable matter.

• Power Cord Protection - Power supply cords should be routed so that they are not likely to be
walked on or pinched by items placed upon or against them, paying particular attention to cords
at plugs, convenience receptacles, and the point where they exit from the mixer.

• Cleaning -The mixer should be cleaned only as recommended by the manufacturer.

• Heat -The mixer should be situated away from heat sources such as radiators, heat registers,
stoves, or other mixers (including amplifiers) that produce heat.

• Be sure to save the packing carton in case you may ever have to return the mixer for service.

• Read all documentation before attempting to operate your new mixer. Please save all your docu­ mentation for future reference.

• Do not spill water or other liquids in to or on to your mixer.

• Do not attempt to operate this mixer if the power cord has been frayed or broken. Please route
your power cord out of the way of foot traffic .

• Always have the front gain controls set to their lowest level during initial power-up to prevent
speaker damage.

• The mixer should be serviced by qualified service personnel when:
A. Objects have fallen, or liquid has been spilled into the mixer.
B. The mixer has been exposed to rain or water.
C. The mixer does not appear to operate normally or exhibits a marked change in
performance.

Q-D5™ Main Features

• Optical Fader for Q-Start Control

• Adjustable Crossfader Curve - for crabbing

• Selectable Voltage 115v~230v

• 2 Phono/2 Aux, 2 Line Inputs

• Fader “Q” Start

• Q-Start Compatible (for use with compatible
American Audio CD Players )

• -30dB Rotary Kills for Treble, Bass and
Mids on both channels

• 100% Push Button Kills

• High output to headphones

• Replacable/Adjustable Transformer Switches

• Adjustable Channel Fader Curve

©American Audio® - www.AmericanAudio.us - Q-D5™ Instruction Manual Page 3

• Soft-touch rubber knobs for better control

• Extremely clean signal to noise ratio

• Light Control Signal Output Jack

• Talk Over Button - Reduces channel output
gain by 15dB +/- 2 dB

• Dual Function Stereo LED Level Indicator ­ Indicated Master and PFL (Pre Fader Level)
Signal Levels

• Split Cue Monitoring

• Cue Mixing

• Separate gain control for each channel

• Hot Swap Crossfader

• Separate Mic EQ Section

Q-D5™ Quick start instructions

DJ SKILZ

SIGNATURE SERIES

American Audio would like to thank for your purchase of
this great product. For those of you that are to impatient
to read the entire user manual we have compiled these
quick start instructions. We hope that you will at least read
through these instructions to familiarize yourself with the
basic understanding of the unit. The Q-D5 is part of Ameri­can Audio’s continuing evolution in audio technology. This
unit has been built and designed with the typical DJ in
mind, by DJ’s. We have attempted to provide you with the
most reliable product on the market by using only compo­nents made from quality products.

MASTER LEVEL - Use this level control to set your volume
output. Try never to send an output of more than +4dB to
your system. Signal at levels higher than this will start to
distort and may cause damage to your system and speak­ers. Remember that a distorted signal from you mixer will
only be multiplied throughout your system.

CHANNEL GAIN LEVEL - The channel trim levels are not
to be used as volume controls, never use the channel gain
to set the output volume. These controls are used to aid in distortion control. Use these control to
preset your signal level before the crossfader. With your channel faders in the maximum position, use
the channel trim level to set an average output level of about +4dB on you master level meter.

HEADPHONES - To avoid sever hearing damage, always be sure the headphone level is set to mini­mum before plugging them in. Never put the headphone on without making sure the headphone level
is turned down.

MIC - The mic connector uses a 1/4” jack unbalanced connector. The DJ mic has an independent
volume control. When feedback occurs when using the mic, try lowering the “low” level this may
reduce the feedback. Always leave the mic level to it’s minimum level when not in use.

PHONO/AUX SWITCH (27) - This switch is used to change the selected input from phono level to
line level and vice versa. Channels 1 and 2 may be switched PHONO/AUX or LINE. The selectors for
AUX1/PHONO1 and AUX2/PHONO2 are on the rear panel.

Q-START FEATURE - This function works in conjunction with a compatible American Audio or Ameri­can DJ “Q”Start CD player. When used with a compatible CD player, you can use the crossfader to
start and stop the CD Player with the slide of the fader. The ON/OFF “Q ”START switch activates this
FADER “Q ”START feature.

CROSSFADER CURVE ADJUSTMENT- This rotary knob is used to change the way the crossfader
will operate. The crossfader can operate in three different modes, NORMAL CURVE, QUICK CURVE
and any variation of the two. (Quick Curve usually used for crabbing).

CHANNEL FADER CURVE ADJUSTMENT - This rotary knob is used to change the way the channel
fader will operate. Each channel has a Curve adjustment. The curve on the faders adjust from long or
short or any variation of the two.

REVERSE FUNCTION - Both the crossfader and the channel faders will reverse function when the
reverse switch is activated.

©American Audio® - www.AmericanAudio.us - Q-D5™ Instruction Manual Page 4

Q-D5™ Controls and Features

DJ SKILZ

SIGNATURE SERIES

Top Panel

6b

6a

5

4

3

987

10

11

12

13

14

15

2

1

16

1. OPTICAL CROSSFADER - This fader is used to blend the output signals of channels one and two
together. When the fader is in the full left position (channel 1), the output signal of channel one will be
controlled by the master volume level. The same fundamentals will apply for channel two. Sliding the
fader from one position to another will vary the output signals of channels one and two respectively.
When the crossfader is set in the center position, the output signals of both the channels one and
channels two will be even.

2. CHANNEL FADER - These faders are used to control the output signal of any source assigned to
its particular channel.

3. CHANNEL TRANSFORMER SWITCH (REPLACEABLE AND ADJUSTABLE) - These switches
are used to select the input source assigned to each channel. Each channel may only be assigned one
input source at a time. The TRANSFORMER SWITCH may be used in an up/down or left/right pattern.
To adjust the transformer orientation please follow the instructions on page 13.

4. PFL BUTTONS - These buttons are used to activate a channels “CUE” mode. A red LED next
to the PFL button will glow when a channels cue mode is activated. Cue mode will send a channels

©American Audio® - www.AmericanAudio.us - Q-D5™ Instruction Manual Page 5