APX480M manual.qxd 3/12/2004 1:07 PM Page 1
APX480M Power System Amplifier
INTRODUCTION
The Clarion APX480M is a full-featured four-channel amplifier incorporating
the following features:
• Specially coated circuit boards, that resist mold, mildew and moisture
damage.
•
Pulse-Width Modulated (PWM) MOSFET power supply for maximum
performance with minimal distortion.
•
Remote turn-on with "soft start" muting to prevent turn-on "thump".
•
Advanced circuitry design featuring bridgeable and mixed mode operation
for use in various system configurations including 4, 3, or 2 channel
systems.
• Variable high-pass/low-pass electronic crossover with a 12dB per octave
slope (adjustable range: 55Hz to 5.5kHz).
•
Variable bass boost circuit to reinforce low frequency signals that may be
lost due to subwoofer enclosure design.
• Adjustable input level controls with ground loop isolation to minimize noise
and distortion.
• 2-ohm stereo stable, 4-ohm mono stable.
• Gold-plated power, speaker, and RCA connectors.
• Speaker level input.
• Low profile construction with aluminum heat sink for efficient heat
dissipation.
ABOUT THE MANUAL
AND WARRANTY
This manual describes the basic requirements to install the Clarion
APX480M amplifier. The installation of this amplifier can be quite complex to
install, if you do not posses the necessary knowledge and tools to perform
this installation, please contact your local Clarion dealer.
Keep all instructions and sales receipt for future reference and warranty
information. Warranty information can be found on page 11 of this manual.
T
ABLE OF CONTENTS
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Input Connections and Audio Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Connections for Power and Speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Mounting Precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Wiring Precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Wiring and Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Setting the Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Setting the Crossover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Setting the Bass Boost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Final System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Product Specs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Clarion Limited Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
APX480M manual.qxd 3/12/2004 1:07 PM Page 2
Operation/Installation Manual
1
Owner’s Manual
DESCRIPTION
The APX480M uses an unregulated MOSFET power supply for superior
sound and output wattage. In addition, a toroid-coil is used to transfer
power with minimal performance loss due to heat. To avoid unwanted
noise, a double-sided conformal printed circuit board with strategically
placed components keeps AM RFI subdued.
All of the connections and controls for the APX480M are conveniently
located at the ends of the amplifier and labeled appropriately. To ensure
the best possible electrical connections, the power, speaker, and RCA
inputs are gold-plated. An additional benefit of this amplifier is the ability to
create a 2, 3, or 4 channel amplified system with a flip of a switch (see
Application section). In the event of component failure or a short circuit, the
APX480M incorporates safe guards and an outboard ATC fuse to prevent
damage to the amplifier
INPUT CONNECTIONS
AND AUDIO CONTROLs
The front panel of the APX480M contains both connections for RCA and
speaker level inputs, along with the audio controls as shown below.
1. Front RCA Input Jacks
2. Rear RCA Input Jacks
3. Front Gain Control
4. Rear Gain Control
5. Bass Boost Control
6. Rear Channel Input Selector
7. Front Mode Switch
8. Rear Mode Switch
9. Speaker Level Inputs
10. Front Frequency Control
11. Front X-Over Mode Switch
12. Rear Frequency Control
13. Rear Multiplier Switch
14. Rear X-Over Mode Switch
Figure 1-
APX480M manual.qxd 3/12/2004 1:07 PM Page 3
APX480M Power System Amplifier
2
The Input Connections are gold-plated RCA Jacks and are labeled as FRONT
RIGHT, FRONT LEFT, REAR RIGHT and REAR LEFT. The Gain Controls
provide a wide adjustment range to accommodate output levels from any
brand of source unit.
• Gain Controls - Seperate Front and Rear Gain Controls allow you to set the
nominal operating level of the amplifier. The amplifier’s range, 250mV to 2.5V
for RCA inputs or 500mV to 5V for speaker level inputs, can accommodate
input levels from virtually any brand of source unit.
• Bass Boost Control - The amplifier also features a “high-Q” (i.e. narrow
frequency band) Bass Boost circuit. It acts much like an equalizer, with
adjustable gain (from 0 to +18dB) fixed at 45Hz. Use this feature to tune lowfrequency audio response to compensate for a less than ideal subwoofer
enclosure design. The added boost produces rich, full bass tones that are
normally difficult to reproduce in the car audio environment. NOTE: If Bass
Boost is undesired, set Bass Boost to 0dB.
High-pass/Low-pass Filter Controls
• Freq (Hz) Controls - The front crossover frequency is fully adjustable
between 55Hz and 550Hz. The rear crossover frequency is fully adjustable
between 55Hz and 5500Hz (via the Rear Crossover Frequency Multiplier) for
a wider range of crossover points. Use this feature, along with your speaker
manufacturer’s recommended crossover frequencies, to quickly design a
more advanced system (see Applications on page 6). NOTE: If either of the
X-Over Mode Switches is set to OFF, varying the Freq (Hz) Control will produce no effect.
• Rear X-Over Frequency Multiplier Switch - When engaged, this switch
increases the crossover frequency of the rear channels by a factor of 10.
Example: If the Freq (Hz) dial is set for 240Hz, pushing in the Multiplier
Switch changes the setting to 2400Hz.
• X-Over Mode Switches - These switches are equipped with 12dB per
octave electronic filters for precise frequency attenuation with minimal phase
distortion. The steep crossover slopes keep midrange tones out of the subwoofer and thereby eliminating an unnatural “nasal” tone quality in the audio
system. Each filter is activated by sliding the X-Over Mode Switch to either LP
or HP.
• Input Mode Switches - These switches allow you to set the input mode for
front and rear channels. Stereo input allows full left and right stereo operation.
Right (bridged) input allows a single channel input for bridged operation. This
is especially useful in high powered systems when using the APX480M as a
bridged 2-channel amplifier. L + R (sum mono) allows a stereo input to be
summed into a mono output.
• Rear Channel Input Select - This switch allows you to use a 2 channel
input to drive all 4 channels of this amplifier.
APX480M manual.qxd 3/12/2004 1:07 PM Page 4
Operation/Installation Manual
3
• Speaker Level Inputs - These provide connections for a high-level stereo
source. In addition, these connections are provided for installations when the
source unit’s RCA outputs are unavailable.
WARNING: When using the speaker (high-level) inputs, the Black wire must
be grounded at the Radio. Failure to do this will result in noise and improper
operation.
CONNECTIONS FOR POWER
AND SPEAKERS
The rear panel of the APX480M contains power and speaker connections as
shown below.
1. Left Front Speaker Output
2. Right Front Speaker Output
3. Remote Turn-on Input
4. Ground Input
5. Battery + 12v Input
6. 40 Amp Fuse
7. Left Rear Speaker Output
8. Right Rear Speaker Output
Figure 2
Figure 3 - Electrical connections
APX480M manual.qxd 3/12/2004 1:07 PM Page 5
Loading...