Classe Audio SACD-2 User Manual

OWNER’S MANUAL
Omega SACD2

CONTENTS

Safety Precautions 3

Thank You From Everyone At Classé 3

Classé Design Philosophy 3

Single Circuit Design 3
Listening: The Critical Design Element 3
Extended Real-World Lifespan 3
Our Pride in Manufacturing,
Your Pride in Ownership 3

Introduction 4

Congratulations 4
How to use this manual 4

Unpacking and Positioning 4

Contents 4
Installing batteries in the remote control 4
Positioning the Omega SACD2 Player 4

Connections 5

AC power 5
Digital outputs 5
Analog outputs 5
Infrared (IR) input and output 5

Controls and Operation 6

Turning on AC power 6
Standby mode 6
Front panel controls 6
STOP 6
PLAY 6
SKIP FORWARD/SKIP BACK 6
LOAD 6
SACD/CD 6
Front panel display 7
The remote control 7
Using the direct access keypad 7
SRC (Sample-Rate Converter) 7
Loading or unloading a disc 8
Playing a disc 8
Controlling the display 9
ON/OFF 9
TIME 9
Programming 9
SHUFFLE 9
REPEAT 9
A – B Repeat 9
Creating your own program 9
CHECK 9
CLEAR 9
Using the Omega SACD2 remote
control with other Classé products 10
VOLUME UP/DOWN 10
MUTE 10

Specifications 10

Main Unit Dimensions 10
Analog Output Voltage (Full scale) 10

CE Certification 10

Warranty and Service 11

2

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

WARNING: failure to comply with these
safety instructions can cause serious injury or
death, or cause your Classé Omega SACD2
Player to be severely damaged or destroyed.

Do not operate the Classé Omega SACD2
Player with any portion of the chassis
removed or open. Dangerous voltages and
laser radiation may be encountered.

Connecting this unit to AC voltages other
than that specified on the rear of the unit
may cause extensive damage and increase risk
of shock.

Check to make sure your local AC voltage
matches the voltage specified on the rear of
your Classé Omega SACD2 Player power
supply unit.

Do not operate this product near sources of
heat such as radiators, fireplaces, or heat
registers. Extreme heat may damage this unit.

To reduce the risk of electric shock or fire do
not expose this unit to water or moisture.

Use only the correct size fuse:
— 100-120 Volts

1.0 Amp, Slo-Blo

— 220-240 Volts

0.5 Amp, Slo-Blo

Do not open this unit. There are no user­serviceable parts inside. Please refer service to
an authorized service technician.

Unplug this unit when unused for long
periods or during lightning storms.

THANK YOU FROM
EVERYONE AT CLASSÉ

Thank you for purchasing the Classé OMEGA
SACD2.

We take great pride in offering components
that combine exceptional sonic performance
and long-term reliability. As with all Classé
components, your SACD2 benefits from the
investment we’ve made in extraordinary
design and manufacturing facilities. We trust
that you will enjoy your purchase for many
years to come.

CLASSÉ DESIGN PHILOSOPHY

All of our components benefit from the same
rigorous design goal: All Classé products
must reproduce music with the harmonic and
spatial integrity typical of fine instruments
heard in a live, unamplified performance.

Single Circuit Design

To this end, we make extensive use of
carefully optimized versions of the same basic
circuit precisely matched to specific power
requirements. This means that all Classé line
level components and power amplifiers
benefit from years of refinement. However,
our efforts do not stop here.

Listening: The Critical Design Element

Once we determine general circuit values for
a particular application, we listen carefully
while exchanging and mixing different parts
(transistors, capacitors, wiring, PC boards,
etc.) and adjusting specific operating voltages
within proper engineering ranges.

Extended Real-World Lifespan

Every Classé component, even the most
affordable, benefits from our painstaking
approach to design parameters. The result is
an optimum balance between the often­conflicting demands of exceptional perfor­mance and long-term reliability. Our most
expensive components gain from even tighter
tolerance parts and highly segmented and
exceptionally robust power supplies with
large reserve-current capabilities.

Our Pride in Manufacturing, Your Pride in
Ownership

We build all of our components to the
highest possible standards. From multi-layer
glass-epoxy circuit boards, the full sized
power-supplies, and the massive faceplates,
every Classé product is a tribute to both the
science and art of sound reproduction. We
hope that you derive as much pleasure and
satisfaction in using your Classé as we did in
producing it.

3

INTRODUCTION

UNPACKING AND POSITIONING

Congratulations

Congratulations on your new purchase. From
all of us at Classé, we hope you enjoy many
years of musical satisfaction from your new
Classé Omega SACD2 Player.

How to use this manual

The symbol to the right of the page indicates
a section of the manual that is of particular
importance for safety or to prevent damage
to your Omega SACD2 Player.

Please make note of all safety precautions
described in the previous section of this
manual.

It is highly recommended that you familiarize
yourself with all aspects of the operation of
your Omega SACD2 Player. However, if you
want to begin listening to your Omega
SACD2 Player immediately, skip to the section
titled Controls and Operation.

!

Unpack your Omega SACD2 Player carefully.
If you notice any shipping damage, contact
your dealer immediately. Saving the
packaging material is advised in case the unit
needs to be shipped for service.

Contents

Included in the shipping case should be the
following items:

1. Main unit

2. AC mains cord

3. Remote control and 2 AAA batteries

4. Warranty card

5. This manual

If any of these items is missing, contact your
dealer immediately.

Installing batteries in the remote control

To install the batteries in the remote control,
remove the screws that hold the battery cover
to the back of the remote. Install the two
AAA batteries as indicated on the plastic
battery holder inside and replace the cover.

Positioning the Omega SACD2 Player

For best performance, place your Omega
SACD2 Player on a solid, non-resonant
surface. Do not place the Omega SACD2
Player directly on top of another component.

4

CONNECTIONS

Pictured below is the rear of the Omega
SACD2 showing all input and output
connections.

AC power

Check that the AC voltage for which this unit
is configured matches your local AC line
voltage. The correct operating voltage is
indicated on the rear of the power supply
chassis, adjacent to the AC power inlet.
Operating this unit on AC voltage other than
that specified on the rear of the unit can
damage or destroy this unit and increase the
risk of electric shock.

Analog outputs

The Omega SACD2 Player has both balanced
(XLR) and single-ended (RCA) outputs. Both
types of outputs have been carefully
optimized to give best possible performance.
However, the most realistic and natural sonic
quality is obtained by connecting the
balanced outputs to a balanced input on your
preamplifier.

The balanced output is derived from a
balanced digital signal, which is converted to
analog using two DACs per channel followed
by differential output circuitry. The unbal­anced output is converted by a separate DAC
followed by dedicated single-ended circuitry.

Connect the AC power cord to the rear of
the power supply unit and directly to an AC
outlet. For best results, do not use extension
cords or multiple-outlet “power strips”. Also,
do not disable the ground pin as this can
increase the risk of electric shock.

Digital outputs

The Omega SACD2 Player is equipped with
two digital outputs: one AES/EBU (XLR
connector) and one SPDIF (RCA connector).
These can be connected to a digital recorder
or other digital audio component.

When playing a standard CD, the digital
output sample rate can be set to 44.1 kHz,
48kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz or 192 kHz by
pressing the sample rate button on the
remote control.

The digital outputs are disabled when playing
a Super Audio CD.

Both the balanced and single-ended outputs
can be used simultaneously.

Infrared (IR) input and output

The Omega SACD2 Player is equipped with 1/
8“ mini-plug connectors that allow the unit
to directly receive and transmit remote IR
commands. These connectors can be used
with equipment that receives IR commands
and converts them for transmission on copper
wire. This is especially useful for situations
where the Omega SACD2 Player is outside of
the line-of-sight of your listening location.
Contact your Classé dealer for information on
installing and using remote IR repeating
equipment.

Analog outputs

Digital outputs

IR input and output

AC mains

input

AES/EBU

A

A

N

N

A

A

L

L

O

O

G

G

O

O

U

U

T

T

P

P

U

U

T

T

S

S

L

L

E

E

F

F

T

T

R

R

I

I

G

G

H

H

T

T

D

I

G

I

T

OUT

A

IR

L

IN

O
U
T
P
U
T
S

SPDIF

WARNING

REPLACE FUSE WITH

SAME TYPE

AND RATING ONLY

ON

O

FF

5

CONTROLS AND OPERATION

This section describes all of the controls, front
panel display, and operation of the Omega
SACD2 Player.

Tu rning on AC power

The Omega SACD2 is turned on by means of
a power switch located on the rear of the
unit. Do not turn the AC power on until all
connections have been made.

Standby mode

If the Omega SACD2 Player is left idle for
more than five minutes, it will automatically
enter Standby mode. In this mode, the front
panel display and transport power supplies
are turned off, saving power. However, the
low-level analog power supplies remain on
for maximum sonic performance When the
Omega SACD2 Player is in Standby mode, a
single LED indicator on the front panel will
illuminate. The Omega SACD2 Player will
automatically return to regular operation
when any key on the front panel or remote
control is pressed.

Front panel controls

Below is an illustration of the Classé Omega
SACD2 front panel controls and a brief
description of each button.

STOP

Pressing STOP will cause the Omega SACD2
to stop playing.

PLAY

Pressing the PLAY key will begin playing. If
the drawer is open, PLAY will cause the
drawer to close.

SKIP FORWARD/SKIP BACK

Use these keys to select a track on a disc. You
can select a track while the Omega SACD2 is
reading a disc and searching for the Table of
Contents.

LOAD

This key opens and closes the disc-loading
door. Pressing PLAY will also cause the door
to close.

SACD/CD

This key allows the user to select which layer
of a multi-layer hybrid SACD disc is played.
Pressing this key toggles back and forth
between SACD and CD playback. The switch
setting is indicated by the front panel display.
Note that the SACD/CD key only works when
the unit is not playing. When using a single
layer disc – either SACD or standard CD – the
Omega SACD2 player automatically selects
the appropriate layer and the SACD/CD key is
disabled. In addition, the Omega SACD2
automatically defaults to the SACD layer
when playing a dual-layer hybrid SACD/CD
disc. Thus, the only time the SACD/CD key is
used is to select the CD layer on a dual-layer
SACD/CD recording.

HDCD

Emph

MUTE

TRACK INDEX

A -- B

Shuffle

CDSA

Repeat1 RepeatProgram

MIN SEC

6

44.1kHz

48kHz

88.2kHz

96kHz

192kHz

Front panel display

Below is an illustration of the Omega SACD2
front panel display and a description of each
indicator.

The remote control

The remote control provides access to all
functions available on the front panel. In
addition, several functions can only be
accessed from the remote control. For
instructions on how to use keys that are
duplicated on the front panel, see the
instructions in the previous section. For other
functions, see complete descriptions in the
relevant sections of this manual.

Using the direct access keypad

The ten-digit keypad on the remote control
can be used to directly access any track on
the disc. Press the digits of the track you wish
to access.

To access a track number greater than 9,
press the >10 key, and then enter the two
digit track number.

SRC (Sample-Rate Converter)

The Sample-rate converter will convert PCM
(Pulse Code Modulated) signals from a CD
playing to 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96
kHz or 192 kHz sample rate. The signal is
then processed by a 4-times over-sampling
filter before it is fed to the internal DAC
section. In addition, the converted signal is
routed to all digital outputs.

The Sample-rate converter works only on
PCM (Pulse Code Modulated) signals and will
therefore not operate when playing Super
Audio CDs.

To select the desired Sample-rate, press the
Sample Rate key on the remote control. The
Sample rate will be indicated on the front
panel display.

HDCD

Emph

MUTE

SACD/CD

Standby LED Sample Rate

TRACK INDEX

Indicator

A -- B

Shuffle

CDSA

Repeat1 RepeatProgram

MIN SEC

44.1kHz

48kHz

88.2kHz

96kHz

192kHz

CONT.

PROG

>10

<<

374

MUTE

SAMPLE

RATE

DISPLAY

CLEAR

<INDEX

STOP

SACD/CD

SHUFFLE A-B

8

PLAY

LOAD

ON/OFF TIME

CHECK REPEAT

12

596

INDEX>

PAUSE

V

VOL

V

0

>>

V

V

Keys used to:
Control playback
options.

Control the display.

Keys used for
programming

Direct access keypad

Keys to play a disc

Keys to control Classé
Omega preamplifier

7

Loading or unloading a disc

To load a disc, follow these steps:

1. Press the LOAD key on the front panel to
open the drawer.

2. Once the drawer is open, place the disc
(with the label facing up) on the drawer.

3. Press the LOAD, PLAY, or SKIP keys to
close the drawer.

To unload a disc, press LOAD.

Playing a disc

After the disc is loaded and the drawer
closed, the Omega SACD2 Player will begin
to detect which type of disc has been loaded.

Note that the Omega SACD2 player takes
longer to start playing after the disc is loaded
compared to conventional CD players. This is
normal operation. Unlike a conventional
player, the Omega SACD2 must identify the
type of disc, activate the appropriate laser,
adjust the servo tracking system, and verify
the copyright information on the disc. Here is
a summary of all play functions:

TO PRESS KEY LOCATION

Pause playing PAUSE Remote
Resume playing Front panel and remote
Resume playing PAUSE Remote
Stop playing STOP Front panel and remote
Skip to next track Front panel and remote
Skip to beginning of current track Front panel and remote
Skip to previous track (repeatedly) Front panel and remote
Move forward within current track Remote
Move back within current track Remote
Skip to next index INDEX Remote
Skip to previous index INDEX Remote

8

Controlling the display

The Omega SACD2 Player display function
can be changed using keys on the remote
control as follows:

ON/OFF

Pressing the ON/OFF key will cause the display
to toggle between ON mode and OFF mode.
In OFF mode, the display will remain off until
a key on the front panel or the remote control
is pressed. In ON mode, the display remains
illuminated during operation.

TIME

The TIME key changes how the front panel
display indicates time. The display can show
elapsed time for the current track, time
remaining for the current track, or time
remaining for the entire disc. Pressing the
TIME key scrolls through the three options as
shown below:

Programming

Several programming features allow you to
listen to tracks in a particular order or repeat
tracks. All keys for programming are on the
remote control.

SHUFFLE

Press the SHUFFLE key to hear tracks in a
random order. Pressing CONTINUE will
resume normal playing.

REPEAT

Use the REPEAT key to hear a single track or
the entire disc repeated. Pressing REPEAT
once will cause the Omega SACD2 to repeat
the entire disc. This is indicated by the word
“Repeat” illuminated on the front panel
display.

Pressing REPEAT a second time will cause the
Omega SACD2 to repeat the current track.
This is indicated by the word “Repeat1”
illuminating on the front panel display.

Pressing REPEAT a third time will revert to
normal play.

A – B Repeat

This function allows you to repeat one section
of a track. Pressing the A – B key on the
remote sets the beginning of the section to
be repeated. Pressing the A – B key a second
time will set the end point for the repeating
section. When the A – B key is pressed the
second time, the Omega SACD2 Player will
begin to repeat the selected portion of the
disc.

Creating your own program

To program the Omega SACD2 to play tracks
in a specific order, follow these steps:

1. If the disc is playing, press STOP.

2. Press the PROGRAM key.

3. Use the 10-digit keypad to enter the track
number of the first track in the program.
For more information, see Using the
Direct Access Keypad.
If you entered the wrong track, press
CLEAR.

4. Enter the next track number in the same
manner. Each time you enter a track
number, the total program time appears
in the display.

5. When you are finished, press PLAY to
hear the program.

6. The program will be erased if you turn
the AC power off or press the LOAD key.

CHECK

To check the order of the program, use the
CHECK key. Each time you press CHECK, the
number of the next track in the program
appears on the display.

CLEAR

When the player is stopped, you can use the
CLEAR key to delete tracks from the
program. Press the CHECK key repeatedly
until the track number that you want to
delete appears on the display, then press
CLEAR to delete that track.

Press

TIME

Press

Display:

Press

Display:

To resume normal play, press REPEAT or STOP.

Track number and elapsed time
of current track

TIME

Track number and remaining time
of current track

TIME

Time remaining on disc

9

Using the Omega SACD2 remote control
with other Classé products

The Omega SACD2 Player remote control can
be used to control all Omega pre-amplifiers.

VOLUME UP/DOWN

Pressing these keys will raise or lower the pre­amplifier or integrated amplifier volume level.

MUTE

Pressing MUTE will cause the pre-amplifier or
amplifier output to mute. Pressing either
VOLUME UP or DOWN will cause the unit to
un-mute. See the owner’s manual for your
Classé product for more detailed information.

SPECIFICATIONS

Main Unit Dimensions

Width: 17-3/8” 44.1cm
Height: 4-3/4” 12cm
Depth: 15” 38cm
Weight: 13.6kg 30lbs

Analog Output Voltage (Full scale)

Balanced: 2.2Vrms
Un-balanced: 1.1Vrms

Digital Outputs: 1 – SPDIF (RCA connector)

1 – AES/EBU
(XLR connector)
Outputs can sample
rate convert to 44.1 kHz,
48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz,
and 192 kHz.
Outputs do not function
when playing a Super
Audio CD.

CE CERTIFICATION

As of July 18, 1996, Classé Audio has been
granted:

Certificate Number: C401CLA1.MGS

This indicates CE approval for all models of
the Classé product line.

This means that your Classé product has been
subjected to the most rigorous manufacturing
and safety tests in the world, and has proven
to meet or exceed all European Community
CE requirements.

10

WARRANTY AND SERVICE

For warranty service, contact your Classé
dealer or Classé Audio directly at:

Classé Audio
5070 Francois-Cusson
Lachine, Québec
Canada H8T 1B3

Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]
Website: www.classeaudio.com

V1.4

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