dbx 234 Operation Manual

2-Way, 3-Way,

Operation

Manual

4-Way Crossovers

234/223

WARNING

FOR YOUR PROTECTION, PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING:

WATER AND MOISTURE: Appliance should not be used near water (e.g. near a

bathtub, washbowl, kitchen sink, laundry tub, in a wet basement, or near a swimming
pool, etc). Care should be taken so that objects do not fall and liquids are not spilled
into the enclosure through openings.

POWER SOURCES: The appliance should be connected to a power supply only of
the type described in the operating instructions or as marked on the appliance.

GROUNDING OR POLARIZATION: Precautions should be taken so that the ground­ing or polarization means of an appliance is not defeated.

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 appliance.

SERVICING: To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock, the user should not attempt to
service the appliance beyond that described in the operating instructions. All other
servicing should be referred to qualified service personnel.

FOR UNITS EQUIPPED WITH EXTERNALLY ACCESSIBLE FUSE RECEPTACLE:

Replace fuse with same type and rating only.

SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

NOTICE FOR CUSTOMERS IF YOUR UNIT IS EQUIPPED WITH A POWER
CORD.

WARNING: THIS APPLIANCE MUST BE EARTHED.

The cores in the mains lead are coloured in accordance with the following code:

GREEN and YELLOW - Earth BLUE - Neutral BROWN - Live

As colours of the cores in the mains lead of this appliance may not correspond
with the coloured markings identifying the terminals in your plug, proceed as fol­lows:

¥ The core which is coloured green and yellow must be connected to the

terminal in the plug marked with the letter E, or with the earth symbol, or
coloured green, or green and yellow.

¥ The core which is coloured blue must be connected to the terminal

marked N or coloured black.

¥ The core which is coloured brown must be connected to the terminal

marked L or coloured red.

This equipment may require the use of a different line cord, attachment plug, or
both, depending on the available power source at installation. If the attachment
plug needs to be changed, refer servicing to qualified service personnel who
should refer to the table below. The green/yellow wire shall be connected
directly to the unit's chassis.

WARNING: If the ground is defeated, certain fault conditions in the unit or in the
system to which it is connected can result in full line voltage between chassis
and earth ground. Severe injury or death can then result if the chassis and
earth ground are touched simultaneously.

U.K. MAINS PLUG WARNING

A moulded mains plug that has been cut off from the cord is unsafe. Discard the
mains plug at a suitable disposal facility. NEVER UNDER ANY CIRCUM-

STANCES SHOULD YOU INSERT A DAMAGED OR CUT MAINS PLUG INTO
A 13 AMP POWER SOCKET. Do not use the mains plug without the fuse cover

in place. Replacement fuse covers can be obtained from your local retailer.
Replacement fuses are 13 amps and MUST be ASTA approved to BS1362.

ELECTROMAGNETIC COMPATIBILITY

This unit conforms to the Product Specifications noted on the Declaration of
Conformity. Operation is subject to the following two conditions:

¥ this device may not cause harmful interference, and
¥ this device must accept any interference received, including interference

that may cause undesired operation.
Operation of this unit within significant electromagnetic fields should be avoided.
Use only shielded interconnecting cables.

The symbols shown above are internationally accepted symbols that warn of
potential hazards with electrical products. The lightning flash with arrowpoint in
an equilateral triangle means that there are dangerous voltages present within
the unit. The exclamation point in an equilateral triangle indicates that it is nec­essary for the user to refer to the ownerÕs manual.

These symbols warn that there are no user serviceable parts inside the unit.
Do not open the unit. Do not attempt to service the unit yourself. Refer all ser­vicing to qualified personnel. Opening the chassis for any reason will void the
manufacturerÕs warranty. Do not get the unit wet. If liquid is spilled on the unit,
shut it off immediately and take it to a dealer for service. Disconnect the unit
during storms to prevent damage.

CAUTION

DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY

ManufacturerÕs Name: dbx Professional Products
ManufacturerÕs Address: 8760 S. Sandy Parkway

Sandy, Utah 84070, USA

declares that the products:

dbx 223, 234

conform to the following Product Specifications:

Safety: EN 60065 (1993)

IEC65 (1985) with Amendments 1, 2, 3

EMC: EN 55013 (1990)

EN 55020 (1991)

Supplementary Information:

The product herewith complies with the requirements of the
Low Voltage Directive 73/23/EEC and the EMC Directive
90/336/EEC as amended by Directive 93/68/EEC.

dbx Professional Products
Vice-President of Engineering
8760 S. Sandy Parkway
Sandy, Utah 84070, USA
February 6, 1997

European Contact: Your Local dbx Sales and Service Office or

International Sales Office
68 Sheila Lane
Valparaiso, Indiana
46383, USA
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK

DO NOT OPEN

ATTENTION: RISQUE DE CHOC ELECTRIQUE - NE PAS OUVRIR
WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC

SHOCK DO NOT EXPOSE THIS EQUIPMENT TO RAIN OR MOISTURE

CONDUCTOR

L

N

E

LIVE

NEUTRAL

EARTH GND

WIRE COLOR

Normal Alt

BROWN

BLUE

GREEN/YEL

BLACK

WHITE

GREEN

2-Way, 3-Way,

1

8760 South Sandy Pkwy.

Sandy, Utah 84070

Phone: [phone]

Fax: [phone]

IntÕl Fax: [phone]

Questions or comments?

E¥mail us at: [e-mail]

or visit our World Wide Web home page at:

http://www.dbxpro.com

TABLE OF CONTENTS

WARRANTY ...............................................................................................................................................................2

INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................................................2

INSPECTION ...........................................................................................................................................................3

234 FRONT PANEL OPERATION .............................................................................................................................3

223 FRONT PANEL OPERATION ..............................................................................................................................5

234/223 REAR PANEL OPERATIONS .......................................................................................................................6

234/223 AUDIO CONNECTIONS .............................................................................................................................7

ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS .............................................................................................................................................7

FEATURES ...........................................................................................................................................................................7

RACK MOUNTING, GROUNDING AND SAFETY ...............................................................................................................8

TROUBLESHOOTING ..........................................................................................................................................................9

234/223 SPECIFICATIONS .................................................................................................................................................10

NOTES ................................................................................................................................................................................11

DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY ....................................................................................................................................13

4-Way Crossovers

234/223

¨

A Harman International Company

WARRANTY

INTRODUCTION

Congratulations on your purchase of the dbx 223 or 234 crossover. We
are confident you will find this crossover to be the finest product of its
kind in this price range. We have taken care to include all of the features
you need to make your system sound its best. Some of the features com­mon to both the 234 and the 223 crossovers are:

¥ back panel switches for selecting the operating mode of the

crossover.

¥ back panel switches indicating the selected range of crossover fre-

quencies. Both of these features have LED indicators on the front
panel so you can see at a glance which mode the unit is in.

¥ low frequency summed output designed specifically for mono sub-

woofer applications.
¥ phase invert switches on all outputs.
¥ individual level controls on every output.

2

1. The warranty registration card that accompanies this product must be
mailed within 30 days after purchase date to validate this warranty.
Proof-of-purchase is considered to be the burden of the consumer.

2. dbx warrants this product, when bought and used solely within the
U.S., to be free from defects in materials and workmanship under nor­mal use and service.

3. dbx liability under this warranty is limited to repairing or, at our discre­tion, replacing defective materials that show evidence of defect, provid­ed the product is returned to dbx WITH RETURN AUTHORIZATION
from the factory, where all parts and labor will be covered up to a peri­od of two years. A Return Authorization number must be obtained from
dbx by telephone. The company shall not be liable for any consequen­tial damage as a result of the product's use in any circuit or assembly.

4. dbx reserves the right to make changes in design or make additions to
or improvements upon this product without incurring any obligation to
install the same additions or improvements on products previously
manufactured.

5. The foregoing is in lieu of all other warranties, expressed or implied,
and dbx neither assumes nor authorizes any person to assume on its
behalf any obligation or liability in connection with the sale of this prod­uct. In no event shall dbx or its dealers be liable for special or conse­quential damages or from any delay in the performance of this warran­ty due to causes beyond their control.

2-Way, 3-Way,

4-Way Crossovers

234/223

2-Way, 3-Way,

INSPECTION

We are sure you will agree that these crossovers are built to provide
extremely high quality frequency division for all applications.

Before going any further, you should take time to fill out your warranty
registration card and inspect the contents of the shipping carton. Inside
both the 223 and 234 boxes you should find the following:

¥ either the dbx model 223, or 234 crossover.
¥ operation manual (you are reading it!)
¥ 4 rack screws and washers
¥ power cord.

The contents of this manual are subject to change at any time without
notice.

3

STEREO 2-WAY MODE

In 2-way stereo mode the controls are marked BELOW the horizontal blue line.
Channel One and Channel Two functions are identical in the stereo mode. Front panel controls not described in
this section are not active in stereo 2-way operation.

[1] & [7] INPUT GAIN Controls the INPUT level with +/- 12 dB of gain.
[13] & [20] LOW CUT Switch for selecting the 40 Hz high pass filter. An LED indicates the

selection.

[2] & [8] LOW/MID* Selects crossover point between the LOW and HIGH outputs.
[14] & [21] X10 LED Indicates that the LOW/HIGH crossover frequency range is 450 Hz to

9.6 kHz.

[4] & [10] LOW OUTPUT Controls the Low frequency output level with a range of -° to +6 dB.
[15] & [22] PHASE INVERT Switch for reversing the polarity on the Low Output. An LED indicates

that the phase is inverted.

[6] & [12] H

IGH OUTPUT Controls the High frequency output with a range of -° to +6 dB.

[17] & [24] PHASE INVERT Switch for reversing the polarity on the High Output. An LED indicates

that the phase is inverted.

[19] STEREO LED indicating stereo mode operation.

* although this control is labeled as ÒLOW/MIDÓ, it operates as the crossover frequency control between low and
high frequencies in stereo 2-way operation.

dbx 234 Front Panel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

4-Way Crossovers

234/223

CHANNEL ONE

-6 +6

-12

240

1.4k

350

140

70 680

45

Hz

XOVER FREQ

LOW/LOW-MID

LOW/MID

x10

960

700

450

XOVER FREQ

LOW-MID/HIGH-MID

40 Hz 40 Hz

+12

LOW CUT
LOW CUT

INPUT
INPUT

0

dB

GAIN

2.4k

Hz

MID/HIGH

-10

3.5k

-30

6.8k

9.6k

-

dB

GAIN
LOW OUTPUT
LOW OUTPUT

-10

-30

0

INV INV INV INV INV INV

+6

-

dB

GAIN

LOW-MID OUTPUT

MID OUTPUT

-10

-30

0

+6

0

+6

-

dB

GAIN

MONO
STEREO

HIGH OUTPUT INPUT LOW CUT LOW/MID

CHANNEL TWO

0

-6 +6

-12

70 680

+12

dB

GAIN

240

140

45

Hz

XOVER FREQ

350

700

x10

960

2.4k

3.5k

1.4k

-30

6.8k

450

9.6k

-

Hz

XOVER FREQ

HIGH-MID/HIGH

MID/HIGH LOW OUTPUT

-10

0

+6

dB

GAIN

-10

-30

-

HIGH-MID OUTPUT HIGH OUTPUT

MID OUTPUT HIGH OUTPUT

-30

0

+6

-

dB

GAIN

GAIN

-10

+6

dB

2/3/4-Way

0

Crossover

234