How to install and operate the DLS CA30,
three channel amplifier.
Art.no 10-30290
Contents
Specifications................................ 1
Features…………………………….. 2
Installation…………………….……. 2
Trouble-shooting…………………….. 2
Tools and materials needed………. 3
Amplifier installation kit………….... 3
Routing Wires…………………….... 3
Wiring
Power and Outputs……………..…. 4
Inputs and controls………………... 5
Input level control.......................... 5
Crossovers…………...................... 5
Phase control.....………………...… 5
Speaker wiring:
Front system.................................. 6
Subwoofers…………………………. 6
Testing........................................... 6
Professional tips…………………….. 7
Welcome!
This owners manual is written in easy english and
uses a lot of drawings to simply the installation and
use of the above amplifiers.
Your DLS amplifiers must be installed correctly in
order to work well. This manual will show you how
to install the amplifier like a pro. Please read the
entire manual before beginning the installation.
Install the amplifier yourself if you feel confident with
our instructions and if you have the proper tools.
However if you feel unsure, turn over the installation job to someone better suited to it.
Warranty Service
This amplifier is covered by warranty, depending
on the conditions in the country where it is sold. If
the amplifier is returned for service, please include
the original dated receipt with the product.
Technical Assistance
Specifications
DLS CLASSIC CA 30
Number of channels 3
Power output in 4 ohm (0,1% THD) 2 x 50 W
Max output in 2 ohm (0,1% THD) 2 x 80 W
Power output sub channel, 4 ohm 1 x 170 W
Max output sub channel, 2 ohm 1 x 280 W
All above output power ratings at 13,8 Volt
Signal to noise ratio, A-weighted >100 dB
Damping factor >100
Frequency response 10 Hz - 30 kHz
Input impedance, low level >10 kohm
Input impedance, high level 100 ohms
Input sensitivity 0,25 - 5V
Phase control sub channel 0-180 degrees
continuous
Filter highpass (ch A & B) 50-150 Hz
Filters ch C (mono sub channel):
Filter subsonic, 18 dB slope 25 Hz fixed*
Filter lowpass 12 db slope 50-120 Hz
* can be switched in/out
For technical assistance ask the shop where the
product was sold or the distributor in your very country.
You can always phone the DLS Helpdesk in Sweden
+ 46 31 84 00 60 or send an e-mail to info@dls.se.
Information can also be found on our WEB-site
www.dls.se
Power consumption, idle 1,0 A
Fuse 2 x 30A
Dimensions (mm) 51,5x350x290
Dimensions (inch) 2,03x13,8x11,4
Weight 4,6 kg / 10 lb
We follow a policy of continuous advancement in
development.
For this reason all or part of specifications & designs
may be changed without prior notice.
CA30 include
RCA input
High level input
Continuos variable low pass crossover
Continuos variable high pass crossover
Subsonic crossover
Remote turn on / off
Phase control continuously variable 0-180
degrees
Electronic protection circuitry against
short-circuit, DC offset and thermal overload.
Installation
CA30
Troubleshooting
If problems occour during the installation, or later,
this guide might help you to find out whats´s wrong.
THE AMPLIFIER IS DEAD:
1. Check power lead, ground and remote
connections at the amplifier using a multi meter.
2. Check the battery terminal connections.
3. Check the power lead fuse or circuit breaker. If
fuse damage continues, inspect the power lead
for short circuits.
4. Check the amplifier protection fuses. Are these
broken change to new ones with the same value.
If short circuiting continues, contact your local
DLS dealer. A fault may exist in the amplifier.
5. To start the amplifier requires a remote voltage of
9-15 volt. Check the voltage with a multi meter.
Before you begin installation
Before you begin you need to read the manual, to have
some tools, cables and other material available. There
is one such list of material on the following page.
Amplifier location
Important
Allow air circulation around the amplifier.
The DLS Classic series of amplifiers have a
compact design that allows great flexibility in
mounting. You can mount it under a seat or in the
trunk.
When you select a location, do remember that the
amplifier generates a lot of heat.
Choose a location where air can circulate freely
around the amplifier. Do not cover the amplifier
with carpets or hide behind trim panels.
Do not mount the amplifier in an inverted or upside
down position.
AMPLIFIER PROTECTION FUSE BLOWS AT LOW
VOLUME :
1. One or more speaker cables are shorted. Make an
insulation test with a multi meter. The cables must not
have a connection to earth.
THE AMPLIFIER TURNS OFF AFTER 10 - 30 MINUTES.
The amplifier is overheating due to inadequate ventilation. Check mounting position is free from obstruction.
Do this:
1. Move the amplifier to a place with better ventil-
ation.
2. Install one or two fans to cool down the heatsink.
3. Overheating can also be caused by an
impedance load below the level permitted.
NO OUTPUT FROM THE SPEAKERS:
Check the following:
1. Fader control position.
3. Speaker cable connections to both amplifier and
subwoofers.
4. Signal lead plugs and cables.
Check all locations and placements carefully before
making any cuts, drilling any holes or making any
connections.
Disconnect Battery
Before starting the installation, always disconnect
the negative terminal of
the battery.
2
CA30
Tools and material needed
Tools:
Flat and Phillips screwdrivers
Wire cutter
Wire stripper
Electric drill with drills
Crimping tool
Digital multimeter or test lamp
Wire brush, scraper or a piece
of an abrasive sheet to remove
paint for a good ground connection
Grease to protect the ground
connection from oxidation
Material:
Speaker wire: minimum
12 AWG = 4 mm2 for subwoofers
13 – 16 AWG = 1,5-2,5 mm2 for other
speakers
Sheet metal screws for mounting the
amplifier to the amplifier board and the
amplifier board to the car + some extra
for fuse holder, amplifier ground etc.
Electrical insulation tape
½ inch thick plywood or particle board for
the amplifier to be mounted upon.
Routing wires
Stereo
head unit
Amplifier installation kit:
If available,buy an amplifier installation kit. It
contains normally all you need. This is what you
have to buy if you buy the items separately
20- 25 feet = 6- 7.5 meter power cable,
preferably AWG 8 = 10 mm2 or heavier
1 pc of fuseholder to install close to the
car battery + fuse 50 Ampere.
20 feet of AWG 15 = 1,5 mm2 wire for
remote turn on / off cable from radio.
RCA-cable for input from radio.
- 20 feet or 5 meter for trunk installations
-12 feet or 2 – 3 meter for under seat
installations
Two min. 8 gauge ring crimp terminals –one
for connection to the battery plus and one
for the amplifier ground connection.
Two heavy fork crimp terminals to connect
+ and – to amplifer – but you do only need
them if you use heavy cable or to make the
installation look nicer.
Four to eight fork crimp terminals to
connect the speaker cables – but you do
only need them if you use heavy cables or
want the installation to look nicer.
One fork crimp terminal to connect the
remote wire to the amplifier, but you need
only to make it look nicer.
Four to eight splicers to connect speaker
cables to high level input cable, if high level
input is used.
Wire ties
Insulating grommet or insulating tube
Professional Tip:
If amplifier installation kits are available with different size of power cable, chose the most heavy
power cable to improve sound quality and to allow
more amplifiers to be installed now or later.
If possible buy AWG 4 = PL 21 mm2 (or heavier)
cable for best performance.
3
Remote terminal ( REM )
CA30
Wiring
Power and Outputs
Power terminal ( +12V)
Connect the fuse holder as close to the vehicle
battery + as possible, using AWG 8 = 10 mm2 or
heavier cable. Use ring crimp terminal cable to
connect to battery +. Apply silicon grease to the
fuse to prevent corrosion
+12V REM GND
DLS
DLS FH 1B
fuse holder
Connect the battery cable by a crimp fork terminal
( spade ) to the +12 Volt on the amplifier.
Be sure to use a rubber grommet or a plastic
insulating tube where the cable passes the firewall
or other places when it can easily be jammed.
Use ty-wraps to secure to existing cables in the
engine compartment.
For RCA cable signal input:
Connect the radio power antenna lead = remote
turn on/off from the car stereo to the amplifier
remote connection. This turns on the amplifier
whenever the car stereo is turned on.
You can either use the built in remote cable in the
RCA cable itself or use a separate cable.
Sometimes a small disturbance may enter the
amplifier coming from the remote voltage , through
the built in remote wire and into the RCA cable.
Thus we recommend to use a separate remote wire
and run the RCA lead separate from remote wire,
power cables and speaker cables.
You can either use a crimp fork terminal or insert
the cable directly into the amplifier terminal. If there
is no remote voltage available from the stereo, you
must connect to the ignition key through the radio
or any accessories fuse.
For High Level input:
We recommend you to connect the remote wire
as described above. The amplifier will produce soft
on / soft off operation this way. You must set the
Hi level/Low level switch to Low level position in
this case.
In the case that there is no remote voltage available
from the car stereo or you want to simplify the
installation, the amplifier can be turned on/ turned
off by the high level input voltage. This is done
when the Hi level/Low level switch is set to Hi level
position. There is a small disadvantage that this
function gives soft turn off operation but some plop
sound when switching off.
Ground Terminal ( GND )
Connect to a good chasis ground. The ground
connection should be clean, unpainted metal to provide a good electrical connection. Use a wire brush,
a scraper or a piece of an abrasive sheet to clean
the metal. Use a lock washer or two to secure
contact. Protect with silicon grease or by paint
applied afterwards.
+12V REM GND
4
+12V REM GND
Fuses
Use only 30 ampere
ATC blade type fuses.
CA 30 uses two 30
ampere fuses.
Power Light / Protect light
The power light (green ) comes on when
Power
(Green)
Protect
(Red)
the amplifier is turned on.
The protect light ( red ) comes on when
the amplifier shuts down from
overheating, or a short circuit ( speaker
failure)
30A
Input and controls
Input Wiring
Inputs may be low level from the RCA output of the
car stereo or high level from the car stereo speaker
output.Low level = RCA is to prefer for the best sound
quality.
Important
Use either the low level or the high level input, do
not use both at same time.
Low level input
Use a pair of shielded stereo audio cables with RCA
type jack. Most trunk-mount
amplifiers need a 20 feet
RCA cable ( appr 5 – 6 meters). Most under the seat
installations require 12 feet (
2 – 3 meters) RCA cables.
Avoid placing the RCA cable close to speaker
cables, power cables and remote control cable.
Connect to input socket A & B. There is a separate
input for channel C. Connect a separate RCA cable
for channel C or set the Parallel input connector in
position PC.
CA30
Input Level control
The input level control, 5V – 0,25 V,
matches the output of your radio to
the input of the amplifier. After installation is complete, make sure the input of the amplifier is turned down all
the way ( counter-clockwise at 5V ).
Play a tape or CD, make sure all bass or treble
settings or equalizer are flat, and turn the volume
of the radio up until you just start to hear distortion.
Turn the volume control down just a bit. On the
amplifier increase the input level control ( clockwise
or to the right ) until you just start to hear distortion,
then back the level control just a bit. Now your radio and amplifier levels are matched.
Level
2V 0,7V
5V 0,25V
Subsonic filter
The Subsonic filter blocks the very
deepest frequencies from reaching the
subwoofers. It has a fixed frequency
of 25 Hz and can be switched On / Off.
For channel C only.
Subsonic
Off On
High Level Input
Connect left and right speaker wires coming from
the car stereo to the high level input as shown. You
must connect both plus and minus as the inputs
are balanced, connecting plus only gives lower level
and bad sound quality. By changing the polarity of
plus and minus, you can change the phase.
High Input
Hi level input
plug on amp.
White : A ch.+
White/Black : A ch.Grey/Black : B ch.Grey : Bch.+
Automatic turn on when using high level input.
With the Hi/Low input swich set to Hi, the amplifier
turns on automatically on high input. You dont need
to connect a separate remote wire from your head
unit.
Parallel input switch
Parallel Input
Off PC
In PC position the A/B and C input
connectors are internally connected in
parallel. In OFF-position you must
use dual signal cables.
Low Pass Filter
The LPF ( low pass filter ) allow low
frequencies only and blocks higher
frequencies.
A typical setting is 60 – 80 Hz.
Choose the setting that sounds best
in your car. For channel C only.
High Pass Filter
The HPF ( high pass filter )
blocks very low frequencies
from reaching the speakers. It
is mostly used at say 60 Hz to
protect small speakers from
deep bass. The filter can be
switched on/off
Phase control
The phase control can be set
continuously from 0 - 180 degrees.
This is very useful when you want to
adjust the bass sound for best front
stage image.
Start on 0 and turn the control slowly
clockwise until you experience the
bass sound coming from the front.
Off On
LPF
50Hz 120Hz
HPF
150Hz
50Hz
PHASE
0 180
5
Speaker wiring CA 30
CA30
Two fullrange
speakers to
channel A & B
Filter settings channel A & B
With the HPF-filter in OFF
position the amplifier allows
the speakers to play
fullrange. If you for some
reason want to limit the low
bass reproduction switch on
the HPF-filter. The typical
setting is then around 60 –
80 Hz.
Off On
HPF
50Hz 150Hz
One (or two)
4 ohm
subwoofers
to channel C
Filter settings channel C
The subsonic filter takes away
the very deepest frequencies.
Turn on the subsonic filter if you
want to remove these
frequencies.
+ + C CH - -
Speaker
Subsonic
Off On
Testing
Before you finish the installation, you should do the
following tests to make sure the wiring is correct and
everything is operating properly.
Reconnect Battery
When wiring is complete,
reconnect the battery
negative terminal.
The LPF will allow low
frequencies only and blocks
higher frequencies. A typical setting is 70 – 100 Hz.
LPF
50Hz 120Hz
Test power wiring
1. Turn on the head unit but do not turn up the
volume. The amplifier power light should
come on. If not, check the remote and +12
volt wires. Also check the ground
connection.
2. Turn up the head units volume slightly. All
speakers should operate. if not, check wiring
connections at amplifier and speakers.
Test speaker connections
Make sure the speakers are connected right. Use
the balance control on the head unit to make sure
right channel is on right speaker etc. If speakers
don´t play at all, one or both speaker wires may
be disconnected.
6
CA30
Professional Tip:Professional Tip:
NOISE PROBLEMS
WHINING NOISE VARYING WITH ENGINE
REVOLUTIONS:
Do this:
1. Rewire the power supply (12 V) to source
unit direct from battery.
2. Rewire ground wire from source unit to
clean position on chassis.
3. Check all power connections to ensure that
they are clean and tight.
4. Check quality of system ground connection.
5. Install a Power Cap capacitor. This can be
helpful against most noise problems.
CONSTANT WHINING NOISE:
Do this:
1. Ensure that all equipment has a common
ground point.
2. Check quality of earth strap connection from
battery negative terminal to chassis.
3. Disconnect signal cables from amplifier to
see if noise disappears. If so the leads are
picking up noise. Test this by laying a new
cable over the seats and reconnecting to the
amplifier. If the noise does not return, reroute original cable away from source of
interference.
If noise remains regardless of cable position,
try to use so called Quasi-balanced signal
cables. DLS PRO or ULTIMATE cables are
quasibalanced.
SPEAKER POLARITY CHECK.
All speakers in a car audio system should be
connected in phase (the same polarity). All speaker cones must move in the same direction. Out of
phase speakers will cause a lack of bass, and a
poor stereo soundstage.
Checking polarity:
Hold the - connection of the speaker wire to the terminal of a 1,5 Volt flashlight battery. Tap the +
wire on to the + terminal of the battery, and observe
the movement of the cone. The cone should move
outwards when the wire touches the battery, and
inwards when the battery is removed. If it is the
other way around, the speaker has been connected
backwards and it must be removed and connected
correctly.
If your system also has a subwoofer connected
through a passive 6 or 12 dB crossover, try to
connect this with various polarity and judge what
sounds best. The phase shift in passive crossovers
sometimes makes it necessary to change polarity.
+
Battery
1,5 Volt
+
-
-
Professional Tip: Professional Tip:
Installing in trunk
When installing the amplifier in the trunk, run the
power wires along the same path as the other
vehicle wiring. Many cars have insulated channels
for wiring. you will have to remove the door sill trim
and the carpet.
Securing wires
Use wire ties to bundle together when possible.
(But never bundle speaker wires or signal cables
together with power wires.
Professional Tip:
Crimp connections
Purchase crimp connectors and crimping tool.
Connectors are color coded.
1. Strip 1/4 inch (6 mm) of insulation from the wire.
2. Insert into connector
3. Crimp tightly
Professional Tip:
Speaker and power wires
Do not run speaker and power wires next to each
other. Power wires can generate a ”siren” sound in
the speakers. Runs speaker and power wires on
opposite sides of the car.
7
DLS Svenska AB
P.O. Box 13029
Artillerigatan 25
S-40251 Göteborg, Sweden
Tel: +46 31 840060
Fax: +46 31 844021
E-mail: info@dls.se
www.dls.se
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