DLS CA41, CA31, CA23, CA51, CA22 User Manual
How to install and operate the DLS
CA22, CA23, CA31, CA41 and CA51
car audio amplifiers.
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.
Contents
Features…………………………….. 2
Installation…………………….……. 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......................... 6
Grand Bass,Crossovers………….... 6
CA 31, CA 41, CA 51 Crossovers… 7
CA 22 and CA 23 speaker wiring:
Front speakers…...……………….... 8
Subwoofer…………………………... 8
CA 31 speaker wiring:
Front speakers…...……………….... 9
Subwoofer…………………………... 9
CA 41 speaker wiring:
Four speakers…………………….... 10
Two speakers + bridged subwoofer. 10
Two way front system with
active crossovers……………………. 11
CA 51 speaker wiring:
Four speakers…………………….... 12
Subwoofer...................................... 12
Testing……………………………….. 13
Troubleshooting……………………... 13
Professional tips…………………….. 14
Specifications………………………... 15
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
Technical Assistance
CA22, 23, 31, 41 & 51
All models include
RCA inputs
High Level input
Continuos variable low pass and/or high
pass crossover
Bass boost feature (only on CA23 & CA41)
Remote turn on / off
Automatic remote turn on/ off on high level
input without connecting any remote wire
Electronic protection circuitry against
short-circuit, DC offset and thermal overload.
Bridgeable design to direct full power to
one or two subwoofers etc.
Installation
CA22
2 x 60 Watt RMS / 2 x 100 Watt max in 2 ohm
1x 200 Watt RMS bridged
CA23
2 x 135 Watt RMS / 2 x 200 Watt max in 2 ohm
1 x 400 Watt RMS bridged
CA31
2 x 65 Watt RMS / 2 x 90 Watt max in 2 ohm
1 x 170 Watt RMS bridged
1 x 170 W RMS on sub channel
CA41
4 x 70 Watt RMS / 4 x 125 Watt max in 2 ohm
2 x 200 Watt RMS bridged
CA51
4 x 50 Watt RMS / 4 x 80 Watt max in 2 ohm
2 x 150 Watt RMS bridged
1 x 170 Watt RMS on sub channel
All above RMS power ratings with 4 ohm load
at 13,8 Volt DC.
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.
Disconnect Battery
Before starting the installation, always disconnect
the negative terminal of
the battery.
DLS logo on amplifier cooling flange
The DLS logo on top of the amplifier is attached
with two hex. screws. The logo can be removed
and twisted 90 or 180 degrees, and then screwed
back in wanted position. The logo can be mounted
in four different ways to match your installation.
Check all locations and placements carefully
before making any cuts, drilling any holes or making any connections.
This is the best way to
mount the amplifier to get
the best cooling.
2
CA22, 23, 31, 41 & 51
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,
minimum 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 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 ten 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 it
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 cable for best
performance.
These are the minimum sizes we recommend for
the different models:
CA22 10 mm2 (7AWG)
CA23 16 mm2 (5AWG)
CA31 21 mm2 (4AWG)
CA41 21 mm2 (4AWG)
CA51 21 mm2 (4AWG)
This is for cable lengths up to 5 meters.
The ground cable must have the same size.
3
Wiring
CA22, 23, 31, 41 & 51
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.
Use a 50 Amp fuse for all
amplifiers except for CA51
that requires 80 Amp fuse.
DLS
DLS FH1
fuse holder
Connect the battery cable by a crimp fork terminal (
spade ) to the +12 Volt on the amplifier. If you use a
AWG 8 = 10 mm
without the crimp terminal and put the cable right
into the connector.
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.
2
or thinner cable, you can do
Ground Terminal ( GND )
Connect to a good chassis 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.
Power
+12V REM GND
Power
+12V REM GND
Remote terminal ( REM )
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 as seen
on page 4.
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 High 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 on operation but some pop sound
when switching off.
Power
+12V REM GND
Fuses
Use only one or two 30
ampere ATC blade type fuses.
CA 51 uses three 30 ampere
fuses. CA22 uses one 25 A
fuse.
4
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)
Input and controls
CA22, 23, 31, 41 & 51
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
On CA22 & CA23 use either the low level or 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. CA41
and CA51 are also equipped with separate inputs
for channel C/D. CA31 & CA 51 has also a separate
input for the mono sub channel.
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.
CA 22, CA23 & CA31
High Input
(C/D Ch)
Hi level input
plug on amp.
CA31
On CA31 the high level signal is fed internally to
channel C when using high level input.
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.
White: A ch.+
White/Black: A ch.Grey/Black: B ch.Grey: B ch.+
CA41
The CA41 four channel amplifier is connected
likewise, however we have four channels.
You can feed two channels from RCA and two
channels using high level input from rear speaker
cables.
High Input
(A/B Ch)
Hi level input plug on amp for CH A/B.
High Input
(C/D Ch)
Hi level input plug on amp for CH C/D.
White: A ch.+
White/Black: A ch.Grey/Black: B ch.Grey: B ch.+
Violet: C ch.+
Violet/Black: C ch.Green/Black: D ch.Green: D ch.+
CA51
The CA51 five channel amplifier is connected
likewise, however only Channels A, B, C and D can
be fed with high input. The signal is then connected
internally to channel E.
Parallel input on CA 31, CA41 & CA51
Parallel Input CA41
Off PCD
Parallel Input CA31
Off PC
Parallel Input CA51
Off PE
On CA41 the PCD position
internally connects the A/B and C/
D inputs.
On CA31 & CA51 the PC (PE)
position internally connects the A/
B (C/D) input with the input for
channel C (E).
In OFF-position you must use dual
signal cables or Y-splits.
RCA Output
Input Output
Use RCA Outputs to
AA
BB
connect additional
amplifiers (not available on
CA31 & CA51).
5
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