JBL SS88IWSBB User Manual

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CHOOSING JBL

or more than 60 years, JBL has

F
been involved in every aspect of

usic and film recording and

m

eproduction, from live perform-

r
ances to monitoring the recordings

ou play in your home, car or

y

ffice.

o

e’re confident that the JBL

W
speaker and back box you have
chosen will provide every note of

njoyment that you expect – and

e
that when you think about pur-

hasing additional audio equip-

c

ent for your home, car or office,

m
you will once again choose JBL.
Please take a moment to register
your product on our Web site at
www.jbl.com. It enables us to keep
you posted on our latest advance­ments, and helps us to better
understand our customers and
build products that meet their
needs and expectations.

JBL Consumer Products

INCLUDED

SS88IWSBB

(1) SS88IWSBB back box

(shown installed between

16" on-center wall studs)
(4) L-brackets
(8) #10 32 x 1" screws

(L-brackets to back box)
(8) #10 split washers

(L-brackets to back box)
(8) #10 flat washers

(L-brackets to back box)
(8) #8 x 3/4" wood screws

(L-brackets to wall studs)
(2) wood centering bars
(4) #10 32 x 1-1/2" flat-head screws

(centering bars to back box)
NOTE: The back box is shipped with the
two centering bars attached to it using
the four flat-head screws.

SPEAKER
PLACEMENT

t is best to establish the locations

I
for the speakers in advance, to

void having to correct errors

a

fter installation has already

a
begun. Refer to these guidelines,

nd also see the owner’s guide for

a

he SS88IWS subwoofer for more

t
information.

It is generally recommended that
you install your SS88IWS in-wall

ubwoofer along the same wall

s
as the front loudspeakers. The

S88IWS subwoofer is not video-

S

hielded and should not be placed

s

ear a video display. Installing the

n
SS88IWS near a corner will tend

o maximize low-frequency output.

t
Be cautious when installing in a
corner, to avoid a “boomy” sound.

lso take into consideration any

A
unusual features of the room, such

s an alcove, which may tend to

a

reate a localized node that may

c
affect bass response in that area

f the room.

o
It is generally recommended that

he speaker be installed so that the

t
bottom of the speaker is approxi-

ately 12" from the floor. Note that

m

nstalling the speaker within the

i
SS88IWSBB back box as shown in
the illustration to the left will
achieve the recommended height.
This is to help with the low-fre­quency loading (bass reinforce­ment). This also helps hide the
speaker in a less visible place.

Remember that these are just
guidelines. Since every listening
room is different, JBL strongly rec­ommends experimenting with the
positioning of your subwoofer prior
to cutting the wall to obtain the
most pleasing results in your room.
One technique that can help you
find the ideal subwoofer location
is to temporarily borrow a stand­alone subwoofer and place it near
the main listening location. Then
move around the room and deter­mine where you hear the most
pleasing bass performance. This
would then be the ideal location
for the subwoofer.

PERFORMANCE
SPECIALIST

™

SS88IWSBB

OWNER’S GUIDE

®

PEAKER

YEL/BLK

Y

EL

W

HT/BLK

WHT

O

RG/BLK

O

RG

GRE/BLK

GRE

INPUT 1

INPUT2

OUTPUT 1 OUTPUT 2

– + – + – + – +

– +– +

Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs

Left Right

– +

Front Left Speaker

– +

Front Right Speaker

Connections Panel of
SS88IWSBB Back Box

Connection Method #1, Using One SS88IWS

With Back Box (Remove Shorting Straps)

– +– +

Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs

L

eft Right

– +

Front Left Speaker

– +

Front Right Speaker

Y

EL/BLK

Y

EL

W

HT/BLK

W

HT

ORG/BLK

ORG

G

RE/BLK

G

RE

I

NPUT 1

INPUT2

O

UTPUT 1 OUTPUT 2

– + – + – + – +

Y

EL/BLK

Y

EL

W

HT/BLK

W

HT

ORG/BLK

ORG

G

RE/BLK

G

RE

I

NPUT 1

INPUT2

O

UTPUT 1 OUTPUT 2

– + – + – + – +

Connections Panel of

Left SS88IWSBB Back Box

Connections Panel of

Right SS88IWSBB Back Box

Connection Method #1, Using Two SS88IWS Loudspeakers

With Back Boxes (Use Shorting Straps)

– +

Amplifier

Receiver/Processor

Speaker-Level

Outputs

Subwoofer or

Main Amp

Out

Line-Level

Inputs

– +

Left Left

Right Right

Left

Right

Y

EL/BLK

YEL

WHT/BLK

W

HT

ORG/BLK

O

RG

G

RE/BLK

G

RE

INPUT 1

INPUT2

OUTPUT 1 OUTPUT 2

– + – + – + – +

YEL/BLK

YEL

WHT/BLK

WHT

ORG/BLK

ORG

GRE/BLK

GRE

INPUT 1

INPUT2

OUTPUT 1 OUTPUT 2

– + – + – + – +

Left SS88IWSBB Back Box

Right SS88IWSBB Back Box

Connection Method #2, Using Two SS88IWS Loudspeakers

With Back Boxes (Use Shorting Straps)

S
CONNECTIONS

Connection Tips

Refer to page 4 of the SS88IWS sub­woofer owner’s guide for general

nformation on speaker-wire con-

i
nections. This manual includes con­nection guidelines that are specific

o the SS88IWSBB back box.

t
To use the push-type terminals on

he connections panel supplied with

t
the SS88IWSBB back box enclosure,

epress the colored cap until the

d
pass-through hole in the binding
post is revealed. While holding the

ap down, insert the bare end of

c
the wire, or a banana plug, into the
pass-through hole. Release the cap
and tug gently on the wire to ensure
that it is secure.

Since the SS88IWS is a passive
loudspeaker, only speaker-level con­nections are available. Depending
on whether you are using a dedi­cated subwoofer
main receiver/
SS88IWS, select one of the two con­nection methods that follow.

Connection Method #1

Use this method when you are
using the SS88IWS with your main
receiver/amplifier. Connect the main

amplifier or your

amplifier to power the

eft and right speaker-level outputs

l

n your receiver/amplifier to the

o
Input 1 (for left channel) and Input 2

for right channel) connectors on the

(

S88IWS connection panel. Connect

S
the Output 1 terminals to the corre-

ponding terminals on your front left

s
speaker, and the Output 2 terminals
to the corresponding terminals on

our front right speaker.

y
NOTE: When using Connection

ethod #1 with only one SS88IWS,

M
the shorting straps must be
removed.

If you are using two SS88IWS sub-

oofers, connect the left speaker out-

w
puts on your receiver/

amplifier to
Input 1 on one subwoofer’s connec­tions panel, and the right speaker
outputs on your receiver/amplifier to
Input 1 on the second subwoofer’s
connections panel. Then connect
Output 1 from the left­woofer to the inputs

channel sub-

on your main
left speaker, and Output 1 from the
right-channel subwoofer to the
inputs on your main right speaker.
When using the SS88IWS in this
mono mode, you should not remove
the shorting straps.

onnection Method #2

C

se this method when you are

U
using the SS88IWS with a dedicated

ubwoofer amplifier. Connect your

s

ain receiver/

m
subwoofer

nput on your subwoofer amplifier.

i

rocessor’s line-level

p

output to the line-level

Connect the speaker terminals on
your subwoofer amplifier to either

nput 1 or Input 2. If your amplifier

I
has stereo outputs, you may con­nect one channel to each of Inputs 1

nd 2. However, you must remove

a
the shorting straps when using

tereo mode. Alternatively, you may

s

onnect each channel to a separate

c
SS88IWS. When using only one

nput on an individual SS88IWS, you

i
should leave the shorting straps in
place.

Using the SS88IWSBB Back Box

Whichever connection method you
choose to install the SS88IWSBB
back box, you will need to connect
all of the eight wires coming out of
the bottom of the back box to the
appropriate terminals on the loud­speaker. The wires are color-coded
as follows:

INPUT 1 (–): Yellow with black

stripe
INPUT 1 (+): Solid yellow
INPUT 2 (–): White with black

stripe
INPUT 2 (+): Solid white
OUTPUT 1 (–): Orange with

black stripe
OUTPUT 1 (+): Solid orange
OUTPUT 2 (–): Green with black

stripe
OUTPUT 2 (+): Solid green