NHT SW 10 User Manual

SW 10

ll

SW 12

Powered Subwoofer

User’s M anual

M odel

1. R EAD INSTRUCTIONS - All safety and operating instructions should be read before the appliance is operated.

2. RETAININSTRUCTIONS - Safety and operating instructions should be retained for future reference.

3. HEED W ARNING S - All warnings on the appliance and in operating instructions should be adhered to.

4. FO LLO W INSTRUCTIONS - All operating and us e instructions should be followed.

5. WATERANDMOISTURE- The appliance should not be used near water - near bathtub, w ashbowl, kitchen sink, laundry tub; in a wet basem ent near
a sw imming pool, etc.

6. CARTS AND STANDS - Do not place this product on an unstable car t, stand, tripod, bracket , or table. The appliance should be used only with a car t
or st and that is recom m ended by the m anufacturer.

7. VENTILATION - The appliance should be situated so that its location and position do not interfere with proper ventilation. The appliance should not
be situated on a bed, sof a, rug, or any sur face that may obstruct cabinet openings.

8. HEAT - The appliance should be situated aw ay from heat sources such as radiators, heat regist ers, stoves, or other devices (including am plifiers) that
produce heat.

9. PO W ER SO URC ES - This product should be operated only from the type of pow er source indicat ed on the marking label. If you are not sur e of the
type power supply i n your hom e, consult your pr oduc t deal er or local pow er com pany. For pr oducts i ntended t o oper ate f rom bat tery pow er or other
sources, refer to the operating instructions.

10. POWERCORDPROTECTION - Power supply cor ds should be routed so that they are not likely to be walked upon or pinched by item s placed upon
or against them , paying attention to cor ds and plugs, conv enience receptacles, and the point w here they exit from the appliance.

11. PO LARIZED PLUG - This appliance is equipped with a polarized line plug (a plug having one blade wider than the other). This plug will fit into the
power outlet only one way. This is a saf ety feature. If you are unable to insert the plug fully into the outlet, try reversing the plug. If the plug still fails to
fit, contact your electrician to replace your obsolete outlet. Do not attem pt to defeat this saf ety feature.

12. LIGHTNING - For added protection for this product during a lightning st orm, or w hen it is left unattended and unused for long periods of time, unplug
it from the wall outlet and disc onnec t the antenna or cable system . This will prevent dam age to the product due to lightning and power line sur ges.

13. O VER LOAD ING - Do not overload wall outlets, ex tension cor ds , or integral convenience rec eptacles, as this can result in a risk of fire or electric­shock.

14. C LEANING - U nplug this product from the wall outlet before cleaning. Do not use liquid cleaners or aeros ol cleaners. Use a dam p cloth for cleaning.

15. NO N-USE PER IODS - This am plifier should be unplugged from the outlet w hen the appliance is left unused for a long period of time.

16. OBJECT AND LIQUIDENTRY - Never push objects of any kind into this product through openings, as they may touch dangerous voltage points or
short-out parts that could result in a fire or electric shock. Never spill liquid of any kind on this product.

17. DAM AGE REQUIRIN G SER VICE - The appliance should be ser viced by qualified pers onnel w hen:
a. The pow er supply cord or plug has been dam aged; or
b. Objects hav e fallen on or liquid has been spilled into the appliance; or
c. The appliance has been expos ed to rain; or
d. The appliance does not appear to operate normally or exhibits a marked change in perform ance; or
e. The appliance has been dropped or the enclosure is dam aged.

18. SERVICING - Do not attem pt t o service t his pr oduct yourself, as opening or r em oving cover s m ay ex pose you to danger ous voltage or other

hazards. Refer all ser vicing to qualified ser vice personnel. For ser vice warranty information call the NHT Hotline num ber: 1-800-NHT-9993.

19. R EPLACEMEN T PAR TS - W hen replacem ent parts are required, be sur e the ser vice technician has used replacem ent parts s pec ified by the m anu-

facturer or that have the sam e c haracterist ics as the original part. U nauthorized substitution may result in fire, electric shock, or other hazards.

20. SAFETY C H EC K - U pon com pletion of any ser vice or repairs to this product, ask the ser vice technician to perform saf ety c hec k s to determine that

the produc t is in proper operating condition.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

The lightning flash with the arrow head sym bol, within an equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the presence of uninsulated
“dangerous voltage” within the product’s enclosure that may be of sufficient m agnitude to cons titute a risk of electric shock to persons.

The exclam ation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presenc e of im portant operating and maintenance
(ser vicing) instructions in the literature acc om pany ing the appliance.

W ARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC SH O C K, DO NOT EXPO SE THIS APPLIANCE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.

CAUTION

RISK OF ELECTRIC SH O C K

DO NOT O PEN

CAUTION: T O REDUCE RISK OF ELECTRICAL SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE COVE R (OR BACK). NO
USER SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSON N EL.

CAUTION

TO PR EVEN T ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NO T USE THIS (PO LAR IZED) PLUG WITH AN EXTEN SION CO RD,
RECEPTACLE OR OTHER OUTL ET UNLESS THE BLADES CAN BE FULL Y INSERTED TO PREVENT
BLADE EXPOSUR E.

is to rem em ber that low frequencies produce sounds with
long wavelengths, wh ich i nteract i n com plex wa y s with
room boundar ies , such a w al ls and cor ners, and ot her
large objects as well.

Placing the subwoofer near to a room boundary will tend
to increase its appar ent bass output, but ma y res ult i n
"boom y" or "m uddy" sound. Conv ersely, placing it farther
away from room boundaries will tend to decrease its
apparent bass output, but may res ult in improved
articulation and clarity.

W hen possible, place the subw oofer in the sam e
horizontal plane and along the sam e w all as the m ain
speakers.

And since sm all changes in subwoofer position can have
a significant effect on sound, experim enting w ith the
effects of different placem ents in your ow n listening/view ­ing room is the key to finding the sound you like bes t.

SW 10 ll and SW 12 Features & Contro ls

Volum e:This control allows you to adjust the gain of the
Subw oofer relative to the rest of your system . M any lis­teners make the mistake of setting subwoofers too loud,
which c an caus e exc es s bloat and loss of detail and
musicality. A properly calibrated subwoofer blends in with
the speakers and does not call attention to itself. To
properly set volum e:

• Turn dow n the volum e control on the SW 10 ll or SW 12
to its low est position (counter-clockw ise) .

• T u rn on your audio syst em , i nc luding t he SW 10 ll or
SW 12. Play some music you are fam iliar with and set
your r ec eiver /pream plifier volum e to a com fortable lis­tening level.

• Slow ly increase the volum e of the SW 10 ll or SW 12, lis­tening for proper frequency balance. W hen balanced,
you will hear improv ed bass extension, but not be aw are
that it is com ing from the subwoofer.

From this point on, the volum e contro l on your
receiver /pream plifier will control the overall volum e of
your system , including the subwoofer.

The Boundary EQ: This is a feature unique to NHT
Evolution products. R eflective boundaries (such a s
walls) reinforce a s peaker’s bass output ( 3dB for two
walls, 6dB for a cor ner) if the subwoofer is pl aced near
them . Conv ersely, plac ing a subwoofer out in the room
results i n a r elative decr ease in bass out put. Boundar y
reinforcem ent ma y lead t o low f requency r esponse t hat

Thank you for your purchase of the N H T

SW 10 ll or SW 12 powered subwoofer.

Like all NHT louds peak ers, the SW 10 ll and SW 12's
developm ent has been guided by the study of hum an
hearing, it’s design rigorously tested, and its com ponents
optimized to deliver clean, clear musical sound.

Since the quality of y our s peakers is one of t he m ost
im portant factors in maximizing the sound you'll get from
your music and hom e theater system , we 're sure that
you'll f ind y our purchas e of t he SW 10 ll and SW 12 a
good inves tm ent, and invite your com m ents.

If you find your exper ience with t he SW 10 l l and SW 12
as satisfying as we believe you will, and wish to enjoy its
high quality sound through your entire system , you'll find
information about other sonically m atched NHT Super
Series loudspeak ers on the back of this m anual.

Background

The N H T SW 10 ll and SW 12 Power ed Subw oof er i s a
com pact, versatile and powerful am plified subwoofer
designed to provide low frequency reinforcem ent for high
perform ance audio and hom e theater system s.

The SW 10 ll and SW 12 features:

• line-level and speak er-level inputs, for connec tion with

all types of receivers or other audio com ponents

• independent gain, phase and low pass filter controls

• boundary control for adjusting system sound for var ious

room placem ent

Please t ake a f ew m i nutes t o r ead through t his owner 's
m anual before setting up your speakers; this information
will help you get the most out of them . Also, please keep
the SW 10 ll or S w12’s pack aging to use in case you
move or transport them .

If you have questions at any tim e dur ing setup or use,
feel free to call your NH T dealer or our To ll-Free
Custom er Hotline at 1-800-NHT-9993.

Placem ent

Note: To prev ent the SW 10 ll and SW 12 subwoofer
am plifier f rom overheating, alw ays be sur e to provide
adequate space f or pr oper vent ilation. D o not place the
subwoofer directly against the wall or any other sur face.

The key to placing your subwoofer for optimal enjoym ent

is unev en. S om e f requencies will sound ex aggerated
relative t o ot hers, or the subw oofer will sound thin and
lack im pact. The Boundary E Q cont rol allow s y ou to
com pensate for t he effects of r oom boundaries on the
frequency respons e
of the subwoof er. A d jus ting t he cont rol enables you to
achieve sm ooth low frequency output from the sub­woofer regardless of its location in your room .

The following diagram s shown in Fig. 1 show the cor re­lation between subwoofer placem ent and Boundary EQ .
These diagram s are guidelines only. Y our room
acoustics and per s onal tastes will ultimately di ctate t he
final set ting.

LOW PASS FILTE R :This control determines the upper­limit frequency the subw oofer w ill reproduce. For
exam ple, setting the filter at 100H z w ill cause the
subwoofer to r eproduce only f requencies below 100Hz.
The Low Pas s Filter is continuously var iable betw een
40Hz (low bass) and 180H z (upper bass), to
accom m odate different speak ers.

Tw o tips on using the Low Pass Filter:

As a s tarting point, set Low Pass Filter to t he 1 o’clock
position. This will result in an 80H z low pass. As the set­ting i s t ypical for mo st Dolby D igital / D TS applicat ions.
Note: The LFE input bypasses the adjustable 12dB Low
Pass Filter.

S ee the F ine-Tuning se ction for further adjustm ent
guidelines.

SUBW OOFER PHASE: This sw i tch set s t he phase of
the subwoofer at either the 0° position (normal phase) or
the 180° position (reverse phase) to achieve the
sm oothest possible bass response in your system .

This phase-reversing option is im portant becaus e if bass
frequencies com e from both the subwoofer and the main
speakers, peak s and dips in the frequency response can
occur at the listening position. In these cases, reversing
the subwoofer phase can improve blending and balanc e.

To properly set the Subwoofer Phas e:

• Play fam iliar music, reversing phase settings. And listen
from your usual position.

• Avoid evaluating while standing above the subwoofer or
am plifier; sound at the listening position will be
significantly different.

• The cor rect setting is the one in which the bass is the
loudest at the listening position.

POW ER M O DE: This feature autom atically sw itches
your SW 10 ll or S W 12 into m inimum-pow er m ode ( ie,
sleep) w henever no signal is pr esent for 20 m inutes.
W hen a signal is received, it im m ediately turns on again.
As AU TO M ode is autom atic, i t requires no adjustm ent,
nor is there a need to turn the SW 10 ll or SW 12 on and
off every t ime it i s used. W hen in O N M ode, t he sub­woofer is alw ays on.

Quarter/

Half

Space

Half

Space

Half/
W hole
Space

Fig. 1

Boundary

+3dB

0

-3dB

Boundary

Boundary

+3dB

0

-3dB

+3dB

0

-3dB

Back of Subw oofer (refer to diagram above)

(1) Pow er M ode - Leaves Subw oofer in perm anantly on
(ON), or puts the subwoofer in autom atic standby m ode
(AU TO).

(2) Power Indicator - The light is green w hen t he sub­woofer is on. The light is am ber when the subwoofer is in
stand-by m ode. The light is red w hen the subwoofer is in
protection.

(3) Vol um e Cont rol - Adjusts t he loudness of t he sub­woofer independently of the main speak ers.

(4) Low -Pass Filter - Continuously var iable low -pass
crossover control.

(5) Boundar y Sw itch - Selects response m ode of sub­woofer, depending on plac em ent.

(6) Subw oofer Phase Selector - 2- position selec table
phase c ontrol for subwoofer. (0 - 180)

(7) Line Input- Low level RCA input jacks for L/R signals
(8) LFE In/Out- Low level RCA input jack for LFE or sub-

woofer si gnal. Ou t is an unbuffered pass through used
for multiple subwoofers.

(9) Hi Level Input- Speaker level input connec tor.
(10) Pow er Switch -Turns the unit on and off
(11) Fuse Holder - location of the user ser vicable fuse

(12) Pow er Inlet - For univer sal AC line input connec tion

(13) I nput Voltage Sw itch - Se lects 1 15 VAC or 230
VAC mains voltage.

Connecting The SW 10II OR SW 12

Caution: Be fore connec ting the SW 10II O R SW 12 to
your audio syst em , it is i m portant to unplug or turn of f
all AC pow er connections to connected com ponents
such as receiver s, am plifiers, pream plifiers, and proces ­sor s. D o not pl ug in or connect the SW 10I I OR SW1 2
subwoofer to AC power unt il al l connections have been
m ade.

Integrating the SW 10II or SW 12 into your surround sys­tem is simple and straightforward w hen using t his con­nection m ethod. Y our AV Receiver will control all
crossover functions and the SW 10II or SW 12 will control
Subw oofer gain, phase and boundary equalization.

Connec t the Subwoofer/LFE Output on your AV Receiver
to the LFE IN on the back of the SW 10II or SW 12. (Fig.

2)

In t he event your receiver or pr e-am p does not have a
LFE or Subwoofer output the SW 10II/SW 12 has two
additional connec tion methods :

1) Line Level
Use if:

You have an am p or receiver with Pr e-Out jacks but no
LFE/Subw oofer jacks.

To c onnect f or a Line Level signal ( Fig. 3) , keep y our
main speak er s c onnected as usual, but use RCA line­level cables to connec t as follow s:

Line

CAUTION:FOR CONTINUED PROTECTION AGAINST
FIRE,REPLACE ONLY WITH SAME TYPE 250V FUSE

2001228

CONFORMSTO
ULSTD.6500

CERTIFIEDTO
CAN/CSA
STD.E60065

LR

SPEAKER OUTPUTS

LFE / Sub

+

-

Reciever

Main Speakers

SW10 / SW12
Back of Subwoofer

Hi Level Input

Out R

InL

LFE

Low Pass

Filter

40Hz

+L--R+

Power
Mode

On

180

+3dB

-3dB

Auto

0

0

Phase

Boundary

180Hz

Min

Max

Volume

Line
Input

Fig. 2

Input

LFE

Low Pass

Input Voltage

115

CONFORMSTO
ULSTD.6500

CERTIFIEDTO
CAN/CSA
STD.E60065

Filter

40Hz

180Hz

Min

Power

Phase

Mode

180

On

0

Auto

CAUTION:FOR CONTINUED PROTECTION AGAINST
FIRE,REPLACE ONLY WITH SAME TYPE 250V FUSE

2001228

WARNING:

WARNING:

TOREDUCE THERISK OFFIREOR ELECTRIC

TOREDUCE THERISK OFFIREOR ELECTRIC

SHOCK, DONOTEXPOSE THISAPPLIANCETO RAINOR MOISTURE.

SHOCK, DONOTEXPOSE THISAPPLIANCETO RAINOR MOISTURE.

CAUTION

CAUTION

RISKOF ELECTRIC SHOCK

RISKOF ELECTRIC SHOCK

DONOT OPEN

DONOT OPEN

WARNING:SHOCK HAZARD-DO NOTOPEN.

WARNING:SHOCK HAZARD-DO NOTOPEN.

AVIS:RISQUE DE CHOCELECTRIQUE-NE PAS OUVRIR.

AVIS:RISQUE DE CHOCELECTRIQUE-NE PAS OUVRIR.

InL

Out R

Hi Level Input

+L--R+

Powered
Subwoofer

13

4789

Volume

Boundary

Green - On
Amber - Standby
Red - Protect

On

Power

Off

Max

+3dB

0

-3dB

T3.0AL 250V

For 115V

T2.0AL 250V

For 230V

115V60Hz /
230V 50Hz~

300W

3

5

6
1

2

10

11

12

• Pream ps with Line Out jacks: connec t one pair of Line
Out cables to your main am p to pow er your main L & R
speakers, and a s econd pair to the SW 10I I OR S W 1 2
LINE LEVEL INPUT. If your pream p has only one pair of
Line O ut jacks, you can us e a pair of "Y" connec tor
cor ds , available through your NHT dealer.

• Am ps and receiver s w ith P re-Out j acks: connect t he
SW 10II OR SW 12 from the Pre-Out into the SW 10II OR
SW 12's Line Input.

2) Hi-Level

Use if:

Your receiver has no Pre O ut or Subw oofer/LFE O ut
jacks

To connect for a High-Level signal (Fig. 4), use two addi­tional pairs of speak er cables, and connec t as follow s:

• For am ps and receiver s with separate A and B speak ­er outputs, connect one pair of speaker cables from your
receiver 's Speaker A outputs to your main L & R speak­ers, and a second pair from your receiver 's Speaker B
outputs to the SW 10II OR SW 12's High-Level Input. Use
this method only if both A & B s peak er outputs can oper­ate simultaneously.

• For am ps and r ec eiver s w i th only one set of speaker
output terminals, simply feed the sam e signal, in parallel,
to bot h your ma in L & R speaker s and the SW 10I I OR
SW 12. C onnect one pair of speak er cables from your

com ponent's speaker output terminals to the L & R
speakers, and a second pair from t he sam e out put ter­minals to the SW 10II OR SW 12's High-Level input. The
SW 10II OR SW 12's input does not present a significant
load to the receiver, and will not com pr om ise its output to
the L & R speak ers. If you find that your receiver will not
accom m odate more than one cable per output terminal,
check w ith your NH T dealer for alternative m et hods of
connection.

With all signal connections com plete, i t i s now time to
apply AC power. Plug the power chord into the pow er
inlet in the back of the subwoofer, plug the other end into
into t he wal l out let and swi tch t he subwoof ers power to
the ON pos ition.

L

L

R

R

SPEAKER OUTPUTS

Pre Out

+

-

Reciever

Main Speakers

SW10 / SW12
Back of Subwoofer

Hi Level Input

Out R

InL

LFE

Low Pass

Filter

40Hz

+L--R+

Power

Mode

On

180

+3dB

-3dB

Auto

0

0

Phase

Boundary

180Hz

Min

Max

Volume

Line
Input

Fig. 3

Out R

InL

LFE

Low Pass

Filter

40Hz

+L--R+

Power

Mode

On

180

+3dB

-3dB

Auto

0

0

Phase

Boundary

180Hz

Min

Max

Volume

Line
Input

SW10 / SW12
Back of Subwoofer

LEFT RIGHT

+ +

- -

Reciever

Main Speakers

SPEAKER OUTPUT SPEAKER OUTPUT

ut R

InL

LFE

Line
Input

Hi Level Input

Fig. 4

Fine Tuning the S ubw oofer

The key to good subwoofer / speaker integration is
repeated listening, f ollowed by m aking sm all r e-adjust­m ents of the subwoofer controls. The m ost im portant
bass tuning functions you will control are the LO W -PASS
FILTER , follow ed by the VO LUM E CO NTR O L settings
and then PH ASE SELECTOR.

The f requency char t below lists som e t erms co mmon ly
used to describe different bands of the frequency
spectrum . List en to your system and make adjustm ents
to achieve a seam less b lend betw een your m ain
speakers and the SW 10 ll or SW 12. Four com m on prob­lem s are outlined below. Follow the flow chart to cor rect
these. See the glossar y for any terms y ou are unfam iliar
with.

Frequency Chart

Low Bass Mid B ass U pper Bass Lower Mid Mid U pper Mid High

Below 50H z 50H z -100H z 100H z -180H z

3K and above

180Hz-300H z 300Hz-700H z 700Hz-3K

Fine Tuning Flow Chart

"Boomy"

Too Much

Mid / Upper

Problem

Bass

Adjust

Subwoofer

Phase

Solution

0-90

(Continuously

Add)

Lower

Low Pass

X-Over

Frequency

Lower

Subwoofer

Volume

Mid / Upper Bass:

Lean But With

Adjust

Subwoofer

Phase

0-90

(Continuously

Add)

If this makes

it worse,

try

If the sound

improves

Adjust

Subwoofer

Volume

Lacks

Weight

Raise

Low-Pass

Setting

Adjust

Subwoofer

Volume

Lacks

Low

Bass

Weight

Adjust

Subwoofer

Phase

Switch

0-180

Increase

Boundary

EQ

Move

Subwoofer

Closer to

Wall

Excessive

Low

Bass

Weight

Decrease

Boundary

EQ

Move

Subwoofer

Farther

From Wall

Listen

Listen

Listen

Adjust

Subwoofer

Phase

Listen

Listen

O peration

We recom m end that the S W 10 ll or SW 12 pow er be left
on, which will allow the built-in Auto M ode feature to dis­able the subwoofer w hen not in use.

Every speaker, has limits, and it's im portant to listen for
them . Speak er dam age most often results not from brief
loud musical peaks, but from sustained high volum e lev­els i n s om e or all frequencies. F o r t his reas on,
extrem e volum e settings and excessive bass, t reble or
equalizer boosts are not recom m ended.

If you hear unusual dist ortion or breakup, or notice heat
com ing f rom t he woofer, decr ease volum e im m ediately,
neutralize any excess bass, t reble or equalizer boost s,
and avoid setting any controls to similar extrem es again.

Maintenance

Your SW 10 ll and SW 12 is designed for years of use with
no or minimal maintenance, as long as you avoid expos ­ing it to direct sunlight, hi gh tem peratures, or moisture.
Clean cabinets, w hen necessary, using a dam p cloth or
a m ild, non-abrasive cleaner; to clean grilles, rem ove
from speaker and use a soft br ush or a vacuum on its
lowes t setting. Do not attem pt to clean the actual driv­er.

9.8 Changing the Line Voltage Setting

The SW 10 ll and SW 12 were designed to operate on two
line voltage settings, 115VAC and 230VAC . In the event
that i t i s necessar y t o c hange the line voltage setting,
begin by turning the pow er sw itch to the off position.
Rem ove all the connec tions from the am plifier, including
the det achable pow er cor d. U si ng a flat blade sc r ew­driver, sl ide t he switch t o t he cor rect position. U se the
115VAC position for 110 to 120 VAC , and the 230VAC
position for 220 to 240 VAC. Next you will likely need a
power cor d that fits the AC receptacle and you will need
to replace the fuse (see "C hanging the Fuse" below)

Changing the Fuse

The SW 10 ll and SW 12 am plifier's fuse is user-ser vicea­ble.

To replace it:

• turn the pow er O FF

• unplug the pow er cor d

• rem ove the fuse holder cover (above to the pow er inlet)
with a flat blade scr ewdriver

• rem ove the fuse from the holder and replace it with the

appropriate type.

• reinstall the fuse holder

Alw ays r eplac e the fuse with one of the exac t sam e
specifications.

SW 10 ll:

For system s operating at 1 15 volts, use only a 5x20 mm,
T3A, 250-volt slow -blow fuse.

For system s operating at 230 volts, use only a 5x20 mm,
T2.0A, 250-volt slow -blow fuse.

SW 12:

For system s operating at 1 15 volts, use only a 5x20 mm,
T5A, 250-volt slow -blow fuse.

For system s operating at 230 volts, use only a 5x20 mm,
T2.5A, 250-volt slow -blow fuse.

Troubleshooting

If the SW 10 ll or SW 12 f ails t o oper ate at all w hen t he
Power Switch i s t urned on, thoroughly check t he pow er
cor d, input and output connec tions

If the SW 10 ll or SW 12 t urns on but the LED indicator
fails to illum inate, mis-wiring or a pow er sur ge may have
caused the protection fuse to blow. R eplace it with one of
cor rect type and value.

If the SW 10 ll or SW 12 turns on but its status LED stays
red, the unit is gone into pr otect m ode, wh ich coul d be
caus ed by incorrect wiring, short circuits, or excessive
volum e. Turn off the Power Switch on the subwoofer for
two or more seconds to reset, and double chec k all
speaker c ables to be sur e that no sm all metal strands are
shorting the terminals.

If these steps don't restore the SW 10 ll or SW 12 to oper­ation, c ontact your local Authorized NHT D ealer or NHT
for assistance.

Satisfaction

Your sat isfaction with your new NHT SW 10 ll or SW 12
Subw oofer is im portant to us. Please note the matched
products and accessor ies we provide for them , and your
warranty, printed on the back of this m anual. If you have
any questions regarding your speak ers' use, feel free to
call NHT a t 1- 800-NHT-9993. E n joy your listening and
view ing!

Glossary

Active:U ses electrical power.
Am plifier : An electronic device t hat i ncreases the cur ­rent and/or voltage of a signal, pr ov iding pow er t o the
loudspeakers ( i.e. pow er am plifier, i ntegrated am plifier,
receiver ).
Bass: The range of audio frequencies below 180Hz,
characterized by low pitch.
Cr ossover : An electronic circuit t hat divides an audio
signal into different frequency ranges.
Distortion:Any deviation from the original signal.
Driver:The moving part of a loudspeak er, which radiates
sound energy .
Dynam ics:Variations in loudness of sound.
Freque ncy : A rate of vibration, wh ich cor responds to
musical pitch, expressed in Hertz (Hz).
Full Range: A signal encom passing t he ent ire audible
frequency spectrum .
Hertz (Hz):A unit equal to one cycle per second, used to
m easure the frequency of a signal or sound.
High-Pass Filter :A filter that passes only high frequen­cies above a low er limit.
Im pedance:A m easure of the total opposition to cur rent
flow in an alternating cur rent circuit, m easured in ohm s.
In Phase:The polarity of an audio signal w hen connect­ed as follow s: (+) to (+) and (-) to (-).
Integrated A m pl ifier:A pr eam plifier and am pl ifier built
into one chassis.
Inter connect Cable:A length of shielded wire with plugs
at both ends for feeding signals from one electronic
device to another.
L.F.E.:"Low Frequency Effec ts" ; The .1 channel of infor­mation recorded on most multichannel digital sound for­mats.
Line-Level Connect ion:Low level RCA/phono or XLR
type connec tion.
Load:A term used to desc ribe the im pedance that a
speaker presents to an am plifier.
Low-Pass Fi lter:A filter that passes onl y low frequen­cies below a higher limit.
Main Speaker s: Fr ont L & R channel speaker s, som e­times referred to as satellites.
Main-In:A line-level RCA/XLR pow er am plifier input on

the back of a receiver, integrated am plifier or pow er
am plifier.
Midrange:The frequency span in the middle of the audio
range, roughly 180Hz - 3000H z. A lso used to descr ibe
the driver that reproduces these frequencies.
Ohm :A unit of elec trical resistance. That which opposes
an electric cur rent in a conduc tor. In audio, a m easure of
the load presented by a device to an electrical source.
Out-of-Phase: The polarity of an audio signal when
connected as follow s: (+) to (-) and (-) to (+).
Passive:Uses no electrical pow er.
Phase:An expression of the relative polarities of two sig­nals.
Power Handling:The ability of a louds peak er to operate
without large increases in distortion when given var ying
am ounts of input pow er.
Pream plifier : An el ec tronic device t hat sel ects sources
and passes line-level signals to an am plifier.
Pre-Out:A pream p line-level RCA output on the back of
a receiver, integrated am plifier or pream plifier.
Receiver : A pr eam plifier, am plifier and tuner built i nto
one chassis.
Satellite:Front L & R speaker s when used w ith a sub­woofer. Also referred to as "m ain speakers" .
Sensitivity:A ratio of voltage across the speaker load to
the acous tic power output, m easured in decibels.
Sub O ut :A n line level out put for connection to a sub­woofer or subwoofer signal proces s or.
Subw oofer:A dr iver designed t o oper ate over t he low
bass portion of the audio range. Also refers to a system
consisting of a w oofer and its enclosure, which are phys­ically s eparate from the upper range loudspeakers.
Sur round Speakers: Speak ers located in the side or
rear for sur round channel effects.
Treble: The upper part of the frequency spec trum , con­sisting of frequencies above about 3000H z.
Tw eeter:A sm all driver designed to reproduce high fre­quencies .
Watt:A m easure of electrical pow er, com bining the volt­age with the electrical cur rent required to drive the loud­speaker.
Weight:Low frequencies below 50H z.
W oofer:A driver designed to operate over the bass por­tion of the audio range.

SB1 SB2 SB3 ST4 SC1 SW 10

Specifications

System Type

Driver Com plem ent

Tweeter-

W oofer-

Video Shielded Unless Noted

Response

Sensitivity

Im pedance

Recom m ended

Am plifier Pow er

Weight

Dimensions

Finish

2-Way A coustic

Suspension

2-Way A coustic

Suspension

2-Way A coustic

Suspension

1” fluid cooled alum inum dom e tw eeter wit h neodym ium m agnet str uct ure

3-Way A coustic

Suspension

5.25”
Polypropy lene

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 125 watts

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 150 watts

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 175 watts

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 200 watts

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 150 watts

68Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

86dB / 2.83v 86dB / 2.83v 86dB / 2.83v 86dB / 2.83v 86dB / 2.83v

51Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

39Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

31Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

78Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

8 ohm nom inal 8 ohm nom inal 8 ohm nom inal 8 ohm nom inal 8 ohm nom inal

6.75 x 6.25 x 10. 25

8 lbs.

13 lbs. 16 lbs. 47.5 lbs. 11 lbs. 39.5 lbs.

8.75 x 7.5 x 11 . 85 10 x 8 x 13 12 x 8 x 38 6.63 x 16.54 x 5.63 14 x 12 x 18

White or Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

White or Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

6.5”

Polypropy lene

6.5”

Polypropy lene

(2) 4.5”

Polypropy lene

10”

Alum inum

(Not Video Shielded)

6.5” and 8”

Polypropy lene

(8” Not Video Shielded)

2-Way A coustic

Suspension

Vented /

Powered - 150 watts

Class G Am plifier

Depth” x Width” x Height”

Super Series

SC2

Minimum 15 watts

Maximum 175 watts

87dB / 2.83v

73Hz - 22kHz

+/- 3dB

8 ohm nom inal

22 lbs.

8.5 x 19 x 6.5

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

(2) 5.25”

Polypropy lene

2-Way A coustic

Suspension

Limited W a rran ty

Valid Only in the U.S.A.

W arra n ty Period
For a period of 5 years for parts and 5 years for labor (1 year parts and 90 days labor for electronics) from the date this produc t is first purchased from an author-

ized NHT dealer, Now Hear This (NHT) warrants that if it fails to function properly due to a m anufacturing defect, despite its being installed and operated accor d­ing to these instructions and used under normal c onditions, it will be either replaced or repaired with new or rebuilt parts (both at NHT's option) with a unit of
com parable value without charge to you.

What's Not C over ed

Altered, defaced or r em oved ser ial num bers void this w a rran ty.
This warranty does not cover any product used in trade, business, industrial or commercial applications.

This w arranty al so does not cover the cabi net or appear ance f ac tors, or cost s, defects or dam age r esulting f rom m isuse, abuse, acci dent, improper ma inte­nance, alterations or m odificat ions not authorized in writing by NHT, or parts or labor from any source other than an authorized NHT ser vice location.

Dam age due to pow er exposure in excess of the s peak er's published pow er ratings; ie, overpowering, lightning or pow er sur ges , are also not cover ed.

Your Rights
This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may have other rights which var y from state to st ate.

NHT limits this warranty to the purchase price of the product, excludes incidental or consequential dam ages, and limits its obligations under any implied war­ranties under st ate law s to a period not exceeding their warranty periods. As som e states do not allow the above limitations, how ev er, they may not apply to
you.

To Obtain Service

To find the nam e and address of the nearest authorized NHT ser vice location, call or write:

Custom er Service Department, NHT, 527 Stone Rd., Benicia, CA 94510, 1-800-NHT-9993 (648-9993), www.nhthifi.com

For your future convenience, please keep this w a rran ty with your sales receipt, and r ecord date and place of pur chase for further re fer ence.

All S uper Series produc ts are s onically matched for seam less integration into multichannel syst em s .

31Hz - 180Hz

+/- 3dB

SW 12

47.5 lbs.

16 x 14 x 20

Black

High Gloss Piano

Finish

12”

Alum inum

(Not Video Shielded)

Vented /

Powered - 250 watts

Class G Am plifier

27Hz - 180Hz

+/- 3dB