PS Audio GCHA User Manual
®
Owner’s Reference
Instructions for use
Owner’s Reference GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301
PH: 720.406.8946 service@psaudio.com www.psaudio.com
©2005 PS Audio International Inc. All rights reserved.
Document 15-044-21-1
Introduction i
®
Introduction
Owner’s Reference GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
Important Safety
Instructions
Heed all warnings
Follow all instructions
WARNING. TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRICAL SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS
APPARATUS TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
Clean only with a dry cloth.
Do not place fl ammable material on top of or beneath the component.
All PS Audio components require adequate ventilation at all times during operation. Rack
mounting is acceptable where appropriate.
Do not remove or bypass the ground pin on the end of the AC cord. This may cause RFI (radio
frequency interference) to be induced into your playback setup and is potentially unsafe. All PS
products ship with a grounding type plug. If the provided plug does not fi t into your outlet, consult
an electrician for replacement of the obsolete outlet.
Protect the power cord from being walked on or pinched particularly at plugs, convenience
receptacles, and the point where they exit from the apparatus. Unplug this apparatus during
lightning storms or when unused for long periods of time.
When making connections to this or any other component, make sure all components are off. Turn
off all systems’ power before connecting the PS Audio component to any other component. Make
sure all cable terminations are of the highest quality.
Read these instructions
There are no fuses inside this product.
THERE ARE NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE ANY PS AUDIO PRODUCT. REFER ALL
SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL
Please contact your authorized dealer, distributor, or PS Audio if you have any questions not
addressed in this reference manual.
This product is manufactured in the United States of America. PS Audio
restricted for use by PS Audio International, Inc., its subsidiaries, and authorized agents.
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301
PH: 720.406.8946 service@psaudio.com www.psaudio.com
©2005 PS Audio International Inc. All rights reserved.
®
is a registered trademark of PS Audio International Inc., and is
Introduction ii
®
Table Of Contents
Owner’s Reference GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
Introduction
Getting Started
Quick Start Guide
Questions and
Answers
Troubleshooting
Warranty
Service
IV
1
2 - 3
4 - 5
6 - 7
8 - 9
10 - 11
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301
PH: 720.406.8946 service@psaudio.com www.psaudio.com
©2005 PS Audio International Inc. All rights reserved.
Table Of Contens iii
®
Introduction
Owner’s Reference GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
Thank you for your purchase of the PS Audio GCHA Headphone Amplifi er.
What will it do?
No attenuators
inside
What you can
expect
The GCHA is a high-end headphone amplifi er designed for audiophile listening. It is based on PS
Audio’s unique Gain Cell Technology.
The GCHA contains a Gain Cell’s preamplifi er stage and a Class A biased output stage. The GCHA can
accept audio signals from any analog source or digital audio from your USB-compliant computer.
A unique feature of the GCHA is the volume control itself: which does not attenuate the audio signal
in the tradional manner, rather, the level of the GCHA is adjusted by controling the gain of amplifi ers
inside the GCHA.
In a traditional headphone amplifi er, an audio signal is presented to the amplifi er at full signal level.
The headphone amplifi er then attenuates, or reduces, that input signal to reach the desired listening
level with headphones. While this conventional method of controlling the volume is an acceptable
practice, it does have drawbacks: the attenuators cause degradation of the audio signal. The GCHA
solves this problem by use of the PS Gain Cell technology. Gain Cells have adjustable gain and need
no attenuation of the input signal to achieve desired listening levels. Instead, the front panel volume
control is a gain adjustment, rather than an attenuator. The removal of any attenuators in the signal
path has a sonic advantage over conventional technologies.
You should expect unrivaled sonic qualities, with low noise, high performance audio being delivered
to your headphones.
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301
PH: 720.406.8946 service@psaudio.com www.psaudio.com
©2005 PS Audio International Inc. All rights reserved.
Introduction iv
®
Getting Started
Owner’s Reference GCHA Headphone Amplifi er
Location
Isolation
Power Cables
Use a Power
Plant
Audio
interconnects
Once your new GCHA is unpacked, you’ll need to fi nd a convenient place to set it.
There are several ways to mount the GCHA: on a shelf next to the preamplifi er, CD or DVD player, or
on a desk or table near your computer.
The GCHA can benefi t from aftermarket isolation devices such as cones, spikes and Sorbothane
pads.
Once you have chosen the location for the GCHA you can use the supplied AC power cord to connect
it to the AC wall receptacle to get started, or you can use an aftermarket power cord and receptacle.
We strongly recommend the use of a PS Audio xStream Power™ AC cable and a PS Power Port™
AC receptacle to feed the GCHA power. While the supplied power cable is adequate for the task of
setup it is not going to provide the best performance. Choosing any xStream Power cable will make
a signifi cant performance improvement over the stock power cable. An xStream Plus would be our
recommendation.
It is further recommended that you power the GCHA with a PS Audio Power Plant if possible, or a
UPC-200 or Ultimate Outlet if not. Power conditioning with the appropriate equipment will further the
benefi ts of the GCHA headphone amplifi er.
Connections from the analog audio source should be through high quality audio interconnects with
proper shielding. Using inexpensive, off-the-shelf audio interconnects should be avoided if you expect
the full benefi ts of this high-end audio amplifi er to be available. We would recommend using audio
interconnects less than 3 meters in length. PS designs and sells a line of reference quality audio
interconnects that are highly recommended. Please see your PS dealer for details.
USB cable
Connections from the computer to the USB input of the GCHA should use a high quality, properly
shielded USB-2.0 cable. Each GCHA has a supplied and approved USB cable included.
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301
PH: 720.406.8946 service@psaudio.com www.psaudio.com
©2005 PS Audio International Inc. All rights reserved.
Getting Started 1
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