Madrigal Audio N380S manual

Nº380S Pr eamplifier Owner’ s Manual Madrigal Audio Laboratories R[...]

C A UT ION RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK DO NOT OPEN CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRICAL SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE COVER. NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED PERSONNEL. WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS APPLIANCE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE. The l i g ht nin g fl a sh w it h arr o w he a d sy mbo[...]

I mport ant Saf e ty I nstru c t ions P l ea se re a d al l inst r u ct io ns a n d p re ca u ti o ns ca r efu ll y a nd c o mp l et e l y bef o re o pe ra t in g y o ur M a r k Le v inso n ® po w er ampli fier . 1. AL W A Y S dis co nn ect y our ent ire sy st e m f ro m th e A C ma ins be f o re c o nn ect in g o r dis co nn ect in g any cables, [...]

4 F rom a ll o f us at M ad r ig al Aud io La bor at o r ies , th a nk yo u f or c h oosi n g t h e M ark Levi ns o n Nº380S P rea mp l if ier . A g rea t dea l of e f f ort went i n to t h e de si g n a nd c o n struc t io n o f th is prec isi o n devic e . Us ed p roperly , it wi ll g ive you ma n y years of en jo ymen t .[...]

5 T able of C on t en ts U npa cking and Pla cement ........................................................................ 6 un packin g ........................................................................................................... 6 ins t allin g the ba tt eries in th e r emo t e c on t r ol .........................................[...]

6 U n pac k in g and P lac e m en t unpac ki ng U n pa c k y o ur Nº380S P re a mp lif ie r a nd k eep a ll pa ckin g mat eri als f o r futur e tr a ns- po r t . L oca t e an d r em o v e al l a c ce ss o r y ite ms f r om t h e ca rto ns . A cc es so ri es in cl u d e: 19 0 ° sh ielde d A C power c or d 1 5 ⁄ 64 " Allen key 1 Nº38 0S rem[...]

7 O pe r ati n g V olt ag e The Nº380S P rea mp l ifi er is se t at t h e f a ct o r y (inte rna ll y) f or 1 00V , 1 20V , 2 00V , 2 30V , 2 20V , or 2 40V A C ma ins op er a ti o n @ 5 0 o r 60Hz . ( 2 3 0V/50Hz o nl y i n Eu ro- pea n Un i o n c ou n tries , in c o mp l ian c e with CE r eg u lati o ns . ) This v ol ta g e s ett in g ca nn ot b[...]

8 A Qui c k St ar t… W e recognize tha t many p eopl e are underst andab ly ea ger to b egin l i steni ng to th e ir ne w c om po n ent s , an d t ha t r ea d in g th e ma nua l is o ft en d o ne (if a t a ll) a t a l a te r t ime—per ha p s w hil e lis te nin g t o mu si c thr o u g h t he n e w p rodu ct itself . We st ron gl y re c o m mend [...]

9 display intensity monitor record select balance inverted polarity mono 123456 standby mode mute 9 8 7 3 2 1 5 10 6 4 PREAMPLIFIER Nº 380 S F r on t P an el 1 D ISPL A Y INTEN SITY BU T TO N C y c l es a m o n g f o ur l e v els o f b ri g htn es s (in cl u d in g “ of f ”) f o r th e dis p l a y , a l- l o w in g a dju stme nt f or v a ri ou[...]

10 3 MO D E IN D I C A T ORS Three L EDs g i v e vis ua l co nfirma t i on o f th e o pe ra t io na l mode th e Nº380S is in a t an y m o me nt . W he n th e balan ce c o ntr o l o f th e Nº380S is “ of f-cent e r , ” the balanc e LE D re ma ins lit a s a re mind e r , in a ddit i o n t o oth er m ode indi- cat ors th at mi ght be o n t o in [...]

11 If y ou a djus t th e v ol um e w ith e ith er t h e v ol ume kn o b o r th e r em ot e c ont ro l w hil e mu t e is en g a g ed , the p r ea mp l ifi er w ill a dju st its v o lu me from th e m u te d vol u me and dise ngage th e mu te fu n cti o n . (This to p r e v ent an u n- p l ea sa nt su rp rise w hen , ha vin g inc rea s ed the v ol um [...]

12 PUSH PUSH PUSH PUSH right balanced main out right balanced input 1 right balanced input 2 left balanced main out left balanced input 2 left balanced input 1 right main out left main out right input 3 right input 4 right input 5 right input 6 left input 6 left input 5 left input 4 left input 3 right rec out 1 right rec out 2 left rec out 2 left r[...]

13 If y our s y st em c a lls f o r mu l ti p l e ou tp ut s f r om t h e Nº380S (as mi g ht be t he ca se f or “ pas si v e ” b ia m p lifi c a ti o n , f or e x a mp le), y ou ma y us e ba l a nc ed Y - a da pt ers t o s p lit ea ch b al a n c ed out pu t int o t w o bal a n c ed out pu ts . Th e l o w output imp e dance ( 6 Ω ) of th e N?[...]

14 4 RE CO R D OU TP UTS C o nne ct th ese o ut pu ts t o t he ri g ht-c h a nne l a n d l eft-c h ann e l ta pe inp ut s of y o ur r ec o rd er . Ma k e a n ot e of w hic h set o f r ec ord out puts y o u us ed w ith w hi c h re co r din g d e v ic e . I t is impo rtant t o na me t he in p ut s y ou u se a n d t o as soc i a te t h e co rr ect r e[...]

15 W arni ng! Conn ec tin g the c ommun icat ion ports oth er than as desc ribed in th is manu al c an dam age the Nº3 80S an d the as soc iat ed Mark L e v inson c ompon en ts, and wi ll v oid those products ’ w arranties. 6 IN P UTS 3-6 A cc ept s ri g ht-c ha nn e l a nd l e ft-ch a nn el (s in g l e-e nd ed) in put s f r o m line-l ev el so [...]

16 Re mote C o n t r o l 1M O N O P re ss in g th is butt o n w ill t o gg l e t he Nº380S in a nd o ut o f th e mono mo d e , h a vin g th e s a me e ff ect as p r es s in g th e f ro nt p an e l mon o b ut ton. Mo no mod e ac tivates ci rc ui t r y which com bi nes L e f t and Righ t i npu t sig n al s, and sends the resu lting m onophon ic s ig[...]

17 7M U T E T og g l es be t w e en n o rma l ou tp ut l e v el a n d th e u ser -pr o gr amma bl e mut e function , reducing the lev el by 1 to 6 0 decibel s ( dep endi ng on the user ’ s p ro gra mmin g). Th e f a ct o r y de f a u l t sett in g g i v e s a 20 d ec ibe l red u cti o n in output.[...]

18 Se tu p an d I nst al l at ion con nec tions and c ables The Nº380S in c o rpo ra t es bot h R C A-ty pe a n d XLR -type c o nn ect o rs f or a u d io s i g- na l in pu t an d ou tp ut . Th e Ma d ri ga l-d es i gn ed R C A-ty pe c o nne ct or s us ed f o r sin gl e-end ed a u di o int er c on- n ect io n a re a g rea t im p ro v em ent o v er [...]

19 set up o v ervie w The Nº380S P rea mp l i f ie r ha s ma n y p ro visi o ns f or c us to m-ta il o rin g t he s y st em ’ s o per at io n t o mat c h y o ur p re f ere nc e s . The c o nsist ent met hod f or m odif y in g a n y of th es e sett in g s is to e nt er a se tup mod e by : • p re ss in g a nd h o l din g a b utt o n f o r se v e[...]

20 The f a cto ry de f a u lt in put na me is NO T USED f o r ea ch in pu t e x cep t CD1 and CA S 3 (f or “ casse tte in in put 3 ” , th e m o st c omm o n r ec or d in g de v i ce); t h ese w er e co nf i g- ur ed f or th e Q u ic k Sta rt port io n o f this ma nu a l . An y o r a ll in pu t nam es (in c lu d- in g th es e) ma y be ch a n g e[...]

21 as s igning record outp ut s 5 IF T H E SO U RCE I N Q U E ST I O N IS A R E C O RD AB LE D EV I CE… Y ou w ill be fu rthe r p ro mp t ed to a s soc ia t e a pa r ti c u l ar r ec or d output with th is pa r t ic u l a r de v i ce . Inst ea d of s h o w in g “ NE W D AT A , ” the displ a y wi ll read “ RCD: N ON E ” a s shown b e low .[...]

22 r esult s of unr ealist ic te sts The Nº380S P r eam p lif i er h as bee n op t imiz ed t o y i e l d op t imum s onic per f or - mance u nder normal, real- w orl d operating conditions . T hi s app roa ch inv olv es no dis a d v a nta g e wh en t h e u nit is u sed a s des i g ned . U nrea l ist ic t e sts s u ch a s lis te nin g a t fu ll g a[...]

23 4 PRE SS AN D HO LD TH E MOD E B UTT O N O N T H E F RO N T P A N E L Aft er a f ew s eco n ds t he d is p l a y will c h an ge t o s ho w S E T DATA , a s b el ow . R e l ea se th e mode but ton. 5 R AI SE THE V OLU ME TO MATCH Y OUR REFER ENCE Using the v o lum e k nob , raise the v olume of your “ quieter ” sourc e until i t su bje ct i v[...]

24 In o r de r t o tak e a d va nta g e of t his aut omat ic output l e v el sett in g , f o ll o w th e st ep s be lo w: 1 S EL ECT THE I N PU T WHO SE LE VEL Y O U W OUL D L IK E T O “ AU TOMATE” 2 A DJUS T THE V OLUME TO Y OUR PREFERR ED L E VEL This w ill be t he p r ef err ed , p r o gra mmed l e v e l . 3 PRE SS AN D HO LD TH E MOD E B UT[...]

25 5 PR E SS AN D HO LD TH E MO D E B UTT O N A G AI N… u nt il th e d isp l a y re a ds NE W D ATA . This in di c at e s th a t y o ur n e w aut omat ic output le v el h a s been st o red in n o n v o la t il e me m o r y . Y our Nº380S w ill n ow a ut oma t i ca ll y r etu rn to t h is v o l- ume s et ting whene v er th is i nput i s s elected[...]

26 2 ADJUST THE V OLU ME KNOB T O Y OUR PREFERRE D SE T TING Y ou ma y se l ect a n y v a lu e bet w ee n - 1 an d -60 d ec ibe ls (in c lu si v e), in o n e- deci b el i ncre me n ts. 3 PRE SS AN D HO LD TH E MUTE B U T T O N A G AI N W h en t he d is p la y rea d s NE W DATA , t he Nº380S w ill h a v e s a v ed yo ur n e w sett in g in n o n v o[...]

27 ma l v ol ume m ode of o pe ra t i on . The d is p l a y wil l rea d LOC K OF F to in d ic a te t h e re turn t o n o rmal o pera t i on . st andb y tim er In a s imil ar f as hi on , y o u ma y el e ct to h a v e t h e p re am p lifi e r (an d t he ent ire sy s- t em , i f Link ed) g o int o st andb y aft e r a ce r ta in pe riod o f t ime , mu[...]

28 O pe r ati on al M odes the m onit or mode Th e ma jo rity of t im e y o u sp en d w ith y our Nº380S w il l be s pent in t he mo ni tor m ode . In t his m od e , t he d is p l a y ind ic a te s th e na me o f th e in pu t y ou h a v e se- l ect ed a n d th e list e nin g v ol um e (in de c ibe ls). Th e out p ut c ont r ol a cts as a v ol- ume[...]

29 The r ecor d outputs ma y be d isco nn ect ed (o r “ de f ea ted ”) b y pr es sin g the i nput selec t or bu tt o n of t he c urr ent l y se l ect ed (t o-be-re co r ded) in p ut a se co n d t ime . Do in g s o w ill t o gg l e t he r ec or d outputs o n a nd o f f . Th e d is p l a y will a lt e rnat iv el y re a d th e na me o f th e ch os[...]

30 balan ce c ont r ol tip P r ec ise balan ce c o ntr o l is e sse nt ial f o r obta in in g a c cu ra t e s ou n dsta gin g . Ou tp ut imba l a n ce s du e t o as ymm etri c a l p l a c eme nt of t h e l ou ds p eak ers in t h e roo m a re c omm o n , a n d de gra d e ima g in g a ccu ra cy . T o co rr ect t his p ro b l em , p l a ce t he Nº380[...]

31 U sin g Su rr oun d Soun d P r oc e s sors The Nº380S P rea mp l ifi er in co rp or at e s a s pec ial s u rro un d s ou n d p roc e ss o r mod e w hi c h mak es it u n iqu e l y c a pab l e o f int eg ra t in g th e hi gh es t perf orma n ce a u dio w ith s urr ou n d so u n d—th a t is , dua l-p urp ose mu si c a nd m o vi e sy st em s . In[...]

32 the SS P must n ot be in a t ape loop The l ast re ma inin g alt e rnat i v e w ou ld se em t o be t o inse r t th e de cod er “wit hin ” a p re am p lifi e r b y hoo king it u p in a ta pe l oop . Unf ortuna t e l y , t his setu p retu rns th e Le ft a n d R i g ht o ut put s of t h e de cod er t o t he p r ea mp lifie r , w h er e th e y c[...]

33 wiri ng di agr am using an SS P LF RF Ctr RS LS Listening Room video 1 video 2 video 3 video 4 Surround Sound Processor Sub Surround P ower Amplifier Center/Sub P ower Amplifier Main (Front) P ower Amplifier RF LF RS LS Ctr Sub LF RF MADRIGAL AUDIO LABORATORIES R display intensity monitor record select balance inverted polarity mon o 123456 stan[...]

34 Lin k ed F un c t ions The Nº380S h a s th e a b il ity to “l ink ” se v era l o f its fu nct io ns t o c erta in co m pa ti b le M ar k L e vins o n co m po ne nts (s u ch a s t he Nº30 . 5 or Nº36S d ig ita l p r oce ss o rs a n d th e Nº3 1 . 5 an d Nº3 7 CD tr ans p ort). N ot e: T o tak e adv an tag e of lin k ed func tions , y ou [...]

35 Car e an d M ai n t en an c e T o rem ov e du st f r om t he c a b in et of t h e Nº380S , u se a f ea th er du st e r . T o re m o v e dirt an d f in g erp rint s , w e r ec omm en d is op r o p y l a l c ohol and a s of t clot h . Appl y th e al cohol to the cloth fir st and then lightl y clean the surfa ce of t he Nº380S , g o in g w ith t [...]

36 U .S . an d Can adian W arr anty 90-day lim it ed w arr anty This Ma r k Le vinso n ® p r odu ct is w arr a nted t o be f ree f r o m de f ect s in ma t eria l a n d w orkman ship under no r mal use fo r a per io d of ni net y ( 9 0 ) da ys fr om the date of purchas e . T o ex tend the warranty of this Mark Lev ins on product , return t h e w a[...]

37 Ob t aining Ser v ic e W e ta k e gr ea t p rid e in ou r d ea le rs . E x peri en c e , d edi ca t i on , an d int e grity ma k e th es e p ro f e ss io na ls i dea ll y su ited t o a ss ist w ith o ur c u sto m ers ’ se r vi ce n eeds . If y our M a rk L e vins o n co m pon ent mu s t be ser vi ced , p le ase c o nta ct y o ur d ea l er . Y [...]

38 Spec ifi c at i ons T h e c or rela t io n bet ween pu bl is h ed spe c if ic at io ns a nd s o n ic qua li ty is u n rel ia ble . A l ist of n u m bers reveals vi rtua ll y not h i n g . All t ec h n ica l meas u rem ent s mu st be s ub- je c t t o qual it at ive as we ll as qua nt it at ive i n ter pre tat i o n . M eas u remen t s of t h e N?[...]

39 D i m ensions (AC input) 13.38" 34 cm 7.68" 19.5 cm 13.38" 34 cm 2.25" 5.7 cm 2.96" 7.5 cm 3.76" 9.5 cm 0.08" 2 mm 3.125" 7.9 cm 0.5" 1.3 cm 0.925" 2.3 cm 15.55" 39.5 cm 0.425" 1.1 cm 0.10" 2.00" 5.1 cm 15.75" 40 cm 11.55" 29.3 cm 2.85" 7.24 cm 0.10" 2.5 mm[...]

630382 © 8/1999 Madrigal Audio Laboratories, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A. is a registered trademark of Madrigal Audio Laboratories, Inc. a Harman International company MADRIGAL AUDIO LABORA T ORIES R Madrigal Audio Laboratories, Inc. 2081 South Main Street, P.O. Box 781 Middletown, Connecticut 06457 USA Telephone: (860) 346-0896 Fax[...]