Boulder Amplifiers 865 manual

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Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier Instruction Manual 10/1/07 Boulder Amplifiers, Inc. 3235 Prairie A ve. Boulder , CO 80301 www .boulderamp.com APPENDIX RECORDING BOULDER LINK PROGRAMMING REMOTE CONTROL OPERA TION GETTING ST ARTED[...]

APPENDIX RECORDING BOULDER LINK PROGRAMMING REMOTE CONTROL OPERA TION GETTING ST ARTED Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier Rear Panel L L R R[...]

T ABLE OF CONTENTS GETTING ST AR TED Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1 Quick Start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1 Placement of the 865 Integ[...]

REMOTE CONTROL Batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1 Source Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2 V olume, Balance and Mute. . . . . . . . . . .[...]

BOULDERLINK Connecting the Boulderlink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1 Connecting 800 Series to 1000 or 2000 Series with Boulderlink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2 Setting Boulderlink Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

GETTING ST AR TED INTRODUCTION Congratulations on your selection of the Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier , the finest integrated amplifier in the world. W e at Boulder ar e certain it will provide years of listening pleasure. QUICK ST AR T T o get started listening, you will need to connect the 865 as both an amplifier and preamplifier . Please tak[...]

PLACEMENT OF THE 865 INTEGRA TED AMPLIFIER Y our Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier is designed to r educe the effects that external magnetic and radio fields (RF) have on its internal circuitry . While placement is not critical, known magnetic fields should be avoided. Line of sight from the listening position is necessary for the remote control to [...]

CONNECTING TO THE MAINS OUTLET Y our 865 Integrated Amplifier is supplied with a mains power cord suitable for the location where it was pur chased. It is constructed of a large enough wire gauge and a cable plug appropriate for the mains voltage in your location. Do not substitute another power cable. The exact voltage and frequency range is indic[...]

POLARITY Please note that the 865 Integrated Amplifier conforms to the standard of Pin 2 as the positive or ”hot” pin for all analog balanced inputs and outputs. CONNECTING A BALANCED ANALOG SOURCE T o realize the greatest sonic potential of your 865 Integrated Amplifier , use balanced connections whenever possible. Balanced cables r educe inte[...]

CONNECTING AN UNBALANCED SOURCE Although the inputs ar e all of the 3-pin XLR type, an unbalanced source is easily accommodated by using a special cable. This cable has an RCA phono type connector on the source end and a 3-pin connector (for an input) at the 865 Integrated Amplifier . The negative input (Pin 3) should be wir ed to ground only at th[...]

CONNECTING THE AUXILIAR Y OUTPUTS The auxiliary output level of the 865 Integrated Amplifier can be set to either a fixed mode suitable for use with a r ecording device or music distribution system; or a variable mode for use with a subwoofer or secondary amplifier . Instructions to program the outputs can be found on page 4-6 of this manual. W ARN[...]

CONNECTING THE AUXILIAR Y OUTPUTS TO A COMPONENT WITH UNBALANCED INPUTS The 865 Integrated Amplifier ’s balanced outputs can drive unbalanced inputs with a cable having an XLR connector at the sour ce (865) end and an RCA connector at the load end. A special cable r equired to make this connection connects Pin 1 to the shield and Pin 2 to the RCA[...]

1-8 POLARITY Please note that the 865 Integrated Amplifier conforms to the standard of Pin 2 as the high or ”hot” for the balanced inputs. The polarity of the 865 is such that a positive-going transition at Pin 2 will produce a positive-going transition at the ”+” loudspeaker terminal. CONNECTING YOUR LOUDSPEAKERS Do not use any wrenches on[...]

SETTING THE BOULDERLINK SWITCH The normal setting of the MASTER / SLA VE switch is MASTER. When using the 865 with only power amplifiers, the Boulderlink MASTER / SLA VE switch should be set to MASTER. For mor e information on Boulderlink, see the Boulderlink section 5-1 as indicated by the finger tab below . GETTING ST ARTED 1-9[...]

OPERA TION POWERING UP W ith all your connections made, you are ready to listen to your Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier . The power LED will cycle thr ough a variety of colors indicating a standby mode. Power is applied only to the micr oprocessor while in this mode. Press the ST ANDBY button to turn on the 865. The indicator will change to amber [...]

INPUT SELECTIONS T o select an input, pr ess one of the pushbuttons labeled ONE, TWO, THREE or FOUR. The respective input will be shown in the display and that signal will be routed to both the loudspeaker and auxiliary outputs. For example, if input ONE is chosen, “1. INPUT ONE” will show in the display . NOTE : There will be a delay when swit[...]

VOLUME Because the precise feel of the Boulder 865’s volume control may be differ ent than you ar e used to, we recommend starting the source device so that an audio signal is fed to the 865 befor e increasing the volume. The display will show “VOLUME INFINITE” to indicate maximum attenuation or no sound. By placing a finger at the edge of th[...]

BALANCE T o change the level balance, press the BALANCE pushbutton. “BALANCE CENTERED” will show in the display . Now , rotating the control will change the balance instead of the volume for as long as “BALANCE...” is displayed. T urning the control counterclockwise (left) will cause an indication such as “BALANCE R -2.0dB < “ in the[...]

After several seconds of not changing the balance, the display will return to the “VOLUME...” indication. Y ou may also return to controlling volume by again pressing the BALANCE pushbutton. The balance r esolution is the same as for the volume control, 0.5 dB steps. W ARNING: If the input is programmed to be in “THEA TER MODE,” then the ba[...]

DISPLA Y The display brightness may be set to any of four brightness levels. T o change the brightness level, pr ess the DISPLA Y pushbutton. “DISPLA Y 100%” will show in the display . Rotate the center contr ol until the desired brightness is obtained such as “DISPLA Y 50%.” The number in the display is the r elative brightness. After seve[...]

REMOTE CONTROL BA TTERIES A standard small flat-blade screwdriver is requir ed to install the three AAA batteries. T o install batteries in the r emote contr ol, it is necessary to separate the two sections. W ARNING: When opened, the pushbutton balls will be loose and care must be taken to properly retain them. It is recommended to lay the remote [...]

SOURCE SELECTION T o select an input (sour ce) press the button on the left side of the remote control whose number corresponds to the input you wish to listen to, and it will show in the display . Y ou will now be listening to your desir ed input. VOLUME, BALANCE and MUTE T o increase the volume, press the button on the right side marked with an u[...]

PROGRAMMING While it is not necessary to ever use any programming functions, you will find they maximize the enjoyment of your Boulder 865 Integrated Amplifier . Each input has several programmable features associated with it. These include assigning an alphanumeric name of your choosing, setting an individual start volume and balance, and setting [...]

If you chose to assign a name, then “1 INPUT ONE” will be shown in the bottom display r ow with a blinking cursor befor e the name’s first character . Rotate the control until the desired character appears. Press the same input source number to accept the displayed character and go to the next character . Continue in this manner until all 17 [...]

INPUT LEVEL CALIBRA TION Pressing the same input source number will make “INPUT LEVEL 0.0dB” show in the bottom display row . Rotating the volume contr ol will change the display and the loudspeaker levels simultaneously . This allows calibration of each input with test tones if desired. For example, setting the display to “-6.0dB” will all[...]

INPUT BALANCE CALIBRA TION Pressing the same input sour ce number will make “INPUT BAL CENTERED” show in the bottom display row . Rotating the volume control will simultaneously change the display and the loudspeaker balance so that the action can be monitor ed or measured. For example, setting the display to “R -9.0dB” will make the left c[...]

THEA TER MODE When the 865 Integrated Amplifier is used in a surround sound or home theater system, it is normally desir ed to bypass the volume control, thus letting the surround processor control the volume. W ARNING: Setting an input to THEA TER MODE for ces the volume to unity gain. Use only in conjunction with a surr ound processor . Pressing [...]

PROGRAMMING BY THE DISPLA Y BUTTON Several special features are programmed by pr essing and holding the DISPLA Y pushbutton until the display changes, indicating you are in a programming mode. If no action is taken for some time, then the 865 reverts back to normal operation. The sequence is as follows. AUXILIAR Y OUTPUTS MODE A separate pair of ba[...]

BOULDERLINK ID Pressing the DISPLA Y pushbutton again will make “PROGRAM BOULDER LINK, BOULDER LINK ID 0” show in the display . Rotating the volume control changes the ID number . For more information consult the Boulderlink section. Unless you are using two or mor e 865 Integrated Amplifiers together , this setting should be left at “0.” R[...]

RESET TO F ACTOR Y DEF AUL TS Should you wish to have all settings r eset to original factory defaults, you may execute a master reset. Normally , this function is not used. Press and hold the ST ANDBY pushbutton. “RESET ALL P ARAMETERS, INPUT 1=Y , INPUT 2=N” will show in the display . T o leave all settings as they currently are, press the TW[...]

BOULDERLINK Boulderlink is a means of interconnecting most Boulder products so that their micr oprocessors can talk to each other and pass important information. Among the key features, Boulderlink allows sequential initiation of power amplifiers and other products when the 865 Integrated Amplifier is turned on. Power amplifiers can send messages t[...]

5-2 BOULDER LINK CONNECTING 800 SERIES TO 1000 OR 2000 SERIES WITH BOULDERLINK If you ar e using the 865 Integrated Amplifier with certain other Boulder pr oducts, a Boulder Link Adapter Box (BLAB) might be r equired to make the connection. Although the connectors ar e mechanically dif ferent between the series, they are electrically the same, thus[...]

SETTING BOULDERLINK SWITCHES Every Boulderlink system must have one “MASTER” component, and only one component can be set to MASTER. Usually this is the preamplifier or CD Player . Power amplifiers and other products not having a MASTER/SLA VE switch can never be “MASTER.” On the 865, the Boulderlink MASTER/SLA VE switch will normally be se[...]

POWER UP VIA BOULDERLINK W ith each component connected together with a Boulderlink cable, and individually connected to the AC mains, pr essing the 865’s ST ANDBY pushbutton will initiate the turn-on sequence of all components. The first time a “MASTER” 865 is powered up, it will search for any “slave” units connected to it. As the Maste[...]

5-5 BOULDER LINK An 865 set to “SLA VE,” will display “THIS UNIT SLA VE #______.” If there is no component set to “MASTER,” the 865 will display “THERE IS NO MASTER!” In this case, the 865’s MASTER/SLA VE switch should be set to MASTER. It may take up to 30 seconds for the 865 to recognize the switch change.[...]

BOULDERLINK MESSAGES Each component in the system can send a message to the 865 which is then shown on its display . This is particularly helpful in confirming the operating status of each power amplifier in a multiple amplifier system. “AMPLIFIER 1 ERROR” means that an internal power supply has failed and the amplifier has turned itself of f t[...]

“UNIT 1 IS OFFLINE” means that the slave is no longer responding via Boulderlink. Its Boulderlink cable may have become disconnected, or the AC mains power has been disconnected. “UNIT 1 IS ONLINE” means that the slave is now responding via Boulderlink in a normal manner and has been r ecognized by the master . BOULDER LINK 5-7[...]

RECORDING The Auxiliary outputs may be used for making recor dings or supplying a fixed level output to other system components. CONNECTING A RECORDING DEVICE A recor ding device may be connected to the 865 Integrated Amplifier . Y ou may use balanced or unbalanced connections as pr eviously described in the sections on connecting Auxiliary outputs[...]

APPENDIX 7-1[...]

APPENDIX 7-2 BOULDER 865 INTEGRA TED AMPLIFIER SPECIFICA TIONS Balanced Line Inputs 4 pair Auxiliary Balanced Outputs 1 pair (Switchable, Fixed or V ariable) Loudspeaker Output Connectors 6 mm/.250 inch post Continuous Power , 8, 4 Ohms 150W Peak Power , 4 Ohms 300W into 4 Ohms THD at Continuous Power 20 to 2 kHz: 0.0035%. 20 kHz: 0.018% Signal to [...]

APPENDIX 7-3 TROUBLESHOOTING SYMPTOM CAUSE REMEDY No power indication Amplifier is not plugged in Connect to AC mains outlet AC mains power switch in OFF position T urn rear panel switch ON Fuse open or missing Reinsert or replace fuse Red power indication Low line voltage Have line voltage checked Power supply breaker open Reset breaker on rear pa[...]

APPENDIX 7-4 NOTES[...]