AVR 40 (serv.man2) - Harman Kardon Audio User Guide / Operation Manual. Page 15

Installation and Configuration

Surround speakers should be placed on
the side walls of the room, at or slightly
behind the listening position. The speak-
ers should be located so that the bottom
of the cabinet is at least 24

″

higher than

the listeners’ ears when in the desired
area. 

If side wall mounting is not practical, the
speakers may be placed on a rear wall,
behind the listening position. Again, they
should be located so that the bottom of
the cabinet is at least 24

″

higher than

the listeners’ ears. The speakers should
be no more than 6

′

behind the rear of

the seating area.

Subwoofers produce non-directional
sound, so they may be placed almost
anywhere in a room. Subwoofer place-
ment is highly influenced by room size
and shape, and the type of subwoofer
used. Follow the instructions of the sub-
woofer’s manufacturer, or experiment
with the best location for a subwoofer in
your listening room.

Speaker Connections
Once the speakers are positioned in the
room connect them to the rear panel
output terminals. For optimal reproduc-
tion we recommend the use of high qual-
ity speaker wire. Wire of AWG 16 or
greater is recommended for short runs
(under 15

′

) and wire of AWG 14 or

greater is recommended for longer runs.
Be certain to observe polarity when con-
necting speakers by connecting the posi-
tive (+) and negative (

-

) terminals 

on the AVR40 to like terminals on 
the speakers.

To connect the front left, right and center
channel speakers twist the red or black
terminal 

¤‹›

counterclockwise

until the V-shaped notch at the rear of
the terminal is exposed. Insert the

stripped end of the speaker wire through
the notch and tighten the terminal until
it is tight.

NOTE: Be certain to match positive (+)
terminals on the AVR40 to the positive
terminals on the speakers. While most
speaker manufacturers observe the same
red/black color code as the AVR40, some
reverse the pattern.

IMPORTANT NOTE: To avoid a short
circuit that will cause the receiver to shut
down, make sure that the wires for one
speaker do not touch any other.

For proper operation, it is essential that a
speaker be connected to BOTH Rear
Speaker 

⁄

terminals. If only one rear

speaker is connected, no sound will be
heard. It is also important that the
impedance of the rear speakers be no 
less than 4-ohms each, although 6-ohm
or 8-ohm speakers may also be used.

To connect the rear speakers 

⁄

, hold

the spring clips down and push the wire
through the hole, making certain that
the inner copper conductors do not sepa-
rate. Release the clip to secure the con-
nection. Again, make certain that you
observe proper polarity by connecting the
(+) terminals on the receiver to (+) ter-
minals on the speakers, and likewise for
the negative (

-

) terminals.

Subwoofer connections are made using
the 

a

. When

using a powered subwoofer, connect
BOTH the left and right output sub-
woofer outputs to the respective left and
right line level inputs on your subwoofer.
The AVR40 subwoofer outputs are full
range, so it may be necessary to adjust
the crossover frequency on the sub-
woofer’s control panel to properly match
the subwoofer to your other speakers.

12

AVR40  rev (j)  4/16/97

Right Front
Speaker

Left Front

Speaker

No more

than 24

″

Center Front Speaker

A) Front Channel Speaker Installation 
with Direct View TV Sets or Rear Screen
Projectors

Center Front

Speaker

Optional Rear Wall Mounting

TV or Projection Screen

Right Front

Speaker

Left Front

Speaker

No more than 6 feet

when rear-mounted

speakers are used

At least 2 feet

At least 6 inches from ceiling 

B) The distance between the left and right
speakers should be equal to the distance
from the seating position to the viewing
screen. You may also experiment with
placing the left and right speakers slightly
forward of the center speaker.

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