SB 30 (serv.man5) - Harman Kardon Audio Service Manual (repair manual). Page 9

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SB 30

Placing the Soundbar and Subwoofer  

and Connecting the System 

5.  After making all of the connections described in 

Connecting the System, on this page, 

attach the soundbar to the brackets by sliding the slots in its feet onto the brackets’ 

vertical tabs.

The performance of a subwoofer is directly related to its placement in the listening room 

and its physical position relative to the other speakers in the system.
While it is true that in general our ears do not hear directional sounds at the low 

frequencies where subwoofers operate, when installing a subwoofer within the limited 

confines of a room, the reflections, standing waves and absorptions generated within the 

room will strongly influence the performance of any subwoofer system. As a result, the 

specific location of the subwoofer in the room does become important to the amount and 

quality of bass that is produced.
For example, placing the subwoofer next to a wall generally will increase the amount of 

bass in the room; placing it in a corner (1) generally will maximize amount of bass in the 

room. However, corner placement can also increase the destructive effect of standing 

waves on bass performance. This effect can vary depending on the listening position – 

some listening positions may yield very good results while others may have far too much 

(or too little) bass at certain frequencies.
In many rooms, placing the subwoofer along a wall away from a corner (2) can produce 

the best integration between the sound of the subwoofer and that of the left and right 

speakers. In some rooms, the best performance could even result from placing the 

subwoofer behind the listening position (3).

SB 30 CNTR 

Soundbar

TV

1.

2.

3.

We strongly recommend that you experiment with placement before choosing a final 

location for your subwoofer. One way you can determine the best location for the 

subwoofer is by temporarily placing it in the listening position and playing music with 

strong bass content. Move around to various locations in the room while the system is 

playing (putting your ears where the subwoofer would be placed), and listen until you find 

the location where the bass performance is best. Place the subwoofer in that location.

Analog:  Use the supplied stereo audio cable to connect the soundbar’s Analog Input 

connectors to your TV’s stereo audio output. If your TV has two sets of audio output 

jacks, use the set that has a fixed (not variable) output level. It will let you turn your 

TV’s speakers all the way off while the TV still supplies a constant audio signal to the 

soundbar.
Digital: If your disc player, cable tuner or satellite tuner has a coaxial or optical digital 

output, you can use the supplied optical digital audio cable and a coaxial digital audio 

cable (not supplied) to connect them to the soundbar’s Optical and Coaxial Digital Input 

connectors. We recommend setting the component’s digital output to “Bitstream” so it 

will send Dolby

®

 Digital and DTS

®

 bitstreams to the SB 30 CNTR for decoding. This will 

produce better results when using the Virtual and HARMAN Wave surround modes (see 

Surround Modes, on page 11).
NOTE: If your disc player, cable tuner or satellite tuner does not have a digital output you 

can connect its analog audio output to your TV. The TV will send its audio signal to the 

soundbar through the analog connection described above.

AUDIO

OUT

OPTICAL

DIGITAL

OUT

COAXIAL

DIGITAL

OUT

L

1 2 3 4

L

1 2 3 4

TV

Stereo 

Audio Cable 

(supplied)

Optical 

Digital Audio Cable 

(supplied)

Coaxial 

Digital Audio Cable 

(not supplied)

Satellite Tuner

Disc Player

SB 30 CNTR Soundbar

The soundbar’s Voltage Selector switch is set at the factory to accommodate the AC 

power voltage in the area where the soundbar is shipped. 
IMPORTANT: Before you connect the power cord for the first time it is a good idea 

your area. 
In the event that you do need to change the Voltage Selector switch setting:

1.  Make sure that the soundbar is powered off and the power cord is disconnected from 

the soundbar.

2.  Slide the Voltage Selector switch to the appropriate setting (“110 – 120V” or “220 – 

240V”) as required for your area.

Harman Kardon

SB 30 / 230V Service Manual

Page 9 of 43