Contents Instructions for: BassCubeTM 12 & BassCubeTM 10 Subwoofers Safety Precautions ............................................................................ i, ii Introduction ........................................................................................ 1 Unpacking ........................................................................................... 2 Audio And AC Power Connections ....................................................... 2 Placement ............................................................................................ 4 Selecting Low Pass Frequency ............................................................. 6 The Subwoofer Level Control ............................................................... 7 The Final Touch ................................................................................... 7 Installing Low-Cut Filters .................................................................... 8 Specifications ...................................................................................... 8 Replacing The Fuse ............................................................................. 9 Difficulty? ............................................................................................ 9 Limited Warranty .............................................................................. 10 Cleaning The Cabinets ....................................................................... 10 IMPORTANT WARNING SHOCK HAZARD DO NOT OPEN AVIS RISQUE DE CHOC ELECTRIQUE NE PAS OUVRIR The lightning flash with arrowhead, within an equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user of the presence of uninsulated "dangerous voltage" within a product's enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute the risk of electric shock to persons. TO PREVENT THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE SUBWOOFER'S COVER. NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL. POUR EVITER TOUT RISQUE DE CHOC ELECTRIQUE, NE PAS DEMONTER LE COUVERCLE DU HAUT PARLEUR. AUCUN ENTRETIEN DES PIECES INTERIEURES N'EST REQUIS.TOUT SERVICE D'ENTRETIEN NE DOIT ETRE EFFECTUE QUE PAR DU PERSONNEL D'ENTRETIEN QUALIFIE. The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user of the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying this product. READ AND HEED IMPORTANT SAFETY WARNING ON BOTTOM OF SUBWOOFER ENCLOSURE CAUTION: TO PREVENT ELECTRIC SHOCK, MATCH WIDE BLADE OF PLUG TO WIDE SLOT, INSERT FULLY. WARNING: TO PREVENT FIRE OR SHOCK HAZARD, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS APPLIANCE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE. ATTENTION: POUR EVITER LES CHOCS ELECTRIQUES, INTRODUIRE LA LAME LA PLUS LARGE DE LA FICHE DANS LA BORNE CORRESPONDANTE DE LA PRISE ET POUSSER JUSQU'AU FOND. IMPORTANT NOTICE The serial number for the subwoofer is located on the subwoofer's control panel. Please write this number down and keep it in a secure area. This is for your security. i IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS READ INSTRUCTIONS - All safety and operating instructions should be read before the BassCube subwoofer is operated. RETAIN INSTRUCTIONS - The safety and operating instructions should be retained for future reference. HEED WARNINGS - All warnings on the BassCube subwoofer and in the operating instructions should be adhered to. FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS - All operating and use instructions should be followed. CLEANING - Unplug the BassCube subwoofer from the wall outlet or other power source before cleaning. Use a damp cloth for cleaning. ATTACHMENTS - Do not use any adaptors or attachments not recommended by Cambridge SoundWorks as they may cause hazards. WATER AND MOISTURE - Do not use the subwoofer near water--for example, near a bath tub, wash bowl, kitchen sink, or laundry tub; in a wet basement; or near a swimming pool or other similar areas. ACCESSORIES - Do not place the BassCube BassCube subwoofer on an unstable cart, stand, tripod, bracket, or table. The BassCube subwoofer may fall, causing serious injury to a child or adult, and serious damage to the product. VENTILATION - Slots, openings and metal fins in the cabinet are provided for ventilation, to ensure reliable operation of the BassCube subwoofer and to prevent it from overheating. These areas must not be blocked or covered such as by placing the product on a bed, sofa, very deep pile rug, or other similar surface. The BassCube subwoofer should not be placed in a built-in installation such as a bookcase or rack. HEAT - The BassCube subwoofer should be situated away from heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, and other products (including amplifiers) that produce heat. POWER SOURCES - The BassCube subwoofer should be operated only from the type of power source indicated on the marking label. If you are not sure of the type of power supply to your home, consult your product dealer or local power company. POLARIZATION - The BassCube subwoofer may be equipped with a polarized alternating-current line plug (a plug having one blade wider than the other). This plug will fit into the power outlet only one way. This is a safety feature. If you are unable to insert the plug fully into the outlet, try reversing the plug. If the plug should still fail to fit, contact your electrician to replace your obsolete outlet. Do not defeat the safety purpose of the polarized plug. POWER-CORD PROTECTION - The AC power cord should be routed so that it is not likely to be walked on. No object should bring weight to bear on to the AC power cord. LIGHTNING - For added protection for the BassCube subwoofer during a lightning storm, or when it is left unattended and unused for long periods of time, unplug it from the wall outlet. This will prevent damage to the subwoofer due to lightning and power-line surges. OVERLOADING - Do not overload wall outlets, extension cords, or integral convenience receptacles as this can result in a risk of fire or electric shock. OBJECT AND LIQUID ENTRY - Never use probes of any kind to reach into the BassCube subwoofer as they may touch dangerous voltage points or short out parts that could result in a fire or electric shock. Never spill liquid of any kind on the BassCube subwoofer. SERVICING - Do not attempt to service the subwoofer yourself as opening or removing covers may expose you to dangerous voltage or other hazards. Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. DAMAGE REQUIRING SERVICE - Unplug the BassCube subwoofer from the wall outlet or other power source and refer servicing to qualified service personnel under the following conditions: a) When the power-supply cord or plug is damaged. b) If liquid has been spilled, or objects have fallen into the BassCube subwoofer. c) If the BassCube subwoofer has been exposed to rain or water. d) If the BassCube subwoofer does not operate normally by following the operating instructions; or exhibits a distinct change in performance. e) If the product has been dropped or damaged in any way. REPLACEMENT PARTS - When replacement parts are required, be sure the service technician has used replacement parts specified by Cambridge SoundWorks or have the same characteristics as the original part. Unauthorized substitutions may result in fire, electric shock, or other hazards. SAFETY CHECK - Upon completion of any service or repairs to the BassCube subwoofer, ask the service technician to perform safety checks to determine that the BassCube subwoofer is in proper operating condition. ii B Introduction ass drums, organs, and electronic synthesizers produce extremely low frequency sounds. But traditionally, few home loudspeakers are designed to reproduce bass below about 50 Hz. Today, however, home loudspeakers are called upon to reproduce more than music: in home theater systems, they are called upon to reproduce movie soundtracks. And modern movie soundtracks contain a lot of energy at very low frequencies--on sound effects. To do full justice to these effects, as well as to the musical low frequencies missed by most speakers, the Cambridge SoundWorks BassCube subwoofers reproduce, at high output, the lowest bass sounds the human ear can detect. You should keep in mind when installing your system and investigating its capabilities that you will be dealing with a relatively unfamiliar range of sounds. These are sounds more felt than heard, and are encountered more often in the well-equipped movie theater than in the concert hall. A Cambridge SoundWorks Audio/ Video Consultant is only a toll-free call away should you need advice or assistance. Cambridge SoundWorks 1-877-YES-HIFI (1-877-937-4434) 24 hours a day, every day In Canada: 1-800-987-9104 Outside US or Canada: Tel: 617-332-5936 Fax: 617-527-3194 www.cambridgesoundworks.com E-mail: info@cambridgesoundworks.com 1 Unpacking Upon unpacking your BassCube subwoofer, please examine it carefully for any signs of shipping damage. If there is any damage, do not install or use the subwoofer. Consult the store where you purchased the subwoofer for assistance. If purchased through our mail order catalog service, call Cambridge SoundWorks at 1-877-YES-HIFI. We suggest that you keep the shipping carton and packing materials in case you want to transport your subwoofer. Audio And AC Power Connections Note: Make all connections with the BassCube subwoofer switched off and the Bass Level control at its minimum setting. Audio Connections The BassCube subwoofer can be connected to a mono subwoofer output, a main amplifier's speaker outputs, or from stereo preamp outputs. Note: You should connect the BassCube subwoofer to your system using either the line level inputs or the speaker level inputs­but not both sets of inputs. Connection Method One: Connect from a subwoofer output using a suitable length mono phono cable with an RCA phono plug at each end (Figure 1 on page 3). Connect the phono cable to the Right channel line level input on the BassCube subwoofer. Connection Method Two: Connect directly from an amplifier or receiver's speaker output terminals to the subwoofer's Speaker Level Inputs using conventional speaker wire. Then connect your speakers to the Out To Speakers terminals (Figure 2 on page 3). Be sure the speaker wire connects the positive (+) terminals of the subwoofer to the positive (+) terminals of the amplifier or receiver (and similarly connects the negative (­) terminals together). All two-conductor speaker cable is coded along one conductor by lettering, a stripe or a raised bead -or- the appearance of the two conductors differs, usually one copper and one silver. This allows you to easily connect the proper conductor to each terminal. Connection Method Three: Connect from a stereo preamp output to the BassCube subwoofer's Line Level inputs. A suitable length of conventional stereo phono cable with RCA plugs at each end is all you need if your preamp has an unused stereo preamp output. To connect between a stereo preamp and a stereo power amp, combine a suitable length stereo phono cable with two "Y" adapters. Each adapter has one RCA male plug to two RCA female jacks (Figure 3). Some receivers and integrated amplifiers have preamp outputs and power amp inputs that are accessible by removing jumpers from the back panel. 2 A Note About Dolby Digital (AC-3), Large Front Speakers And Powered Subwoofers Most Dolby Digital (AC-3) decoders remove the Low Frequency Effects from the Main speakers if the "Subwoofer Output" switch is set to "On". The Main speaker "Large/Small" switches may still appear to function, but no deep bass will reach the Main speakers. This automatic deep bass filtering is unnecessary with large Main speakers. If you wish, you can send all Low Frequency Effects signals to both your Main left and right speakers and to your subwoofer by turning the subwoofer output to "Off" and setting the Main left and right speakers to "Large". This blends all the output of the Low Frequency Effects channel with the Main left and right speakers. The BassCube subwoofer needs to be connected with speaker wire to the Main speaker outputs in this case. Power Connections After making the audio connections, plug the power cord into any convenient 120-Volt AC, 60 Hz outlet and switch the subwoofer "On". Do not plug it into a switched outlet on your amplifier or receiver, as either BassCube subwoofer could draw sufficient current at high volume levels to possibly damage the switched outlet's relay mechanism. SURROUND DECODER OR RECEIVER OUTPUTS L FRONT SURROUND R CENTER SUBWOOFER* The BassCube subwoofer has an automatic "Power Off" circuit that turns off power to the amplifier circuit after it has been silent for INTEGRATED AMP OR RECEIVER (FRONT) over 15 minutes. The BassCube subwoofer rapidly activates as soon as a new signal is present. This feature operates when the switch PREAMP OUTPUTS TO POWER AMP SPEAKER OUTPUTS L R Y-adapters * Labelled "Mono" on some un ...