Harman Kardon CXO-1 - Page 4

The CXO-1 Section
by Section
Let’s start with Part 1, Inputs. Each
channel of the Harman Kardon
CXO-1 has inputs for front and rear
speakers as well as a low bass sub-
woofer. Now, very few head end
units have three sets of pre-amp out-
puts. How do you take advantage of
the circuitry in all three Harman
Kardon CXO-1 inputs?
By using Part 2, Switches. The two
switches located between the
CXO-1’s input jacks allow you to
route one or two inputs from the
head unit to two or three sections of
the CXO-1.
Switch 1 (located between FRONT INPUT
and REAR INPUT) lets you send input
only to the front speakers, or share
the one input with front avd rear
speakers.
Switch 2 (located between REAR INPUT and
SUB INPUT) routes input exclusively to
the rear channel or share the one
input with rear speakers and sub-
woofer.
Switch 3 (labeled SUB ONLY/SUB + REAR)
will be covered farther on.
While they may seem complicated
now when discussed in the abstract,
you will soon see that these switches
give you extreme flexibility, as well
as the ability to easily add extra
amps and speakers later on. Charts
of switch settings are included in the
next major section of this manual in
conjunction with sample hook-ups.
Parts 3A and 3B, High Pass Filters, are
circuits which cut low frequencies
and “pass” only high frequencies.
Along with Parts 5A, B and C, Low
Pass Filters, they comprise the actual
crossover portion of the Harman
Kardon CXO-1. The exact crossover
frequencies you will use are deter-
mined by another set of switches on
the top of the unit.
In-between the high and low pass
filters are three circuits which add
_ greatly to the usefulness of the
CXO-1. Part 4, Equalization, gives you
the ability to solve two common
equalization problems found in car
stereo acoustic environments with-
out adding extra add-on graphic
equalizers. Because of the relatively
small interior volume of most cars,
frequencies around 200Hz are
unnaturally boosted, causing a
“boomy” sound. The CXO-1 lets
you soften (reduce) the octave cen-
tered at 200Hz variably from 0dB to
— 8dB. The only time you don’t
need at least a small amount of this
200Hz notch filter reduction is if
you are installing the CXO-1 ina
van, where the larger acoustic vol-
ume causes a boost at lower
frequencies, or in a convertible
where the boost is not created in the
first place.
The CXO-1’s 50Hz boost circuit lets
you enhance low bass output of rear
speakers when youre not using an
additional subwoofer. Depending on
how much low bass you like, it can
also be used with a subwoofer to
enhance lower octave bass which is
reduced in cassette tapes, FM
broadcasts and even many Compact
Discs. Unlike the bass tone control
on your head unit, the 50Hz boost
circuit allows precise enhancement
of just the lowest octaves instead of
higher bass bands, too.
Part 6 (and 3C), Level Controls are
used to adjust the relative volumes
of front, rear and subwoofer speak-
ers to achieve a natural sound
balance.
Line level outputs to your power
amplifiers are represented in Part 7,
Outputs. Remember that because of
the CX0-1’s switching system, you
won't necessarily need to use all five
outputs to get all their benefits,
although theyre there if you want to
take advantage of them.