INSTALLATION AND CONNECTIONS 11
Installation and Connections
After unpacking the unit, and placing it on a solid
surface capable of supporting its weight, you will
need to make the connections to your audio and
video equipment.
Audio Equipment Connections
We recommend that you use high-quality inter-
connect cables when making connections to
source equipment and recorders to preserve the
integrity of the signals.
When making connections to audio source
equipment or speakers it is always a good prac-
tice to unplug the unit from the AC wall outlet.
This prevents any possibility of accidentally send-
ing audio or transient signals to the speakers
that may damage them.
Important Note : In order to clearly identify all
connectors and simplify nstallation, as per the
new EIA/CEA-863 standard, all connections are
colour coded as follows:
For Speakers and Audio In/Outputs: White (Left,
speakers front) and Red (Right, speakers front).
For Speakers: Green (Center), Blue (Left
Surround) and Grey (Right Surround).
For Audio Output: Purple (Subwoofer).
For Composite Video In/Outputs: Yellow.
For Digital Audio In/Outputs: Orange.
1. Connect the analog output of a CD player to
the CD inputs
.
NOTE: When the CD player has both fixed and
variable audio outputs it is best to use the fixed
output unless you find that the input to the
receiver is so low that the sound is noisy, or so
high that the signal is distorted.
2. Connect the analog Play/Out jacks of a cas-
sette deck, MD, CD-R or other audio recorder to
the Tape Input jacks
. Connect the analog
Record/In jacks on the recorder to the Tape
Output jacks
on the AVR 1550.
3. Connect the digital output of any digital
device to the appropriate input connections on
the AVR 1550 rear panel. Note that the
Optical and Coaxial digital inputs
may
be used with a Dolby Digital or DTS source or
the output of a conventional CD, MD or LD
player’s PCM (S/P-DIF) output.
4. Connect the Coaxial Digital Outputs
on
the rear panel of the AVR to the matching digital
input connections on a CD-R or MiniDisc recorder.
5. Assemble the AM Loop Antenna supplied with
the unit as shown below. Connect it to the AM
and GND screw terminals
.
6. Connect the supplied FM antenna to the FM
(75 ohm) connection
. The FM antenna may
be an external roof antenna, an inside powered
or wire lead antenna or a connection from a
cable system. Note that if the antenna or con-
nection uses 300-ohm twin-lead cable, you must
use a 300-ohm-to-75-ohm adapter to make the
connection.
7. Connect the front, center and surround speak-
er outputs
to the respective speakers.
To assure that all the audio signals are carried to
your speakers without loss of clarity or resolu-
tion, we suggest that you use high-quality
speaker cable. Many brands of cable are avail-
able and the choice of cable may be influenced
by the distance between your speakers and the
receiver, the type of speakers you use, personal
preferences and other factors. Your dealer or
installer is a valuable resource to consult in
selecting the proper cable.
Regardless of the brand of cable selected, we
recommend that you use a cable constructed of
fine, multistrand copper with an area greater
than 2 mm
2
.
Cable with an area of 1.5 mm
2
may be used for
short runs of less than 4 m.We do not recom-
mend that you use cables with an area less than
1mm
2
due to the power loss and degradation in
performance that will occur.
Cables that are run inside walls should have the
appropriate markings to indicate listing with UL,
CSA or other appropriate testing agency stan-
dards. Questions about running cables inside
walls should be referred to your installer or a
licensed electrical contractor who is familiar with
the applicable local building codes in your area.
When connecting wires to the speakers, be cer-
tain to observe proper polarity. Remember to
connect the “negative” or “black” wire to the
same terminal on both the receiver and the
speaker. Similarly, the “positive” or “red” wire
should be connected to the same terminals on
the AVR 1550 and speaker.
NOTE: While most speaker manufacturers
adhere to an industry convention of using black
terminals for negative and red ones for positive,
some manufacturers may vary from this configu-
ration.To assure proper phase and optimal per-
formance, consult the identification plate on
your speaker or the speaker’s manual to verify
polarity. If you do not know the polarity of your
speaker, ask your dealer for advice before pro-
ceeding, or consult the speaker’s manufacturer.
We also recommend that the length of cable
used to connect speaker pairs be identical. For
example, use the same length piece of cable to
connect the front-left and front-right or sur-
round-left and surround-right speakers, even if
the speakers have a different distance from the
AVR 1550.
8. Connections to a subwoofer are normally
made via a line level audio connection from the
Subwoofer Output
to the line-level input
of a subwoofer with a built-in amplifier. When a
passive subwoofer is used, the connection first
goes to a power amplifier, which will be con-
nected to one or more subwoofer speakers. If
you are using a powered subwoofer that does
not have line-level input connections, follow the
instructions furnished with the speaker for con-
nection information.
Note: Speaker sets with two front satellites and
a passive subwoofer must be connected to the
front speaker outputs
only rather than to the
Subwoofer Output
.
Video Equipment Connections
Video equipment is connected in the same man-
ner as audio components. Again, the use of high-
quality interconnect cables is recommended to
preserve signal quality.To ensure best video per-
formance S-Video sources should be connected
to the AVR 1550 only with their S-Video In/
Outputs, not with their composite video connec-
tors too.
1. Connect a VCR’s audio and video Play/Out
jacks to the Video 1 or Video 2 In jacks
on the rear panel. The Audio and
Video Record/In jacks on the VCR should be con-
nected to the Video 1 jacks
on the
AVR 1550.
2. Connect the analog audio and video outputs
of a satellite receiver, cable TV converter or tele-
vision set or any other video source to the
Video 2
(if not in use) or Video 3
%
jacks.
3. Connect the video outputs of a DVD or laser
disc player to the DVD jacks
.
4. Connect the Video Monitor Out
jacks on
the receiver to the composite and S-Video input
of your television monitor or video projector.
Video Connection Note:
• S-Video or Composite video signals may only
be viewed in their native formats and will not
be converted to the other format.
