Harman Kardon HS 300 Owner's Manual

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Harman Kardon HS 300 Owner's Manual Manual pdf 29 page image

29INITIAL SETUPStep Two – Audio SetupIn this step you may make adjustments to the audio settings using theAudio Setup submenu.Use the ‹/› Buttons to move the cursor to the submenu icons on theleft side of the screen, and then use the ⁄/¤ buttons to highlight theAudio Setup icon, which has a picture of a gear on it. See Figure 42.Press the Enter Button, and then use the Navigation Buttons to movethe cursor to the settings on the Audio Setup submenu.Figure 42 – Audio Setup SubmenuPREFERRED AUDIO LANGUAGE: This setting is used to select thedefault language that will be used for program playback. The factorydefault setting is English, but you may choose French, Spanish, Germanor Italian by making a selection from the options list as explained in theUsing the On-Screen Menus section. To select a language other thanthose shown, select UNKNOWN (or OTHER) from the options list andpress the Enter Button. You will be prompted to enter a four-digitlanguage code. Look up the code for the desired language in theLanguage Code List, Table A14 in the Appendix.This procedure selects a preferred audio program language, but it willonly be available when the disc being played contains that language.The list of languages available on any given disc is always shown on thedisc jacket, usually at the bottom of the back cover. The audio playbacklanguage may also be changed during playback using the Audio SelectButton, but any changes made will only be effective during playback ofthat disc.NOTE: The Audio Select Button is also used to change thedisc’s audio output format, e.g., Dolby Digital 5.1 versus DolbyDigital 2.0.DYNAMIC RANGE: This setting allows you to take advantage of theNight-mode encoding present on some Dolby Digital recordings toreduce the volume of louder passages while maintaining intelligibility ofquieter passages. This allows you to listen to programs at a level thatallows the full impact of a soundtrack to be heard at a volume that islower than you might otherwise use to avoid disturbing others. TheHS 300 accomplishes this by compressing the audio to a greater orlesser degree, depending on which setting you choose. Three optionsare available:• MAXIMUM does not make any changes to the original playback,and should be used when the volume setting in the listening roommay be as loud as you desire.• MEDIUM applies a moderate amount of compression so thatlouder passages are a little bit quieter.• MINIMUM applies more compression so that louder passages aremuch softer.Feel free to experiment with the settings at any time.DELAY UNIT: This setting selects the unit of distance used for calculat-ing delay times when the AUDIO ADJUSTMENTS submenu is activated.The default unit is feet, but you may select meters.TONE CONTROL: This setting determines whether the Tone Controlsare activated. When OFF is selected, the audio output is run “flat” withno tone cut or boost. When ON is selected, the tone control settingsmade in the next two adjustments are applied.BASS LEVEL: When the Tone Control setting (above) is ON, you mayboost or cut the amount of bass (low frequency) by up to ±6dB.TREBLE LEVEL: When the Tone Control setting (above) is ON, you mayboost or cut the amount of treble (high frequency) by up to ±6dB.DVD SOUND MODE: This setting selects the surround mode that willbe used when a DVD is playing. (To set the surround mode option foranother input, such as “TV,” “Digital In,” “AUX” or the tuner, go to thespecific menu for that input.) The factory default is ORIGINAL, which willplay back DVDs in the format output from the disc, such as Dolby Digitalor DTS. When only two-channel audio is available on the disc, such asfor a CD, you may select Stereo (no surround sound), or one of theDolby Pro Logic II modes (Movie, Music or original Dolby Pro Logic).Step Three – Configure SpeakersAlthough the HS 300 is custom-designed to be used specifically withthe loudspeakers that are included in your system, a few adjustmentsneed to be made to insure optimum performance in your particularlistening room.You will need to measure the distance from each of the five mainspeakers to the listening position. If you use the metric system, returnto the Audio Setup submenu and change the Delay Unit setting from itsdefault of FEET to METER.You may find it convenient to record the measurements in Table A3 inthe Appendix before entering them into the HS 300.NOTE: The HS 300 is designed to accommodate speakerplacements of up to 15 feet from the listening position. If youhave placed your speakers further from the listening position,move them closer.Before you begin to make the audio adjustments, select test programmaterial, either a test DVD you have purchased, or a movie or musicselection you are familiar with. For best results, you may wish to alsopurchase a sound-pressure level (SPL) meter to assist you in settingthe output levels correctly. If you use an SPL meter, set it to theC-Weighting, Slow scale, and adjust the HS 300 volume control untilthe meter measures 75dB. If you don’t have an SPL meter, you mayset the output levels “by ear”.