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Great Features

2

Great Features of the Architect Amplifiers

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igH

 C

urrent

 D

esign

 t

o

 D

rive

 M

ultiple

 s

peakers

  

Distributed audio systems can place terrific demands on 
power amplifiers. Lots of speakers and volume controls add 

up to extremely complex loads that can drive most amps to 

the point of smoking. The high current drive capabilities of 
this Architect amplifier allows it to play into very low imped-
ances (2 ohms) meaning it can play 

eight

 pairs of speakers 

simultaneously. This amp loves lots of speakers so go ahead 
and put a small quarry of stereo rocks by the patio. Then sit 
back and enjoy the sound.

s

uperior

 e

nergy

 e

ffiCienCy

 AudioControl Architect am-

plifiers are designed to provide audio enthusiasts with lots of 
power and great sound quality. Architect amplifiers are also 
great for those of us who want to “save the environment” and 
“go GREEN” as they very energy efficient.  The literally sip 
electrical power making them ideal for any distributed audio 
application. 

s

peCially

-D

esigneD

 f

requenCy

 C

ontrols

  The Architect 

Model 210 and Model 210ES are intended to provide a dra-
matic sound improvement for “small” speakers, such as those 
with 6-inch and 8-inch woofers. The Architect’s equalization 
band centers were chosen to optimize in-wall and 2-way book-
shelf speakers at critical frequencies, where adjustment is 
most advantageous. The bandwidths (or ‘Q’ as our engineer-
ing types call it) have also been optimized for the difficulties 
that in-wall speakers present. This allows the Architect Model 
210 and Model 210ES to improve the sound of these smaller 
speakers better than any other equalizer.

p

roteCtion

 W

Hen

 y

ou

 n

eeD

 i

t

 M

ost

 The Architect 

Model 110, Model 210 and Model 210ES have been de-
signed and manufactured with durability in mind. The 
AudioControl Lightdrive protection circuitry defends the 
Architect and your speakers against clipping, distortion, dam-
age, and even teenage parties. Even if the party lasts all week-
end. Each channel is independently protected so a problem in 
one channel will not affect the rest of the system.

Typical Amplifier

AudioControl Architect Amplifier

Summary of Contents for Architect 110

Page 1: ...igh Current Design Sound Optimization Superior Energy Efficiency Professional Installer s Consciousness Guide 22410 70th Avenue West Seattle WA 98043 USA 425 775 8461 Fax 425 778 3166 www audiocontrol com For Those Who Consider Perfection Possible 2011 All rights reserved ...

Page 2: ... Important Information Dealer Name______________________________________ Date Installed___________________________________ Serial Number____________________________________ ...

Page 3: ...8 Installation The Long Version 8 Remote Power Control 9 Audio Hook Up 10 Speaker Wire Hook Up 11 Equalizing The System 12 A Short Introduction To Equalizers And Acoustics 13 Audio Analysis Using Pink Noise 14 Equalization Controls 15 Troubleshooting 17 Appendix A Bridging the Architect 18 Appendix B Understanding the Front Panel LEDs 19 A Brazen Plug For Other AudioControl Products 20 The Warrant...

Page 4: ... Architect Model 210 Architect Model 110 Architect Model 210ES Model 210 Model 110 Architect Model 210ES ...

Page 5: ...are designed and manufactured in the USA by AudioControl A company whose professional sound division designed and sold the most popular one third octave real time analyzer in the world the SA 3050 AudioControl s passion for high quality meticulous attention to detail and pro sound heri tage shows itself in the dozens of awards we have won for our designs products and service Now as when we began o...

Page 6: ... distributed audio application Specially Designed Frequency Controls The Architect Model 210 and Model 210ES are intended to provide a dra matic sound improvement for small speakers such as those with 6 inch and 8 inch woofers The Architect s equalization band centers were chosen to optimize in wall and 2 way book shelf speakers at critical frequencies where adjustment is most advantageous The ban...

Page 7: ...el 210ES s Programmable Frequency Match PFM circuitry is a bass blocking filter which protects small speakers and improves their overall sound The smaller woofers found in most in wall or bookshelf speakers cannot repro duce the bass of a larger speaker the laws of physics intervene If called upon to reproduce a bass note that would cause the speaker to move PAST it s maximum cone travel damage ca...

Page 8: ...e Turn On This Architect amplifier is equipped with a Signal Sensing circuit on the inputs that will turn the unit on as soon as it sees an audio signal We have also equipped this unit with an optional 12V trigger input that can be used to remotely turn the Architect On and Off should this function be needed 4 Set the Equalization Model 210 Model 210ES Page 15 While it can be set by ear adjustment...

Page 9: ...ED This dual color LED serves two purposes It illuminates Blue when the corresponding channel is active and everything is operating correctly The second function of the status LED is to turn Red if something has caused the amplifier to go into protection or it is operting at a very high temperature Speaker Equalization controls Model 210 and Model 210ES This array of knobs provide up to 12dB cut o...

Page 10: ...nput is triggered On by ap plying 12 volts to the 1 8 Auxiliary Input Trigger Auxiliary Input Trigger Hopefully you read the previous sentence to know what this 1 8 connector does Auxiliary Input Active LED This LED turns Red when you apply 12 volts to the Aux 12V Trigger Input Signal Present When an audio signal is present on the Main or Auxiliary inputs this LED will light Input Level Controls T...

Page 11: ...g really awful goes wrong Master Power Switch This switch shuts off the main AC power Normally the only time you need to turn the master power switch off is if the system is going to be shut down for an extended period of time Power Cord The Architect draws ap proximately 550 watts at full power Make certain that it is plugged directly into the wall outlet or a power strip with sufficient power ra...

Page 12: ...e system If it seems overly detailed please forgive us We would rather tell you too much than too little First check your new Architect for any shipping damage We pack em pretty securely but it s a vicious world out there and anything can happen twixt Mountlake Terrace Washing ton and your installation Placement The Architect Model 110 210 210ES is a very efficient amplifier but it does need some ...

Page 13: ...you need to plug it into a two prong outlet use a ground adapter and connect the ground on it Remote Power Control The Architect has three levels of power control 1 Main AC Power Switch This is the master control and must be turned ON for the Architect to function When the main power switch is On the blue Power LED on the front panel lights up Normally the only time that you would need to turn the...

Page 14: ...ncy Stick with the same color coding and you ll reduce possible problems 3 Whenever possible keep power cords away from signal cables to prevent induced hum This is especially impor tant if you bundle the cables to keep the installation neat looking 4 Use quality interconnect cables 5 If you need to run the RCA audio cables more than 20 feet you should use a balanced line driver for the signals Th...

Page 15: ... this table even fairly short speaker runs can have a very significant resistance if you use a smaller wire gauge This can be a benefit if you paralleling lots of speakers The wire itself acts as an impedance limiter since the amplifier cannot see a speaker load lower than the resis tance of the wire The downside of this resistance in the wire is that you waste the total power available to the spe...

Page 16: ...tatus LED s should be BLUE with audio present 3 Start the audio source playing and send that signal to the Architect how you do this depends on your particular multi room system The zone status LED should illumi nate RED then BLUE approximately one second after the music begins 4 Check each speaker output zone to ensure that each one plays properly 5 With all the speaker loads turned on turn up th...

Page 17: ...drivers in your speak ers and spread out into the room If your room were infinitely big that s all there would be to it But just as waves in a pond reach the bank and reflect back sound waves bounce off walls ceilings and floors reflecting rein forcing and canceling each other as shown in the figure above Since sound is energy the way it reflects depends upon the angle of the sur face the type of ...

Page 18: ... rooms in your home function as gigantic mechanical equalizers boosting or cutting certain frequencies depending on size shape volume acoustic treat ment and the position of the speakers Audio Analysis Using Pink Noise It may take several series of adjustments since there is some interaction between each control We have included some sample settings and general descriptions of each con trol s func...

Page 19: ...all or in wall speakers Experiment with it 300Hz and 700Hz High and low midrange These controls directly affect the sound of instruments and vocals These bands also determine the speaker s presence whether the music sounds far away or close in Small speakers often produce too much midrange so these controls are candidates for being turned down slightly during your initial experimen tation Definite...

Page 20: ...uction sets in there are other problems with feeding super low bass to small speakers Most bookshelf and in wall loudspeakers are 2 way systems That means that the woofer also handles a large part of the critical midrange area When the woofer is bashing around trying to reproduce unrealistically low bass its ability to produce midrange is compromised due to inter modulation distortion So not only ...

Page 21: ...he rear panel See Appendix B for more detail on LED indicators 2 Audio Is Cutting In Out Using a DMM Digital Multi Meter confirm impedance on speaker wires is 2 ohms or higher Check speaker leads for short If using speaker level volume controls bypass and see if problem persists Verify Source unit is not clipping Adjust the pre amp volume higher and or Input Sensitivity controls on amplifier 3 Arc...

Page 22: ...h on the rear panel and make sure the input level controls on each channel are adjusted the same Then connect the speaker terminals as shown in the diagram below Caution When bridging the Architect the minimum speaker load impedance on that bridged output is 4 ohms In a bridged system each channel of the bridged pair sees one half of the speaker load This means that a bridged amp driving a 4 ohm s...

Page 23: ... is not playing please look at the LED lights on the front panel and refer to the chart below for guid ance Architect Model 110 210 210ES LED Status Indicators LED Indicator Power Protection Status Operations OFF OFF OFF Amplifier Main Power is OFF BLUE OFF OFF Amplifier is On no audio signal is present RED OFF OFF Amplifier is ON but in sleep mode Rear panel 12 volt trigger is being used BLUE BLU...

Page 24: ...ts for Home Theater needs including surround sound processors with truly excep tional audio and video performance Some reviewers say there is none better AudioControl also has five and seven channel power amplifiers to round out this theater system The audiophile sound quality of these amplifiers cool running Class H design and exclusive LightDrive protection systems say these ampli fiers mean ser...

Page 25: ...his so it s a good habit to get into with any major purchase of consumer electronics 3 Your AudioControl product must have originally been purchased from or installed by an authorized AudioControl professional This warranty is transferable You do not have to be the original owner but you do need a copy of the original sales slip 4 You cannot let anybody A who isn t the AudioControl fac tory or B s...

Page 26: ...as written de signed printed folded and stuffed into the box in the U S A Probably on a really soggy day considering where we live 22 Block Diagram Block Diagrams Architect Model 210 Architect Model 210ES Important Note All 12v Triggers are tip 12 volts ...

Page 27: ... Remote Power Trigger 12 VDC Options 5 way Binding Posts Model 115 Model 215 AC Main Fuse Rating 10 amp Slo Blo AC Main Operational Voltage 95 130v Protection clipping short circuit thermal ultrasonic DC offset Stable into reactive or mismatched loads Clipping Eliminator Wideband intelligent soft response Signal Sense Trigger 0 001 volt Very Low Weight 16 pounds 35 kg Dimensions 17 W x 12 D x 3 5 ...

Page 28: ...0 0 Rev 11 11 22410 70th Avenue West Seattle WA 98043 USA 425 775 8461 Fax 425 778 3166 e mail sound better audiocontrol com Visit us on the web at www audiocontrol com For Those Who Consider Perfection Possible ...

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