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the 

“12dB”

or 

“24dB” 

position.These features will

not work with the 

“Sub LP Filter”

switch in the

“Off”

position.This is to prevent cascading the

processing of multiple amplifiers when configured in

a master / slave arrangement. If you are using an

external active crossover and would like to use the

“LF Boost”

and 

“Infrasonic Filter”

features, set the

“Amp LP Filter”

switch on

“12dB”

and rotate the

frequency selection knob fully clockwise to the 

“200

Hz”

position.This will activate the bass processing

features without significantly affecting the crossover

point selected by the external active crossover.

SPEAKER OUTPUTS

The 500/5 employs JL Audio's exclusive

Regulated, Intelligent Power Supply (R.I.P.S.) design

on its front and subwoofer channels.The operation

of the R.I.P.S. system is independent for each pair of

channels.This sophisticated power supply allows the

amplifier to produce its optimum power (100 watts

x 2 for the front channels and 250 W x 1 for the

subwoofer channel over a wide range of speaker

impedances. Unlike conventional amplifiers that

require a specific impedance to produce optimum

power, the R.I.P.S.-equipped 500/5 gives you the

freedom to use a variety of speaker configurations

that achieve final nominal impedances between 1.5

– 4

per channel (without sacrificing power output

or sound quality). When bridged, the front channel

pair will optimize output between 3 – 8

.The rear

channel pair will optimize output between 6 - 8

.

The operation of the R.I.P.S. circuitry is entirely

automatic and adjusts itself every time the amplifier

is turned on according to the lowest impedance

present at the speaker load.There are no user

controls to configure.The system operates through

multiple stages of impedance optimization, choosing

the stage most appropriate to the actual impedance

of the speakers you connect to it.

Re

Freq. 

x1/

Filter F

Subwoofer Output (250Wx1)

Filter

/24dB

q. (Hz)

If you connect a load higher than 4

nominal

per channel (or 8

in bridged mode for the front

and rear channels), power will drop by half with

every doubling of impedance above 4

stereo /

8

mono. If you connect a load lower than 1.5

nominal per channel, the amplifier protection

circuitry activates a “safe” mode which reduces

amplifier power to protect the circuitry from

failure (the yellow

“Low 

LED  lights to indicate

that this has happened). See page 12 for details.

Speaker loads below 1.5

nominal per channel

are not recommended and may cause the amplifier

output to distort excessively.

The rear channels of the 500/5 do 

not

employ

R.I.P.S. optimization and are designed to deliver rated

power into loads between 3 and 4

per channel.

Operating the rear channels below 3

may result in

excessive distortion and/or shutting down of these

channels and is not recommended.

BRIDGING CONSIDERATIONS

Bridging is the practice of combining the output

of two amplifier channels to drive a single load.

When bridged, each channel produces signals of

equal magnitude, but opposite polarity.The

combined output of the two channels provides

twice the output voltage available from a single

channel.The 500/5 has been designed for bridging

of its front and rear channel pairs without the need

for input inversion adaptors.

Operating bridged channel pairs into a load lower

than 3

is not recommended.

To bridge a pair of channels, use the 

“Left +”

and

“Right –” 

speaker connectors only (the 

“Left –”

and

“Right +” 

remain unused).Then connect a

mono signal to both left and right RCA inputs for

ction

ut Sens.

ght Ch.

Front Speaker Outputs 

I M P O RTA N T

!

I M P O RTA N T

!

I M P O RTA N T

!

JL AUDIO

500/5

11

will be full-range.) This signal is not affected by the

“LF Boost”

or 

“Infrasonic Filter”

processing

selected for the amplifier. When the 500/5 is being

used to drive front, rear and subwoofer speaker

systems, this preamp output mode will deliver a

summed front/rear signal to an additional

subwoofer amplifier, while permitting fading of the

front and rear speaker systems from the source

unit.

3) “Front”:

This is a pass-through mode for the

preamp output, delivering the same signal that is

being fed to the 

“Front Input Section”

of the

amplifier (If the input signal is full-range, the preamp

output will be full-range.) This signal is not affected

by the 

“LF Boost”

or 

“Infrasonic Filter”

processing

selected for the amplifier.

If the

“Output Mode”

switch is in the 

“Sub LP”

position and the

“Sub LP Filter”

switch is in the

“Off”

position, the preamp output will be a

12dB/octave low-pass with the

“Bass Control”

processing added to it.

THIS IS NOT A

PREFERRED OPERATING MODE. DO NOT

USE  THIS MODE FOR MASTER / SLAVE

CONFIGURATIONS.

Note:The signal level of the 

“Preamp Output”

is

affected by the setting of the 

“Input Voltage”

switches (of the input section(s) chosen by the

“Signal From”

switch). See the “Input Voltage

Range” section (page 6) for details on input voltage

settings.The preamp output level is not affected by

the 

“Input Sens.”

rotary controls.

C AU T I O N

!!

BASS PROCESSING

The 500/5's subwoofer channel control section

also includes some basic bass processing tools.

These consist of two primary components: a

fixed-frequency, 24 dB / octave infrasonic filter and

a fixed-frequency / “Q”, single-band equalizer

centered at 48 Hz.

1) “Infrasonic Filter”:

The infrasonic filter is a 

24 dB / octave high-pass filter, with a fixed cutoff

frequency of 30 Hz.This filter is designed to

conserve amplifier power and protect subwoofer

systems without audibly degrading the sub-bass

output. With ported enclosures, the use of the

infrasonic filter is highly recommended to protect

the speaker(s) from excessive excursion below box

tuning. With sealed enclosures, the use of the filter is

less necessary, but can still help protect the speaker

system.The infrasonic filter can be completely

defeated by selecting the

“Off”

position on the

“Infrasonic Filter”

switch.This bypasses all signal

from flowing through the circuit.

2) LF (Low-frequency) Boost:

This feature

allows the user to control the boost of a fixed 

“Q”

,

fixed-frequency equalization band centered at 48

Hz.The 

“LF Boost”

rotary control determines how

much boost (in dB) you are adding to the bass

signal. A range of  0-15 dB of boost is available. If no

boost is desired, rotate the 

“LF Boost”

control fully

counterclockwise.

The 

“Remote Bass Port”

allows the connection

of an optional remote boost knob (the RBC-1)

that can be mounted in the front of the vehicle.

This optional control takes the place of the 

“LF

Boost”

knob on the amplifier when connected

and bypasses the 

“LF Boost”

rotary control on

the amplifier.

The

“LF Boost”

and 

“Infrasonic Filter”

features

will only operate when the subwoofer channel's

filter is activated with the 

“Sub LP Filter”

switch in

I M P O RTA N T

!

Subwoofer Channel Control Section

Input Sens.

Input Voltage

Low/High

Independent Sub Input

Sub LP Filter

Off/12dB/24dB

Filter Freq. (Hz)

Remote Bass 

Port

Off/30Hz

LF Boost (dB)

Input From:

Ind./F+R/Front

Infrasonic Filter

Left

Right

+1

+13

+3

+7

+10

10

JL AUDIO

500/5

Summary of Contents for 500/5

Page 1: ...equipment to ensure optimum performance from this product Should you decide to install the amplifier yourself please take the time to read this manual thoroughly so as to familiarize yourself with its...

Page 2: ...lector pg 8 Selects Front Filter Cutoff Frequency pg 8 Input Sensitivity Control pg 6 Left and Right Input Jacks pg 6 Left and Right Input Jacks pg 6 Rear Speaker Outputs pg 11 Front Speaker Outputs p...

Page 3: ...00 5 5 PRODUCT DESCRIPTION The JL Audio 500 5 is a five channel system amplifier utilizing patented Absolute Symmetry Class AB technology for its front and rear channels and patented Class D technolog...

Page 4: ...ition switched circuit The 500 5 s Remote turn on connector is designed to accept 18 AWG 8 AWG wire 12 AWG is more than adequate for this purpose To connect the remote turn on wire to the amplifier fi...

Page 5: ...ugh mode for the preamp output delivering a sum of the signals being fed to the Front Input Section and Rear Input Section of the amplifier If the input signal is full range the preamp output Sub LP F...

Page 6: ...ker connectors only the Left and Right remain unused Then connect a mono signal to both left and right RCA inputs for ction ut Sens ght Ch Front Speaker Outputs IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT JL AUDIO...

Page 7: ...erating normally 2 Thermal Red lights to indicate that the amplifier has exceeded its safe operating temperature putting the amplifier into a self protection mode which reduces the power output of the...

Page 8: ...te This configuration can also be set up so that the subwoofer level tracks with the front channel level and only the rear channels are faded To configure the system in this manner go to the Subwoofer...

Page 9: ...for speaker level inputs Select Low for preamp level inputs or High for speaker level inputs Select 2ch Input Mode Amp Output to Rear Satellite Speakers Amp Output to Front Satellite Speakers Select...

Page 10: ...ee way operation This allows the independent powering of tweeters midwoofers and subwoofer s in the system and gives extensive control over level matching and crossover parameters Left and right tweet...

Page 11: ...33 143 34 157 35 184 36 200 193 37 198 38 198 39 198 Full clockwise 198 20 JL AUDIO 500 5 APPENDIX A Precise Frequency Selection Chart CHART A 1 FILTER FREQ FRONT REAR CH FILTERS Detent Panel Actual N...

Page 12: ...is very predictable This makes setting the gain structure via the input sensitivity controls very simple Following the directions below will allow the user to adjust the input sensitivity of the ampl...

Page 13: ...rocessing incorporated into the 500 5 it is possible to connect additional JL Audio 250 1 amplifiers in a Master Slave configuration with each amplifier driving its own speaker system but controlled b...

Page 14: ...MY AMPLIFIER Please refer to Appendix B page 22 to set the input sensitivity for maximum low distortion output MY AMPLIFIER DOESN TTURN ON Check to make sure there is 12V at the Remote connection of...

Page 15: ...hannel 20 Hz 20 kHz Signal to Noise Ratio 108 5 dB referred to rated power A weighted 20 Hz 20 kHz noise bandwidth Frequency Response 5 Hz 30 kHz 0 1 dB Damping Factor 200 4 per ch 50 Hz 100 2 per ch...

Page 16: ...req Range x1 x10 HP Filter Freq Hz Front Speaker Outputs Filter Slope 12dB 24dB Filter Mode Off BP HP 30 JL AUDIO 500 5 JL AUDIO 500 5 five channel system amplifier 12VDC Ground Remote Sub LP F R Inpu...

Page 17: ...s therefore these exclusions may not apply to you This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state If you need service on your JL AUDIO p...

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