10
AUX2
AUX3
AUX4
This is all easier said than done. Setting up speakers
for a surround system takes planning, measuring and
installation. Depending on your level of expertise
and available time, you may wish to employ the
services of your McIntosh Dealer for expert setup of
your system. Professional installation of in-ceiling
speakers is particularly important due to gravity and
the location above your head.
The number, types and locations of speakers are
key elements in setting up the system. There are
a multitude of possible configurations, and the
MX180 is very flexible in its setup to adapt to many
configurations.
Often surround setups are referred to by numbers
for example 7.1.4 or 9.1.2. The first number refers to
the number of traditional surround speakers (front,
center and surround). The second number is the
number of subwoofers that can be connected, and
the third number refers to the number of in-ceiling
or upward firing speakers in the setup.
The type of speaker (size and location) will be
entered later during Speaker setup. The distance
of the speaker from the listening location will be
entered in the RoomPerfect™ setup. Make note of
this information.
At this stage, the connection from the MX180 to the
various amplifiers and powered speakers should be
made using quality balanced XLR cables.
Power Control (Trigger) Outputs
The MX180 has four power control Outputs, one for
Zone A and one for Zone B, and two that allow for
custom setup. Power Control enables power on/off
signals to go to connected components so that other
components can automatically power on (or off) as
called for by the MX180. For example, you may
want a DVD player and certain monitor to power on
when HDMI 1 Input is selected, or you may want
all components to power off when powering off the
MX180.
Connect components using a 3.5mm stereo mini
plug. See Figure 06 below.
Figure 06– Power control (trigger) mini plug
Power
Control
Meter
Illumination
Control Ground
For components that will power on when Zone A
is active, use Power “A” and for Zone B use Power
“B”. For custom settings, connect to Power “1” and
Power “2” which will be configured in the Setup
program later on.
Digital Zone B Output
This coaxial digital audio Output provides a fixed
level Output from the selected Zone B source. Use a
digital coaxial cable with a male RCA connector.
Data Out
The MX180 will convert IR Remote Control data
to share with McIntosh components connected to
the Data Ports. This allows units out of range of an
IR signal to receive commands. There are four Data
Ports. Each port can be assigned to different Inputs
so that only the components involved with the Input
will receive data. For instance, HDMI 1 can be
assigned to DATA OUT 1 and a connected McIntosh
DVD player can be controlled when the HDMI
Input is selected. A unit connected to a different
Data Port would not receive the commands.
To assign a Data Port to an Input, go to
SETUP>Source>[choose source]>Data out>[select
data out #].
To connect a McIntosh unit to a Data Port, use a
3.5mm stereo mini phone plug cable. See Figure 07.
Figure 07– Data Out mini plug
Data
Signal
N/C
Data
Ground
