JC 5 Stereo Power Amplifier OWNER’S GUIDE
Important Safety Instructions The lightning flash with the arrowhead symbol within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of “dangerous voltage” inside the product that may constitute a risk of electric shock. The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance instructions in the literature accompanying the product. TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE COVER.
Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Placement and Ventilation Guidelines AC Mains Voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Front Panel Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
INTRODUCTION Thank You for Choosing Parasound Your new Parasound Halo JC 5 power amplifier has been designed with the most advanced, proven class A/AB amplifier technology. The JC 5 is built to extremely strict quality and performance standards for which Parasound is renowned. We’re proud to offer you this exceptional audio component that will bring you many years of enjoyment and dependability.
Unpacking Your JC 5 & Placement Guidelines Unpacking Your JC 5 Carefully remove your JC 5 from its shipping carton and locate the enclosed accessories: • AC power cord • A 12V trigger wire for auto turn on. It has a mono 3.5 mm mini plug at each end. While you are unpacking your JC 5, inspect it thoroughly for possible shipping damage and tell your Parasound dealer immediately if you find any evidence of shipping damage.
Rack Mounting Your Parasound JC 5 To mount the JC 5 into a 19" wide equipment rack, you must first attach its two “L” shaped rack mount brackets (included). With its four feet removed, the JC 5 chassis and front panel height occupies four rack spaces (7" or 176 mm). When mounting equipment below the JC 5, you will also need to allow about 1 8" below the unit for the bottom chassis screws. To attach the rack mount brackets: • Remove the three screws from each side of the JC 5.
Audio Connections Always disconnect the AC cord to your JC 5 before making or changing any input, output or trigger wire connections. Inserting or removing an input or output cable while the JC 5 is turned on can result in a blast of sound that can damage your loudspeakers. Make sure there is no strain or tension on any cables that could cause them to pull loose. Audio Input Connections Balanced XLR Input Jacks In most systems balanced XLR connections will give you the best sound.
Speaker Connections for Bridged Mode When operating in bridged mono mode a JC 5 should only power a single 8 ohm speaker. Connect the speaker’s positive (+) speaker wire to the JC 5’s right channel positive (+) speaker terminal. Connect the speaker’s negative (-) wire to the JC 5’s left channel positive (+) speaker terminal. Correct + and - speaker polarity for bridged mode is shown below the JC 5 speaker terminals.
Correct Speaker Polarity is Important Polarity refers to + and – connections. Speaker wires are coded with color, printing or a ridge on the insulation on one of the leads so you know which lead was connected to the + and – terminals at the other end. This coding will help you keep the + and - polarity consistent for all channels. If one speaker is wired with incorrect polarity it will significantly impair sound quality.
V In Jack The JC 5 12 V input uses a 3.5 mm jack (mono). To use the 12 V trigger, insert the trigger wire plug into this jack and the plug at the wire’s other end into your preamplifier’s 12 V output jack. For your convenience we have included a 12 V trigger wire with mono 3.5 mm plugs at both ends. The JC 5 12 V trigger circuit draws a negligible 5 mA. Note: If your preamplifier’s 12 V trigger output is terminal with + and – screws terminal, you can cut the 3.
Technically Speaking Balanced and Unbalanced Lines Recording and broadcast studios use balanced connections exclusively because of their inherent ability to reject noise and hum, thus assuring the best sound. Certain high quality preamplifiers and surround controllers built for residential use utilize balanced connections with XLR jacks for the same reasons.
rack mount before attaching its bolts to the equipment rack rails. These break the ground loops caused by metal-to-metal contact between the rack, the components, and their rack-mount bolts. Extra washers are available from any rack manufacturer Parasound JC 5 Design Overview Circuit Designed by John Curl Parasound design consultant John Curl has been a legend among audiophiles and electronic engineers for decades.
Relay-Bypassed Soft Start Circuit When the JC 5 is first turned on, there is a significant amount of in-rush current required to charge the enormous power supply capacitors. We employ a NTC (negative temperature coefficient) thermistor order to slow down and suppress this in-rush current and to prevent nuisance tripping of a household circuit breaker. A thermistor cuts the in-rush current by approximately 50%.
Class A-A/B Operation Pure class A operation provides the purest sound. However, an amplifier operating entirely in class A would be enormous, highly inefficient, and generate far too much heat. Class A/B combines the main advantage of Class A with the efficiency of Class B operation. It is a compromise that reduces the heat generated in pure class A operation and the higher-order odd harmonic distortions created in class B.
Problems and Remedies Unit will not turn on • Check the setting of the Turn On Options switch. (The front panel On-Off button will be disabled if this switch is set to Audio or 12 V) • If using Audio Turn on, try increasing the sensitivity of the audio trigger by turning the audio threshold knob to the “Quieter” position. • Check that the rear panel power switch is on and that the AC power is live. No sound from speakers • Check that input cables and speaker wires are secure at both ends.
Are You Having Difficulty? Repair or Service Call your Parasound dealer first. If the dealer can’t help you with your problem we encourage you to call Parasound’s Technical Service Department at 415-397-7100, Monday - Friday, 8am - 4pm Pacific Time. We can suggest other diagnostic tests you can easily perform.
Chassis Illustration and Dimensions 19
Specifications Power Output – Stereo Mode Total Gain 400 watts x 2, 8 Ω both channels driven 600 watts x 2, 4 Ω both channels driven 29 dB Input Sensitivity for 28.28 V Output into 8 Ω Power Output – Bridged Mode Unbalanced: 1 V Balanced: 1 V per leg 1200 watts x 1, 8 Ω Bridged 4 Ω operation is not recommended S/N Ratio Power measurement parameters are at 120 VAC: 0.
