Cambridgeaudio Azur 851W Owners Manual

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2 Contents Thank you for purchasing this Azur 851W Class XD™ power amplifier. We are confident that you will enjoy many years of listening pleasure from it. Like all Cambridge Audio products the Azur 851W adhere to our three core principles – stunning performance, ease of use and incredible value. The 851W features our unique proprietary amplifier topology; Class XD, designed to eliminate crossover distortion at low signal levels. By actively displacing the crossover point this technology creates a region of pure Class-A operation where the crossover zone would otherwise be before moving into an enhanced form of Class B at higher levels. It should not be confused with Class AB, which gives a small area of Class A, but at the cost of higher distortion as soon as the signal level moves outside the AB area. Class XD circuitry not only removes crossover distortion from the zero-crossing point but also joins the characteristics of the output transistors together in a way that reduces distortion in other parts of the amplifiers output range. A white paper on this patented technology is available on our website: www.cambridge-audio.com Please note that because of the Class XD technology the 851W runs slightly warmer than a conventional Class B/AB amplifier and the ventilation slots on the top of the unit must not be obstructed. Other features include a low resonance acoustically damped chassis for freedom from distortion inducing vibrations. Four pairs of very high current output transistors per output are used for excellent load driving ability, plus the unique fifth output transistor pair per channel that provides the business end of the Class XD circuitry. High quality polypropylene signal capacitors are used throughout, whilst multiple copper bus-bars provide very low impedance conduits for the power circuits and all resistors are 1% tolerance metal-film types. Balanced audio input connections are fitted for the highest fidelity and all inputs have loop outputs. The loop outputs can be used with the 851Ws Bi-Amp Mono and Bridged-Mono modes to allow two or more 851Ws to be used in very high quality systems. The 851W features separate transformer secondaries for left and right channels, twin rectifiers and separate PSUs for dual mono operation of the left and right power amplifiers. Your power amplifier can only be as good as the system it is connected to. Please do not compromise on your pre-amplifier, source equipment, speakers or cabling. Naturally we recommend models from the Cambridge Audio Azur range, particularly the matching 851E pre- amplifier. These have been designed to the same exacting standards as this amplifier. Your dealer can also supply excellent quality Cambridge Audio interconnects to ensure your system realises its full potential. Thank you for taking the time to read this manual; we do recommend you keep it for future reference. Matthew Bramble, Cambridge Audio Technical Director and the 851W design team Introduction Make sure you register your purchase. Visit: support.cambridgeaudio.com By registering, youll be the first to know about:  Future product releases  Software upgrades  Ne ws, events and exclusive offers plus competitions! This guide is designed to make installing and using this product as easy as possible. Information in this document has been carefully checked for accuracy at the time of printing; however, Cambridge Audios policy is one of continuous improvement, therefore design and specifications are subject to change without prior notice. This document contains proprietary information protected by copyright. All rights are reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced by any mechanical, electronic or other means, in any form, without prior written permission of the manufacturer. All trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. © Copyright Cambridge Audio Ltd 2013. Cambridge Audio and the Cambridge Audio logo are trademarks of Cambridge Audio. Other brands mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners and are used for reference purposes only. Introduction ................................................................................................. 2 Im portant safety instructions ..................................................................... 3 Limit ed warranty .......................................................................................... 4 R ear panel connections .............................................................................. 5 F ront panel................................................................................................... 6 Connections ................................................................................................. 7 U nbalanced stereo connections ............................................................ 7 Balanced st ereo connections ................................................................. 7 P ower syncing (On/Standby control) ...................................................... 8 A dvanced connections ............................................................................ 8 Bi-wired st ereo connections ................................................................... 8 Bi-am ped dual mono connections ......................................................... 9 Bridged dual mono connections ............................................................ 9 P owering On/Off the 851W ..................................................................... 10 Cust om installation (C.I.) use .................................................................. 10 Configuration menu ................................................................................. 10 CAP5: Fiv e-way protection system ........................................................... 11 T echnical specifications ........................................................................... 12 T roubleshooting ........................................................................................ 12