SYNTHESIS OWNER’S MANUAL
CONGRATULATIONS. Your Synthesis Home Media System is a wonderful investment in a lifetime of quality home entertainment. Only JBL can provide a system of this caliber. Since the “JAZZ SINGER ” brought sound to films in 1929, the letters J-B-L have been intimately linked to the production of the world’s finest films. Our 50 year devotion to the art of sound reproduction has made JBL an integral part of the musical experience.
TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION PAGE 1.0 _______________ BASIC OPERATIONS 1.1 Powering Up 4 1.2 Basic Remote Control Operations 4–5 1.3 Basic Cinema Operations 5 1.4 Basic Music Operations 6 1.5 Turning the System Off 7 2.0 __________ ADVANCED OPERATIONS 2.1 Advanced Cinema Operations 8 2.2 Advanced Music Operations 14 2.3 Advanced Remote Control Operations 17 3.0 ______SERVICE AND 3.1 General Service Policy 3.2 Audio and Video Service MAINTENANCE 4.0 __________CALIBRATION 4.1 Synthesis One 4.
1.0 BASIC OPERATIONS This Section focuses on the basic operations required to power up the system, to use it, to make simple everyday adjustments to both its Cinema and Music functions, and to turn it off. More advanced adjustments are covered in Section 2: Advanced Operations. Your certified JBL Installer will be glad to overview these materials with you. 1.1 Powering Up The system can easily and quickly be turned on using the Remote Controller, pictured on this page.
1.0 BASIC OPERATIONS 1.2.2 Adjusting the Master Volume The Master Volume buttons at the top right hand part of the Remote Controller are used to adjust the Output Levels of the system. Press the ▲ button to make things Louder, and the ▼button to make things Softer. These do not adjust the Input Levels of the Source Devices. In fact, we recommend that you do not do so.
1.4 Basic Music Operations 1.4.1 Adjusting the Music Volume To adjust the Volume in Music Mode, make sure that the appropriate Music Source Device is powered up and that it has been Selected as the Source. Then simply adjust the volume ▲ or ▼using the MASTER VOLUME buttons, as shown on the left. Link Forward: See Section 2: Advanced Operations, page 8. 1.4.
1.0 BASIC OPERATIONS 1.5 Turning the System Off There is no preferred order of components when turning the system off. However, there is one caution you should follow: NOTE: Do not turn the system off while any Source Device is running and producing sound. Always make sure all Source Devices are in “Idle” before pressing the main POWER button. Failure to do this can produce a noticeable “pop”, and can, over time, damage your components.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS There are some Operations which go beyond the “basics” of the system and address its full array of functional capacities in detail. Before reading this Section, the Owner should have already read and mastered Section 1: Basic Operations. Your certified JBL Synthesis Installer will be glad to walk you through any or all of the information covered in this Section. 2.1 Advanced Cinema Operations 2.1.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS 2.1.2 Panorama Adjustment Panorama refers to the degree of stereo separation generated by the Left and Right Main Speakers when listening to the simulated stereo of Mono recordings or movies. This can be adjusted by using the SOUND STAGE, CENTER, and ▼buttons, located at the left side of the remote controller. Link Forward: See Mono Enhancer, under 2.1.8, page 13. Pressing the SOUND STAGE button increases the separation, spreading the sound further.
2.1.5 Woofer Equalization While the JBL Synthesis System is calibrated to provide awesome amounts of clear, clean bass, some listeners might prefer a touch more bass for some sources. This cannot be adjusted from the Remote Controller, but must be done using the BASS EQ dial to the left of the INPUT control on the Surround Processor. The preset bass is encoded at the off or zero position. To boost the bass level, slowly turn the dial clockwise a little at a time until it meets your auditory needs.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS 2.1.6 Sibilant Filter The Sibilant Filter reduces the potential “leakage” of cinema dialogue from the Center channel into the Ambient Surround Channels. Engage it if you are having the sensation that the actors are talking off to the side of you or behind you. To activate this feature, press the button marked SIB FIL. 2.1.7 Hi Freq.
2.1.8 Cinema Modes The JBL Synthesis System is pre–configured for a number of Cinema Modes, each of which has been calibrated to take advantage of the unique properties of each mode. Press the appropriate button for the type of Cinema Source material you are using. Virtually all tapes and disks are labeled for this. • 70mm This mode increases Delay up to 50 mS. It also simulates a sense of Surround Sound by blending left and right front channel information and feeding it into the Ambient Surrounds.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS • THX This allows for the complete package of THX sound manipulations, and should be pressed when using any Source labeled as having THX–compatible sound or Dolby Stereo. To activate this feature, press the button marked THX. • Dolby This home version of the cinema Dolby Surround technology provides audio performance virtually identical to a Dolby theater experience.
2.2 Advanced Music Operations As we have discussed the Music System is virtually a “system-within-the-system”, and can operate separately from the Cinema Mode. Within the Music System, there are a number of adjustments you can make directly from your Remote Controller. 2.2.1 Switching to the Music System Most listeners prefer to listen to Music in its classic “stereo” modality.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS 2.2.2 Music Modes Of course, there is music and then there is music. The JBL Synthesis System allows you to configure it to play different types of music and to take advantage of their different characteristics. • Rock The Rock Mode allows you to have the best of all possible worlds, giving you full stereo separation plus a high degree of ambience as well.
• Jazz The operative word here is “live”, as the Jazz mode makes most music sources sound engagingly present. Again, the music’s perceived source is the front of the room, with a bit less exaggerated stereo separation, to make it sound as if a small combo is playing in your living room. The Ambient channel is in Mono, for spatiality only, and Panorama and Delay can also be adjusted for more or less of a sense of space, both front–to–back and side–to–side.
2.0 ADVANCED OPERATIONS • Hall 2 This mode has been designed for works on a broader acoustic canvas, like orchestral and operatic works. Like Hall 1, there is no processing of the front channels, and the Center Speaker is disengaged (although you can re–engage it using the CENTER button if you desire). The Ambient mix gives the sensation not of being right in front of the ensemble but rather of being in the “middle of the hall” with a larger ensemble. Delay can be set anywhere up to 80 mS.
2.3.2 Front Panel Controls Input Level Knob Caution: This knob should not be used for volume control. It should be approximately 12 o’clock or straight up. The only time it should be turned down is if you notice the LED Level Light going into the red. The unit is then being overloaded and at any output level distortion is being produced. Bass EQ Knob While the JBL Synthesis System is calibrated to provide awesome amounts of clear, clean bass, some listeners might prefer a touch more bass for some sources.
3.0 SERVICE Once the system is in place, it should need little or no attention. The components are of the highest quality, and many are built to withstand the rigors of professional use. This Section outlines service policies and warranties. 3.1 General Service Policy The JBL Synthesis System is backed by our exclusive “48–hour (no-down-time) Service Policy”.
4.0 CALIBRATION TEMPLATES 4.0 CALIBRATION TEMPLATES 4.
4.0 CALIBRATION TEMPLATES 4.
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