M10 Signature ! ! REFERENCE LINE LEVEL PRE AMPLIFIER OWNER’S INFORMATION ! !
CONTENTS ! 1) IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION 2) CE DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY DISPOSAL POWER REQUIREMENTS 3) INTRODUCTION 4) OVERVIEW 5) AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE DESIGNER 8) UNPACKING AND INSTALLATION 9) CONNECTION 17) OPERATION 19) TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS 20) WARRANTY INFORMATION 21) CONTACT INFORMATION
! IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION ! RISK OF SHOCK OR ELECTROCUTION! INTERNAL OPERATING VOLTAGES ARE LETHAL! Do not remove top cover, unless specifically instructed to do so in the user manual. This unit contains fuses and other safety components in accordance with BS60065 requirements. In the event of failure, replacement fuse or safety component must be of the same part type and value. ! SUCH REPLACEMENT MUST ONLY BE CARRIED OUT BY A QUALIFIED SERVICE TECHNICIAN.
CE DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY We declare under our sole responsibility that this product is in conformity with the following standards or standardized documents: BS EN 60065 in accordance with the regulations 73/23/EEC, 89/336/EEC (from 1 January 1997) CE 94 Peter Qvortrup, Director Audio Note (UK) Limited 25 Montefiore Road Hove East Sussex BN3 1RD United Kingdom Tel: Fax: +44 (0)1273 220 511 +44 (0)1273 731 498 ! DISPOSAL This product must not be disposed of as normal household waste.
INTRODUCTION Thank you for purchasing this Audio Note (UK) product. With the correct care it should give you many years of pleasure and enjoyment. Please take the time to read all of the information in this manual before connecting your new component to an electrical supply or your system, to ensure both your safety and satisfaction. Please note that due to our desire to continually improve products, specifications are subject to change without notice.
M10 SIGNATURE PRE AMPLIFIER Congratulations on your purchase of the Audio Note (UK) M10 Signature Pre Amplifier. It is without doubt or question, the finest Line Level preamplifier in production today, and is a full Audio Note (UK) Level 5 product. No other preamplifier has ever managed to retrieve such incredible levels of detail, resolution and sheer musicality from your recorded music collection.
AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE DESIGNER Andy Grove, Designer in Chief for Audio Note (UK) explains some of the development process behind our new statement line stage: "I realised the core concept of the M10 power supply "Galahad" while I was doing some theoretical work on amplifier topologies. I was analysing compound amplifiers which are connected by bridge circuits, or in other ways, such that one amplifier will correct the output of the other by subtracting distortion from the output.
AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE DESIGNER continued… I created a working model of this power supply at Audio Note (UK), and we assembled a very high-end version of what was essentially an M8 preamp to be powered by it, and the results were really mind blowing. At the same time I designed a special input transformer to received balanced signals, this transformer has exceptional noise rejection powers, yet has an equally exceptional bandwidth and very low distortion.
AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE DESIGNER continued… The preamp unit of the Signature is also upgraded, I redesigned the output transformers, this time using a much larger core of the same 55% nickel iron material C-Cores. This allowed me to increase the bandwidth and lower the distortion of the output transformer as compared to the original. To further improve things I designed a new input transformer, again on a larger core. The results are the same as for the output transformer.
UNPACKING AND INSTALLATION Please take care when unpacking your M10 Signature preamplifier. Choose a clean, clear location to unpack your units. Be aware that the preamplifier and its power supplies are extremely heavy; before attempting to unpack or lift the units, check the weight and if necessary use more than one person so that they can be moved safely and easily.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW RCA Inputs Four RCA / Single Ended line inputs are available for connection, labeled ‘SE1 ‘SE2’, ‘SE3’ and ‘SE4’; any standard ‘line level’ source can be connected to these inputs. All sockets are colour coded; RED is for RIGHT channel connection, WHITE is for LEFT channel connection. XLR Inputs In addition to the four RCA inputs, two pairs of XLR / Balanced inputs are provided, for the connection of sources with the appropriate XLR / Balanced outputs.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… Umbilicals Two dedicated cables are supplied for connection of the M10 Signature main unit to the Galahad Signature PSU units. Each cable is colour coded for left and right connection. IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT THE CORRECT GALAHAD SIGNATURE POWER SUPPLY UNIT IS CONNECTED TO THE CORRECT CORRESPONDING CHANNEL ON THE MAIN UNIT. The Galahad Signature power supply units have serial numbers ending with ‘L’ for the left side input and ‘R’ for the right side input.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… M10 SIGNATURE UMBILICAL CABLE CONNECTION ! M10S XXXXL LEFT PSU (SERIAL NUMBER ENDING IN ‘L’) ! M10S XXXXR RIGHT PSU (SERIAL NUMBER ENDING IN ‘R’)
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… Mains The M10 Signature preamplifier ‘Galahad Signature’ power supplies are equipped with IEC 320 mains inlet sockets. Use the supplied mains cables to connect the units to the local mains supply. The mains fuses are located in the circular receptacles to the right of the mains inlet.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… Outputs The M10 Signature preamplifier provides two Single Ended / RCA outputs, consisting of two pairs of colour coded RCA / Single Ended sockets. RED is for RIGHT channel connection, WHITE is for LEFT channel connection. There are also two pairs of balanced outputs, consisting of two pairs of ‘male’ XLR sockets (see ‘Balanced’ section, below).
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… RCA The two pairs of RCA / Single Ended outputs are provided for connection to power amplifiers. They are identical, making them suitable for bi-amping. RCA SOCKET, SHELL = NEGATIVE / RETURN. RCA SOCKET, CENTRE = POSITIVE / SEND. Balanced The M10 Signature preamplifier is equipped with custom designed and manufactured output transformers, which feature an improved output and grounding scheme to provide the best possible connection to the power amplifier.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… The pin configuration for all Audio Note (UK) XLR / BALANCED connections is as follows: PIN 1 PIN 2 PIN 3 Ground / Shield Positive / Send Negative / Return The balanced and single ended outputs cannot be used simultaneously; select the appropriate output using the toggle switch. When using an amplifier with a true balanced input, the ‘BALANCED / SINGLE ENDED’ switch may be set in either position.
CONNECTION OVERVIEW continued… CABLE CONFIGURATION OPTIONS POWER AMP INPUT PREAMP OUTPUT 2 1 3 2 XLR FEMALE 3 SCREEN 1 XLR MALE CONVENTIONAL: SCREEN CONNECTED AT BOTH ENDS POWER AMP INPUT PREAMP OUTPUT 2 1 2 1 3 3 XLR FEMALE SCREEN XLR MALE SCREEN CONNECTED AT PREAMP END ONLY, TO ELIMINATE GROUND LOOPS POWER AMP INPUT PREAMP OUTPUT 1 2 3 XLR FEMALE SCREEN RCA MALE CABLE CONFIGURATION FOR XLR BALANCED PREAMP OUTPUT TO RCA UNBALANCED AMPLIFIER INPUT When connecting the XLR / BALANCED
OPERATION Once all the connections are completed and checked, ensure that the volume controls are at the minimum setting (rotated all the way left). Ensure that all source components connected to the M10 Signature preamplifier are switched ON. Source components should always be the FIRST components to be switched on and the LAST components to be switched off. Ensure that all power amplifiers connected to the M10 Signature preamplifier are switched OFF.
OPERATION continued… Bedding in The new preamplifier requires around 200 hours of initial use (called “bedding in”) before the circuitry becomes stable and optimum performance is realized. As the preamplifier “beds in” the sound will become increasingly smoother, detailed and more open. Once the amplifier has “bedded in” a warm up time of approximately 20 to 30 minutes is required each time the amplifier is switched on before optimum sonic performance is reached.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS INPUT IMPEDANCE 47K Ohms INPUT SENSITIVITY 160mV for 1V Output GAIN 16dB at 1KHz OUTPUT IMPEDANCE 600 Ohms OUTPUT NOISE -80dB unweighted (RMS) TUBE COMPLIMENT 1 x 6463 1 x 12AU7 2 x 5V4GT 2 x 6X5 2 x OD3 2 x 6SJ7 2 x CU345 (12E1) FUSE RATINGS 1.6A anti-surge (110 / 120V supply) 800mA anti-surge (220 / 240V supply) MAX.
WARRANTY INFORMATION Audio Note (UK) warrants this product to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for two years from the original date of purchase from an appointed Audio Note (UK) dealer, and agrees to cover the cost of parts and associated labour required to correct such defects, subject to terms & conditions. This Warranty is offered to the first purchaser only. Any valves supplied with the unit are warranted for three months from the original date of purchase.
CONTACT INFORMATION If in the future your Audio Note (UK) product requires servicing, or if you require technical support or have any questions regarding this or any of our other products, please contact your local Audio Note (UK) dealer. Alternatively, please feel free to contact us directly: -! Audio Note (UK) Limited 25 Montefiore Road Hove East Sussex BN3 1RD United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)1273 220 511 Fax: +44 (0)1273 731 498 e-mail: info@audionote.co.
