POWER AMPLIFIER, SWITCHING AND TESTING BOX MODEL 5 USER'S MANUAL AUDIOMATICA
© COPYRIGHT 1991-2015 BY AUDIOMATICA SRL ALL RIGHTS RESERVED EDITION 1.3, JANUARY 2015 IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
CONTENTS 1 - THE QCBOX MODEL 5 POWER AMPLIFIER, SWITCHING AND TESTING BOX..........4 2 - TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS.........................................................................5 3 - GENERAL CONDITIONS AND WARRANTY.........................................................6 4 - INTERNAL FUNCTIONAL DIAGRAM..................................................................7 5 - BASIC CONNECTIONS...................................................................................
1 - THE QCBOX MODEL 5 POWER AMPLIFIER, SWITCHING AND TESTING BOX The QCBOX Model 5 power amplifier, switching and testing box is of invaluable help in everyday laboratory use and when configuring an automatic or manual quality control setup.
2 - TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Inputs: Four line/microphone inputs with selectable phantom power supply (0÷24V software controlled) TTL pedal input (RCA connector) Digital I/O: 5 digital inputs (DB25 connector) 6 digital outputs (DB25 connector) Power output stage: 50W (8Ohm) power amplifier (26dB gain) with current sensing and software controlled current limiter Capability of superimposing a DC voltage (±20V) THD (@1 kHz): 0.
3 - GENERAL CONDITIONS AND WARRANTY THANKS Thankyou for purchasing your QCBox Model 5. We hope that your experiences using QCBox Model 5 will be both productive and satisfying. CUSTOMER SUPPORT Audiomatica is committed to supporting the use of the QCBox Model 5, and to that end, offers direct support to end users. Our users all around the world can contact us directly regarding technical problems, bug reports, or suggestions for future software enhancements.
4 - INTERNAL FUNCTIONAL DIAGRAM The first diagram shows us the unit set for impedance measurements (in Internal Mode referring to CLIO software, see chapter 13 of the User's Manual); in this situation the power amplifier and inputs are disconnected while the speaker load is presented in parallel with CLIO's input and output; this method of impedance measurement relies on the precise knowledge of the analyzer's output impedance and stimulates the D.U.T with signals of small amplitude.
5 - BASIC CONNECTIONS The following diagram shows the basic connections needed to operate the unit. INPUT A CLIO INPUT B OUTPUT A OUTPUT B LPT (Model 1, 2, 3 and 4) USB (Model 5) CLIO QCBOX I SENSE BLACK GAIN FROM CLIO RED TO CLIO INPUT 1 INPUT 2 INPUT N GAIN = 10 dB (Model 1, 2 & 3) GAIN = 20 dB (Model 4) GAIN = 26 dB (Model 5) Please connect (referring to the front panel): 1) A pin-to-pin cable from the "From CLIO" RCA plug to CLIO's output.
6 - DEFAULT INTERNAL SETTINGS The QCBox Model 5 can be operated also if the USB cable is not connected to the PC. In this particular case, when software control doesn't take place, the unit operates in the following mode: Internal setting: frequency response. Input: enabled input 1. I SENSE: enabled. Current protection limiter: 2 A.
7 - USB DRIVER INSTALLATION When connecting the USB cable to the PC and the QC Box it may be requested by the operating system to install a device driver. Install driver under Windows XP You will be prompted with the dialog boxes in next figure. Select 'No. Not this time' and then select 'Install from a list or specific location (Advanced)'. At the successive prompt Select 'Search for the best driver in these locations' and press the 'Browse...' button.
You will be prompted again to install the second USB device: repeat the same procedure to install the USB Serial Port. Windows drivers installation is now finished and your QCBOX Model 5 system ready to be used. Install driver under Windows Vista You will be prompted with the dialog box in next figure. Select 'Locate and Install Driver'. Vista will connect to the Windows Update site trying to download the driver. If it fails or if an internet connection is not available it will ask for a device driver CD.
Please insert the QCBox 5 CD ROM, the drivers will be automatically found and installed. Windows drivers installation is now finished and your QCBOX Model 5 system ready to be used. Install driver under Windows 7 When connecting the QC Box USB cable the system start searching for a driver.
automatically downloaded and installed.
Clicking on “Click here for details” open a new window: In this case there are two methods to install the driver for the QC BOX. Windows Update: It is possible to change the “Device Installation Settings” by selecting “Install driver software from Windows Update if it is not found on my computer” and saving changes. Then disconnect and reconnect the QC BOX USB cable. At this point the driver should be automatically downloaded from Windows Update.
Right click on the device and select “Update Driver Software”, this then displays the option for an automatic search or a manual search. Select the second option to browse manually. Insert the QC BOX CD and select the “USB Drivers” folder.
Select “NEXT” to start the installation: 16
At this point in the Device Manager you should have a situation like the one in the following screenshot. Right click on the “USB Serial Port” device and select again “Update Driver Software”, follow the same procedure as before.
8 - SOFTWARE CONTROL It is possible to control the QCBOX MODEL 5 from CLIO 8, CLIO 10 and CLIO 11 software. Run CLIO 10, then click on the External Hardware Button (or simply press Shift-F4). Choose Model 5 in the 'Type' drop down. The control should be active; an acoustic confirmation should come from the internal relays, you should hear them clicking when changing inputs. Please refer to the CLIO User's Manual for executing frequency response and impedance measurements.
9 - CALIBRATING SOFTWARE It is possible to calibrate the CLIO 10 software to obtain maximum precision when executing current sensing measurement. The calibration relies on the input of the correct sensing resistor value (I Sense R) in the External Hardware panel. Inside the unit there is a sensing resistor of nominal value of 0.1 Ohm; as it is rather difficult to maintain such a low value under strict production control the software allows for the input of its value.
10 - CONNECTING EXTERNAL HARDWARE The DB25 connector can be used to interface the QCBOX Model 5 with external hardware, the connection are as showed in the following figure: If you connect the unit to external signals be sure to use TTL logic levels. 11 - CONNECTING A FOOT PEDAL SWITCH It is possible to connect an external foot pedal switch to the PEDAL IN input on the rear panel of the QCBox Model 5. This will trigger QC operations as described in chapter 14 of the CLIO User's Manual.
13 - INTERNAL SETTINGS AND TROUBLESHOOTING If you want to make one of the possible internal settings disconnect the unit from the mains power and then carefully open the unit; locate SW2 from the figure below and make the appropriate selection. It is possible, using the dip switch SW2, to select a phantom power supply on each input separately. When a switch is ON the phantom power is present at that input.
