Bose Speakers User manual

Bose

161

Speakers

Owner’s Guide

October 26, 2001

AM257524_01_V.pdf

2 October 26, 2001 AM257524_01_V.pdf

Declaration of conformity

We, the offerer,

Bose Corporation, The Mountain

Framingham, MA 01701-9168 USA

acknowledge our sole responsibility, that the product,

Kind of equipment: Loudspeaker

Type designation: 161™loudspeaker

in accordance with EMC directive 89/336/EC and article 10(1) of the

Directive, is in compliance with the following norm(s) or document(s):

Technical regulations: EN 50081-1, EN 50082-1

Accredited by Bose Corporation

1 May 2001

Bose Products B.V. Nic Merks,

Nijverheidstraat 8, Vice President, Bose Europe

1135 GE Edam, Manufacturer’s authorized

The Netherlands EU representative

AM257524_01_V.pdf October 26, 2001 3

Where to ﬁnd …

Before you begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

For your records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Unpacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Placing your Bose 161

™

speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Choosing speaker cord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Preparing speaker cord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Connecting speaker cord to the speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Connecting speaker cord to your receiver or amplifier . . . . . . . 5

Testing speaker connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Mounting your speakers on a wall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Cleaning your speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Technical information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Before you begin

Thank you for purchasing Bose 161 speakers. Their advanced design and

quality construction are intended to provide long-term listening enjoyment

in your home. Your 161 speakers are engineered to provide quality Bose

speaker performance from a simple, elegant design. Unique Bose technol-

ogies, including Stereo Everywhere

, deliver performance usually associ-

ated with much larger speakers.

For your records

Serial numbers are located on the label on the back of each 161 speaker.

Serial numbers: __________________ and ____________________

Dealer name: _____________________________________________

Dealer phone: _______________ Purchase date: _______________

We suggest you keep your sales receipt with this owner’s guide.

distributed or otherwise used without prior written permission.

4 October 26, 2001 AM257524_01_V.pdf

Setup

Unpacking

Unpack the carton carefully. Save the carton and packing materi-

als for possible later use. If either speaker appears damaged, do

not operate either one. Repack both speakers in the original car-

ton and notify your authorized Bose

dealer immediately.

Placing your Bose 161

™

speakers

Note:

Your 161 speakers are magnetically shielded to prevent

interference with most television screens.

For best acoustic performance, place the left channel speaker on

the left side of the room and the right channel speaker on the

right, at least 5 feet (1.5 m) apart. (Refer to the label on the back of

each speaker.) Make sure the back of each speaker is parallel to

the front wall.

For rear channel use in a home theater surround sound system,

put the speakers near the back of the room, behind or to the sides

of the listening area.

Attach the supplied self-adhesive feet to the bottom surface of

each speaker for greater stability (Figure 1).

If you want to mount your speakers using the supplied wall

brackets, see “Mounting your speakers on a wall” on page 6.

Figure 1

Locations for

attaching rubber

feet to the bottom

of the speakers

CAUTION:

Do not install near any heat sources, such as radia-

tors, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus (including ampliﬁ-

ers) that produce heat.

Choosing speaker cord

Be sure to use the proper gauge (thickness) of speaker cord. Stan-

dard zip cord (2-conductor, 18-gauge [0.75 mm

] wire found at

electrical and hardware stores) works for most applications. If the

length of speaker wire extends more than 30 feet (9 m) from a

receiver or ampliﬁer, refer to “Wire recommendations” on page 7

or contact your authorized Bose dealer for more information.

CAUTION:

Before making any connections, turn off your receiver

or ampliﬁer and unplug it from the outlet (the AC power mains).

AM257524_01_V.pdf October 26, 2001 5

Setup

Preparing speaker cord

Speaker cord consists of two insulated wires. The insulation

around one wire is striped, collared, or ribbed. This marked wire is

always positive (+). The plain wire is always negative (–). These

correspond to the positive (red) and negative (black) terminals on

the back of each speaker, receiver, or ampliﬁer. Be sure to connect

each wire to the proper terminal (+ to +, – to –).

Note:

Be sure to cut enough cord to reach from the receiver to

each speaker.

At the ends of each cord, strip approximately 1⁄2 inch (1.3 cm) of

insulation from both wires. Twist the bare ends of each wire so

there are no loose strands.

Connecting speaker cord to the speakers

Locate the terminals on the back of each speaker. Depress the red

terminal button (Figure 2), insert the marked (+) wire and release

the button. Depress the black terminal button, insert the plain (–)

wire and release the button.

Figure 2

Making speaker

wire connections

Connecting speaker cord to your receiver or ampliﬁer

Connect the left speaker cord to the left channel speaker output of

your receiver or ampliﬁer. Attach the marked wire to the red (+) ter-

minal and the plain wire to the black (–) terminal. In the same man-

ner, connect the right speaker cord to the right channel speaker

output.

CAUTION:

Make sure no loose strands of wire touch across termi-

nals. This could create a short circuit that can damage an ampli-

ﬁer or receiver. Secure any loose wires before you plug in the

receiver or ampliﬁer.

Note:

If these speakers are used for the rear surround channels in

a home theater system, choose the “SMALL SPEAKER” setting.

Red (+)

Black (–)

6 October 26, 2001 AM257524_01_V.pdf

Setup

Testing speaker connections

1. Center the balance control on your receiver or ampliﬁer. Set it

for MONO, if you have that option, and turn it on.

2. Place the 161

™

speakers less than 6 inches (15 cm) apart, fac-

ing each other.

3. Play some deep bass passages of music.

The sound should seem to come from a point between the two

speakers. The bass should be full and natural. If not, your connec-

tions may be reversed, causing the speakers to play out of phase.

To correct the problem, make sure the speaker wires are con-

nected + to + and – to –. Then repeat steps 1 – 3.

Mounting your speakers on a wall

See the back pages of this guide for a mounting template and

mounting hardware information.

CAUTION:

Do not mount the brackets on surfaces that are not

sturdy enough, or that have hazards concealed behind them,

such as electrical wire or plumbing. If you are unsure about install-

ing the bracket, contact a qualiﬁed professional installer.

CAUTION:

Do not hang items from the brackets or speakers. The

brackets were designed to support the weight of the speakers

only.

Note:

For vertical mounting, mount part A with the hole for screw

C at the bottom. Be sure to tighten all screws.

Note:

For Stereo Everywhere

speaker performance, horizontal

mounting is required.

1. Hold the mounting template in position and mark holes for the

mounting hardware. If you plan to feed wires through the wall,

mark the speaker wire pilot hole also.

2. Drill holes for the chosen mounting hardware.

3. Mount bracket part A to the wall and mount bracket part B to

the rear of the speaker (Figure 3).

4. Secure the speaker with bracket part B to bracket part A

using screw C. To adjust the angle, loosen screw C slightly,

move the speaker up or down, and retighten screw C.

Figure 3

Speaker-bracket

installation

AM257524_01_V.pdf October 26, 2001 7

Reference

Cleaning your speakers

Use a damp cloth to clean your 161

™

speakers. Do not use harsh chemicals or

household cleaners. Do not apply liquids directly to the speakers. If you vacuum the

front grille of the speakers, do so carefully.

Troubleshooting

If you experience problems with your 161 speakers, the following suggestions may

help. If you need additional help, contact your authorized Bose

dealer, or contact

Bose directly.

Technical information

Quality standard:

Syncom

computer quality control

Driver complement:

Two (2) 2.5" (6.3 cm) wide-range drivers per speaker

Enclosure:

Tuned port, molded ABS resin

Dimensions:

4.17"H x 10.93"W x 4.98"D (10.6 cm x 27.8 cm x 12.6 cm)

Compatibility:

Rated 50W IEC; compatible with ampliﬁers or receivers rated 10-100

watts per channel, rated 4-8 ohms

Wire recommendations:

Based on a maximum frequency response deviation of

±0.5 dB.

Weight:

8 lbs. (3.6 kg) per pair, in the carton

Problem What to do

Neither speaker

plays Check the settings on your receiver or ampliﬁer. Refer to the owners

guide that came with it for instruction on settings.

Bass or treble is

weak Check the tonal balance setting on your receiver or ampliﬁer.

Only one speaker

plays • Check the balance control on your receiver or ampliﬁer.

• Check the wires connected to the speaker that does not play. Make

sure the wires are in good condition and are ﬁrmly connected. See

page 5.

One speaker still

does not play • Disconnect the wires from both the speaker and the receiver or

ampliﬁer. Disconnect the other cord from its speaker, and connect

that end of the cord to the speaker that doesn’t play.

• If the speaker still doesn’t play, the problem is in the speaker. If the

speaker now plays, continue checking for the source of the problem.

• Disconnect the same cord from the ampliﬁer or receiver. Connect it

to the other outputs on the ampliﬁer or receiver.

• If the speaker plays, the problem is in the original cord that was con-

nected to that speaker. If the speaker does not play, the problem is in

that channel of the receiver.

Gauge Length

18 (0.75 mm

) 30 ft (9 m) maximum

16 (1.5 mm

) 45 ft (14 m) maximum

14 (2.0 mm

) 70 ft (21 m) maximum

8 October 26, 2001 AM257524_01_V.pdf

Reference

AM257524_01_V.pdf October 26, 2001 9

" (60 mm)

1/4"(6 mm)

9/16"(13 mm)

1/4"(6 mm)

1/8"(3 mm)

" (30 mm)

Drilling template

Optional speaker cord pilot hole

10 October 26, 2001 AM257524_01_V.pdf

(3 mm)

(6 mm)

(3 mm)

1/2" —9/16"

(12-13 mm)

1/4"

(6 mm)

1/2" —9/16"

(12-13 mm)

Wood wall

Masonry wall

Wallboard wall

#10 x 11/2in.

(#10 x 40 mm)

#10

#10-24 x 3 in.

(M5 x 75 mm)

#10 x 11/2in.

(#10 x 40 mm)

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