Hooking Up A Pioneer Amp To A Pioneer A/V Receiver

team_canada

Hello all, hoping I could get a little help. I am trying to hook up a Pioneer Elite M-10X amp to my Pioneer Elite 56TXi A/V receiver. I will be using the amp to power my front L & R towers. I have followed all the instructions but can't get any sound from the speakers. The amp will not go into stand-by mode either. There is a orange light in the middle of the amp an the front pannel that flashes as well.

I purchased the amp new from the U.S.. It was inspected at the border and when they re-packed it they did not re-pack the power cord or the manual so I don't have any reference material. The connection (power cord) is a simple square/round connector which is quite common so I don't think I need a specific cord.

If any has this unit or has used one in the past, any suggestions would be great.

Frank Z

You'll need to connect the amp to the receiver via 3.5mm cable.

team_canada

Frank Z wrote:

You'll need to connect the amp to the receiver via 3.5mm cable.

Interconnects, right?? I have the interconnects. Is there a setting that I need to change on the amp??

hoosier21

team_canada wrote:

Interconnects, right?? I have the interconnects. Is there a setting that I need to change on the amp??

wouldn't think there is anything to change, be sure you are hooking the amp up the the receiver front L & R OUTPUTS, seen where somebody hook an amp up to the 5.1 inputs before.

If you have it hooked up correctly, you may have a bad amp, the flashing ornge light doesn't sound good to me.

Frank Z

Not interconnects. In order for the receiver to power up the amp (turn it on) the amp must receive a signal. This accomplished through a 3.5 mm jack in the back of both the receiver and the amp. You can pick one up at Radio shack or any electronics supply house. You can get a manual from www.Pioneerelectronics.com

hoosier21

Frank, I don't know much about these Pioneer items, but is this because it is a 2nd zone amp? It has to receive a trigger from the receiver to turn on? Does the receiver send this "trigger" when it is playing zone 1 sources? I mean he is wanting to use it for his main L and R channels, will the receiver send anything to the amp for this use?

Edit: read where the trigger is sent when the receiver is power up, so it should work.

hoosier21

BTW Pioneer's website sucks, you have to register to see a manual?

team_canada

Frank Z wrote:

Not interconnects. In order for the receiver to power up the amp (turn it on) the amp must receive a signal. This accomplished through a 3.5 mm jack in the back of both the receiver and the amp. You can pick one up at Radio shack or any electronics supply house. You can get a manual from www.Pioneerelectronics.com

Ahh, the trigger. I do have the connector for the trigger but did not connect it as I thought it only was used to turn the amp on and off via the receiver. This is my first amp so I am a bit of a newby.

I have looked for the manual download but can't seem to find it on the Pioneer website.

Thanks Frank

team_canada

hoosier21 wrote:

BTW Pioneer's website sucks, you have to register to see a manual?

Hey H21, your amp hooked up with a trigger wire as well?? Probably a dump question on my part but again, I am new to connecting a separate power amp.

Early B.

Is it working now? How does the sound compared to the receiver?

hoosier21

no, I was looking on the site to help you, that's all.

team_canada

hoosier21 wrote:

no, I was looking on the site to help you, that's all.

Much appreciated

team_canada

Well I tried connecting with the 12V trigger and still no sound. Could it be the 3.5mm wire I used can not send the signal. Looks like a basic mic or earphone wire. I found the connection wire with my spares, maybe the wrong type.

I read a thread on a different website. The guy was having the same problem. It turned out that the earphone wire was not thick enough to carry the signal.

gregure

I'm surprised you're going with an amp of this type, honestly. I've never run into this 3.5mm connector before, most amps have a power cord and RCA or XLR inputs for signal. That's it. If you are using a second zone amp, they usually don't have that much power. The VSX56 has a great amp and power supply. Are you not happy with the performance? You should really be looking at Outlaw, Rotel or B&K if you really want a marked improvement in sound performance.

team_canada

gregure wrote:

I'm surprised you're going with an amp of this type, honestly. I've never run into this 3.5mm connector before, most amps have a power cord and RCA or XLR inputs for signal. That's it. If you are using a second zone amp, they usually don't have that much power. The VSX56 has a great amp and power supply. Are you not happy with the performance? You should really be looking at Outlaw, Rotel or B&K if you really want a marked improvement in sound performance.

Well, I got a really good deal on this unit. It is 100W x 2 with the same MOFSET design as the 56TXi. I thought it would do the job powering the front speakers. Less stress on the receiver as it only has to power the surrounds and center channel.

I am very happy with the 56TXi performance. The sound and clarity are amazing for movies and music. I just wanted to try this option, if I am not satisfied I can sell it.

Frank Z

The 3.5mm cable is for the trigger only, it does not pass an audio signal. The M-10-x is a nice little amp. I used one for the rear channels in my HT, and later used it to drive Deb's SDA-2b's.

team_canada

Frank Z wrote:

The 3.5mm cable is for the trigger only, it does not pass an audio signal. The M-10-x is a nice little amp. I used one for the rear channels in my HT, and later used it to drive Deb's SDA-2b's.

I am taking the unit to the local authorized Pioneer repair shop to have it inspected. I talked to them today, they advised that there appears to be an internal issue. The light on the front panel that is flashing apparently indicates that the safety mechanism that the unit has is not allowing sound (power) to be produced for the speakers. Protecting them from being damaged.

Trigger works fine, turns the amp on from stand-by when the receiver is turned on but will not go back into stand-by mode once the receiver is turned off (stand-by).

I should know more tomorow.