AVM Ovation CD 6.3 Alpha High End Player Instruction Manual

: June 6, 2024
: AVM

Table of Contents

AVM Ovation CD 6.3 Alpha High-End Player
What’s in the box?
Basic operation
Volume setting
Advanced Settings
Appendix
Troubleshooting
Conditions of warranty (EC only)
Technical Data
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Download This Manual (PDF format)

AVM Ovation CD 6.3 Alpha High-End Player

AVM-Ovation-CD-6.3-Alpha-High-End-Player

Dear customer

Thank you for purchasing this AVM product. You now own a versatile, excellent- sounding high-end component. Before enjoying music, please read this manual carefully. After that, you will know how to use your new CD 6.3 / 8.3 in an optimal way. Please note that the range of functions of your AVM HiFi component can be easily expanded by means of a software update at any time. Hence, the present operating instructions will require
continued updates going forward. You can always download the most current version from
our website at www.avm.audio. Sincerely yours, The AVM Team

What’s in the box?

OVATION CD 6.3 / 8.3
RC 3 remote control
Power cord (in some countries)

CAUTION: After unpacking, please check the scope of delivery to ensure that all parts have been supplied and are undamaged. In case the original packing has already been opened, please contact your local dealer. Often, your dealer prepares your new device prior to delivery to adapt and change the configuration to your personal needs.

Control and operating elements
The numbers in the drawings below mark the control elements. They refer to the numbers in the text, where the operation of the unit is described. AVM-
Ovation-CD-6.3-Alpha-High-End-Player-fig-1

Power button (on / off)
Option key < (Input, track programming)
Option key > (Input, track programming)
PROG button (track programming, RND)
FILTER button
REPEAT button
Control LED
CD slot
Display
STOP button
PAUSE button
PLAY button
Skip / Search button back
Skip / Search button forward
EJECT button
Analogue output left (XLR)
Analogue output right (XLR)
Analogue output right (Cinch/RCA)
Analogue output left (Cinch/RCA)
Digital output optical
Digital output coaxial
USB B digital input
Digital input optical 2
Digital input optical 1
Digital input coaxial 2
Digital input coaxial 1
Digital input AES/EBU
Mains connector
Mains switch
Trigger outputs
Connector for external IR receiver
Phase LED
Link
Configuration port (updates)

Installation and cooling
The unit can become hot depending on-demand output power or environmental temperature. Therefore, it is important, that the cooling air can flow unhindered into the air inlet in the bottom and flow out through the holes in the rear panel. Direct exposure to sunlight is not recommended because this will heat up the unit and may cause unwanted malfunctions.

Connection to mains
Connect the unit to the mains outlet (28) by using the power cord which is (in some countries) delivered together with the unit. Make sure that mains voltage is according to the value printed on the rear panel of the amp (near mains connector).
CAUTION: Keep the unit switched off (29) until all audio connections are made.

Connection to a preamplifier or integrated amplifier
Connect the analogue outputs (16-19) to the high-level inputs of a preamplifier or integrated amplifier. The RCA-cinch outputs and the balanced XLR outputs are fully decoupled from each other and can be used independently.

Connection of digital signal sources
Digital signal sources
Connect the outputs of your digital sources to the corresponding inputs of your device:

Optical inputs (23, 24)
Coaxial inputs (25, 26)
USB B input (22)
AES/EBU input (27)

Digital input sources
The input of a digital recorder must be connected to the digital outputs (20, 21). The signal on the digital outputs depends on the selected source (e.g. DIG COAX, DIG OPT). PLEASE NOTE: Incoming signals via the USB-B input (22) are not looped through the digital outputs (20).

RC 3 remote control
The included RC 3 remote control allows for easy and comprehensive control of your device. All main functions can be controlled by the RC 3: On/Off, Source Selection, Station Selection, SKIP, PLAY/PAUSE, and STOP.

By pressing the PLAY button briefly a second time, the PAUSE function is activated while in CD mode. By pressing the STOP button briefly a second time, an inserted CD is ejected. By holding down one of the SKIP buttons a little longer, the device switches into seek mode (Fast Forward/Reverse).

If there is no CD inserted or the CD is not in playback mode, you can switch between the different digital inputs by pressing the STATION buttons of the RC 3. Press PLAY to return to CD mode.

If a variable output level has been activated in the personal setup menu (see 3.1.1), you can control the output level of the analogue outputs of your CD 3.2 / CD 5.2 by pressing the VOLUME buttons on your RC 3 remote control (see also 2.6).

Battery change

Bottom view RC 3 remote control
Unscrew the 6 marked screws (CAUTION: Do NOT unscrew the 2 unmarked screws in the middle). Take the bottom plate with the mounted pcb out. Remove the worn batteries and replace them with two new batteries (type CR2032, 3V Lithium cells). Make sure that polarity is correct (the “+” sign must be on top). Insert the bottom plate and screw it tight.

External IR remote control
Your device can be connected to an external IR receiver by using the IR jack (31). The plug is a 3,5mm stereo headphone plug.

Basic operation

First operation/self-test
In case your device was not connected to the mains a self-test will be performed when it is switched on by the mains switch (29) for the first time. The unit will check its configuration and that all the installed components work properly. The procedure is shown in the display.
Afterwards, the unit will switch to stand by.

Switching on / stand by
Using the button power (1) you can switch between on (operate) and stand by.
When switched on, the display (10) lights up and the LED (7) is off. This LED only lights up if the mains plug is connected with the incorrect polarity and remains dark if the polarity is correct.

Tube warmup (CD 8.3)
Due to the warm-up phase of the integrated tube line stage, the power-on time of the CD 8.3
is extended by approx. 30 seconds.

CAUTION: When switched to stand by the unit is still connected to the mains. In case of a thunderstorm or if you leave the house for a longer time, we recommend you switch the amplifier off by using the mains switch (29) or pulling the mains plug (28).

Display
When the unit is on, the display (9) shows information about the current settings and state of your CD Player. Apart from information about the operating status (CD Player, Digital Input etc.), the lower line shows you the currently active settings of the D/A converter: On the left-hand side, the sample rate (e.g. “192”) and bit depth is displayed. On the right-hand side, you will find the current filter setting (SMOOTH or STEEP).

Display in CD player mode

TRACK
On the left-hand side both the current title is displayed (big figures) and the total number of available tracks of the inserted CD (small figures).

TIME
At the centre of the display the total duration of an inserted CD is displayed, while stopped (STOP). As soon as the CD is played (PLAY) or paused (PAUSE), the time already elapsed of the current track is displayed.

STATUS
On the right-hand side the current operating status is displayed (STOP, PLAY, PAUSE).

PROG
In the case of a currently active track programming, both the currently playing track and the total number of programmed tracks is displayed on the left-hand side (for example “PROG 2/17”).

RND
In case the random play mode is activated, the currently playing track and the total number of programmed tracks are displayed on the left-hand side (for example “RND 5/12”).

Display in D/A converter mode
On the left-hand side, the name of the currently selected input is displayed. If there is no incoming signal available at the currently selected input, NO DIG SIGNAL or NO USB PLUGGED is shown right next to the input name.

CD Player

Playable disc formats
Your CD Player can playback all compact discs which are recorded according to the red book standard (means the standards for audio CDs established by Philips and Sony). Furthermore, all CDRs and CDR/Ws with good reflection recorded according to this standard are playable. Most copy-protected discs are also playable. But we cannot take responsibility that all future copy protection systems are playable.

Insert / eject
Insert a CD Your CD Player is provided with a slot-in CD drive (8). Insert the CD (coverside up) and push slightly. The drive will now automatically draw the disc inside. After that the player reads the TOC (table of contents) and shows it on the display. Most left is the number of the actual track followed by the total number of tracks on the CD (for example “1/17”). The middle of the display shows the total playing time of the CD.

NOTE: If there is still a CD inside or the unit is in stand by, the slot will be blocked. If the inserted disc is not readable (DVD, data-CD) the display will show NO AUDIO DISC.

Eject CD
Press the EJECT button (15). Then the disc will be ejected. If no CD is inserted, the display shows NO DISC.

AUTOPLAY
If CD is not selected as source the unit will automatically change to CD from any other input as soon as a CD is inserted. If AUTOPLAY is activated (see 0), the CD player will start playing automatically every time a CD is inserted. If AUTOPLAY is deactivated, the CD player will read the TOC (table fo contents) of the inserted disc and then go to STOP mode.

CD playback
If a disc is inside playing is started by pressing the PLAY button (12). If you press PAUSE (11) the unit will go into pause mode until PLAY (12) or STOP (10) is pressed. The actual state (PLAY, PAUSE, STOP) is shown on the display (8). Furthermore, the display shows the actual playing time, the actual title number and the total number of titles.

SKIP / SEARCH
Using the SKIP buttons (13, 14) you can easily access any title on the disc. When you press one of the SKIP buttons for longer than a second while the unit is playing, it begins to play in fast forward or reverse mode (SEARCH). While the player is stopped, the SKIP buttons (13, 14) can be used to select a title. A short tip switches to the next/previous title. Holding one of the buttons down scans automatically up / down. The number of the actual title is shown in the display (TRACK).

Repeat
Press the REPEAT button (6) once to repeat the actual title, twice to repeat the whole CD or the programmed sequence. A third pressing returns to the normal playing mode. The repeat state is displayed in the upper line of the display (RP ONE / RP ALL).

Programing an individual playlist
If a disc is inside the player you can program your individual playing sequence as follows. Press the PROG button (4) to enter the playlist menu. Pressing STOP (10) exits the menu and the unit will return to normal mode. Pressing PAUSE (11) generates a random playlist.

Pressing PLAY (12) leads you to the programming menu:
The display shows on the left side the actual title (TRCK), below the playing time of this title (TIME). Pressing the Option keys (2,3) selects a title.
Pressing PLAY (12) adds the selected title to the playlist. The display shows on the right side the number of programmed titles (PGM-QTY xx). Below is the playing time of the programmed list (P-TIME xx).

The button PROG (4) stores the playlist, if you want to exit without storing, press STOP (10).

Programming an individual playlist (example)

The CD inside the player contains 15 titles. You want to play only titles 7, 3 and 8.

Press PROG (4) and the PLAY (12). The display now shows “PGM-QTY 00” and “TRCK 1/15”.
Select title 7 using the Option keys (2,3). The display shows “TRCK 7/15”.
Now add the selected track to the playlist by pressing PLAY (12).
Select title 3 using the Option keys (2,3). The display shows “TRCK 3/15”.
Now add the selected track to the playlist by pressing PLAY (12).
Select title 8 using the Option keys (2,3). The display shows “TRCK 8/15”.
Now add the selected track to the playlist by pressing PLAY (12).
Press PROG (4) to finish the programming and store the playlist.

NOTE: The maximum number of programmed tracks is 99. The maximum program duration is 99 minutes.

Deleting an existing playlist
To delete an existing playlist, press PROG (4) and after that STOP (10).

Random
Press the PROG button (4) to enter the playlist menu and after that PAUSE (11). Now a random playlist will be generated. To delete a random playlist, press PROG (4) and after that STOP (10).

Selecting the signal
Besides the included CD drive, your device is equipped with a wealth of digital inputs (20-27) which can be selected with the option keys (2,3) on the front side of the unit, until the desired source appears on the display.

CAUTION: If you switch to another source while playing a CD, the drive will stop first. This may take a few seconds. If you activate a digital input that has no valid signal, NO DIG SIGNAL or NO USB PLUGGED is shown on the display.

Volume setting

If the option Gain variable is activated in the Personal Setup menu (see 3.1.1), the playback volume of your device can be controlled in steps of 0,5 dB by holding down one of the option keys on the front side of the unit (2, 3) for more than one second. The current volume level is shown in the range of 0 to 100 dB in the upper part of the display.

Selected volume values of up to 60 dB are automatically stored and will be restored as soon as the unit is switched on again with the power button on the front side of the unit (1). If a volume value of more than 60 dB has been selected, the unit automatically reduces the value to 60 dB as soon as it is switched on again with the power button on the front side of the unit. This protective mechanism is supposed to prevent sudden and drastic increases in volume caused by accidentally moving the volume slider of the RC S App for iOS and Android all the way up the maximum.

Samplerate and filter setting
By pressing the FILTER button (5) once or several times, you can choose between available sample rates and filter setttings for a specified source (CD or digital input). The currently selected sample rate is displayed at the bottom left corner (44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192, 352, 384 kHz). NAT (NATIVE) indicates that the incoming sample rate of the signal is being directly processed. CONV (CONVERSION) however indicates an ongoing upsampling process of the incoming signal to the desired sample rate.

Please note that only the settings NAT / STEEP or NAT / SMOOTH are available if USB is selected.
The digital filter settings SMOOTH and STEEP can be set according to your personal preference. Technically speaking, the setting SHARP indicates a steep filter characteristic at the upper end of the frequency band, leading both to a flat amplitude-frequency response and a rather strong phase rotation. SMOOTH however leads to a less steep filter characteristic by showing a slightly earlier attenuation of the amplitude-frequency response
with almost no phase rotation. Please note that a chosen filter setting is only true for a selected input and is being recalled every time you select the respective input again, even after the device has completely been switched off.

USB B digital input
If a digital signal from a computer (PC or Mac) is connected to the USB B digital input of your CD Player (22), you can choose between two different modes (LO RES or HI RES) by pressing the PROG button (4). LO RES can be used to playback a digital input signal with a sample rate of up to 96kHz without the need for an additional audio driver on your Windows PC or Mac. HI-RES can be used to playback a digital input signal with a sample rate of up to 384kHz/24 Bit (PCM) without the need to install an audio driver on your Mac. If you are using a Windows PC you will need to install an additional driver which is available for download on the respective product page at www.avm.audio. Below the LO RES and HI-RES indication, the currently active data format is shown on the display (PCM or DSD). Please note that you need to select the HI-RES mode in order to playback DSD64 or DSD128 files.

Advanced Settings

Personal Setup
The personal setup offers a range of settings to individualize your device according to your personal needs. To enter the personal setup menu, please switch off your device on the rear of the unit at the mains switch (29). Keep the PROG button pressed (4) while you switch on the unit again (29). As soon as the display shows the personal setup menu you can release the PROG button (4).
When the personal setup is active, you can select the desired function using the option keys (2, 3). Use the SKIP buttons (13, 14) to apply changes to a selected function. EXIT (STOP button) exits the personal setup and stores all settings.

Set volume control

Gain fix
If the gain fix option is activated, the signal of the selected sound source will be played back with a fixed volume level. This setting is particularly useful when your device is part of a surround sound setup where a separate surround decoder is used for bass and multi-channel management. If a surround system is connected to your device, specific settings such as channel balance, tone settings and bass management are controlled by a separate decoder.
These settings may not be altered by other components in order to maintain the balance of all channels. For this application, your device offers the gain fix function by passing through the signal with a fixed gain setting (see below).

Gain variable
If the option Gain variable is activated, the playback volume can be controlled in steps of 0,5 dB by holding down one of the option keys on the front side of the unit (2, 3) for more than one second. The current volume level is shown in the range of 0 to 100 dB in the upper part of the display (see also section 2.6).

Set display brightness
Sets display brightness 25% to 100%.

NOTE: The setting 100% can lead to “burn-in” effects on the display if the unit is operated in this setting for a very long time. In order to avoid such “burn-in effects” please switch the unit to stand by, if not in use.

Set autoplay
When AUTOPLAY is activated, the CD player will start playing automatically every time a CD is inserted. IF AUTOPLAY is deactivated, the player will read the TOC (table of contents) of the inserted disc and then go to STOP mode.

Skip unused inputs
Unused inputs can be deactivated (SKIPPED). Your device will then skip these inputs when the source selectors (2, 3) are applied or if you select a sound source via the RC 3 remote control.

Define input names
You can individually set the names (max. 8 characters) of the different sources shown in the display. To adjust a name, proceed as follows:
Press one of the option keys (2, 3) to select an input. Press REPEAT (6) to select the position and use the SKIP buttons (13, 14) to define the character (holding the key pressed changes the character every half second).

Reset (factory default settings)
The Reset menu cancels certain or all settings and makes the unit return to default settings. To enter the Reset menu, please switch off your device on the rear of the unit at the mains switch (29). Keep both the REPEAT button (6) and the STOP button (10) pressed while you switch on the unit again (29). As soon as the display shows the reset menu you can release both buttons (6, 10).

Select if you just want to clear the input names (NAMES) with the PAUSE button (11) or reset the unit completely (ALL) by pressing the PLAY button (12). Pressing the STOP button (10) will bring the unit back to normal operating mode without resetting any item (CANCEL).

Appendix

Cleaning
Use a soft cloth and normal glass cleaning fluid. CAUTION: Make sure that no fluid comes into the unit. Do not use scouring cleaners. They may damage the surface.

Troubleshooting

Some putative defects are often caused by mistakes in operation. Sometimes other units connected to the amplifier can cause problems. We therefore kindly ask you to read the following tips before consulting your dealer or us.

No playback
a) Mute function is active, press the button MUTE on your remote control or increase the volume using the rotary encoder (11).
b) Inadvertent switching to stand by. Press power button (1). If the LED indicator and display do not light up a fuse can be blown due to overvoltage (e.g. in case of a thunderstorm etc.). Please contact your dealer.
Unit switches off during normal operation
This can happen if the temperature inside the unit becomes too high. In this case, the CD player switches off and the display shows ’overheat’. Switch the unit off and let it cool down for five minutes.
Remote control doesn’t work
a) Change the battery of your remote control (see 0).
b) Point with the remote control transmitter directly to the unit.
The display shows „no disc“, although a CD is inserted
a) Please make sure the CD is not a data disc, has not been damaged and is inserted with the correct side facing up
b) Please clean your CD with a soft cleaning cloth.

Conditions of warranty (EC only)

If despite expectations a defect occurs that cannot be repaired by yourself or your dealer, we undertake the repair of your unit free of charge for up to three years from date of purchase. The warranty covers the costs of material and working time, transport costs are to be borne by the owner.

Provisions for this warranty are:

The unit must have been purchased from an authorised dealer. Equipment from other sources will not be repaired, not even at charge.
The warranty registration card, together with a copy of the bill of sale, must be received by us within four weeks of the date of purchase.
The defect must not have been caused by improper handling or misuse.
Return the unit to us only in its original packing. If this is not possible we are entitled to refuse acceptance. We will not assume responsibility for transport damage under any circumstances.
A short description of the defect is to be included with the returned unit.
In cases of doubt, we reserve the right to request a copy of the bill of sale.
We also reserve the right to levy a handling charge for items returned without a good or valid reason, or if the unit proves to be not defective.

NOTE: If you are returning the unit from a country other than Germany you should ensure that correct export documents are obtained. We cannot accept any charges for costs arising from improper or incomplete export documentation.

If you have purchased your unit from a dealer outside Germany please refer to him or the relevant importing firm to process the warranty.