®
HOME THEATER
IN-WALL SERIES
HTI88
OWNER’S GUIDE
SPEAKER PLACEMENT
Low-frequency sounds are
normally omnidirectional,
It is generally recommended
that the speaker be installed so
that the bottom of the speaker
is approximately 12" from the
floor. This is to help with the
low-frequency loading (bass
reinforcement). This also helps
hide the speaker in a less visi-
ble place. In special circum-
stances it is acceptable to
install the speaker at any
When using two HTI88 in-wall
subwoofers, you may need to
be concerned about phase,
as the sound waves may
cancel each other out. If bass
response seems low, try invert-
ing the polarity on one sub-
woofer – i.e., connect the (+)
terminal on the amplifier to the
(–) terminal on the speaker, and
the (–) terminal on the amplifier
to the (+) terminal on the
meaning the listener can’t tell
where they are generated from.
However, frequencies between
75Hz and 150Hz can be local-
ized, especially at higher vol-
ume levels. Positioning your
subwoofer as recommended
will provide the most natural
soundstage and imaging from
your loudspeaker system.
height on a wall.
speaker.
It is generally recommended
that you install your HTI88 in-
wall subwoofer along the same
wall as the front loudspeakers.
The HTI88 subwoofer is not
video-shielded and should not
be placed near a video display.
Installing the HTI88 near a cor-
ner will tend to maximize low-
frequency output. Be cautious
when installing in a corner, to
avoid a “boomy” sound. Also
take into consideration any
unusual features of the room,
such as an alcove, which may
tend to create a localized node
that may affect bass response
in that area of the room.
Remember that these are just
guidelines. Since every listen-
ing room is different, JBL
strongly recommends experi-
menting with the positioning of
your subwoofer prior to cutting
the wall to obtain the most
pleasing results in your room.
One technique that can help
you find the ideal subwoofer
location is to temporarily bor-
row a stand-alone subwoofer
and place it near the main lis-
tening location. Then move
around the room and determine
where you hear the most pleas-
ing bass performance. This
would then be the ideal loca-
tion for the subwoofer.
3
SPEAKER CONNECTIONS
Connection Tips
speakers in your system with
the correct polarity remains
equally important in order to
preserve the proper ambience
and directionality of the
To use the spring-clip-type ter-
minals on the HTI88 loudspeaker,
press the colored tab and insert
the bare end of the wire into the
hole. Release the tab and gently
tug the wire to ensure that it is
secure.
program material.
If two HTI88 subwoofers are
used, the wires for both speak-
To use the push-type terminals
on the connections panel sup-
plied with the optional HTI88BB
“back box” enclosure, depress
the colored cap until the pass-
through hole in the binding post
is revealed. While holding the
cap down, insert the bare end of
the wire, or a banana plug, into
the pass-through hole. Release
the cap and tug gently on the
wire to ensure that it is secure.
Speakers and electronics have
ers should be the same length.
corresponding (+) and (–) termi-
If one speaker is placed closer
nals. Most manufacturers of
to the amplifier than the other,
speakers and electronics,
hide the excess wire behind
including JBL, use red to
the wall. If bass response
denote the (+) terminal and
seems low, there may be a
black for the (–) terminal. It is
phase problem, with the sound
important to connect both
waves from the two sub-
speakers identically: (+) on the
woofers canceling each other
speaker to (+) on the amplifier
out. If bass response seems
and (–) on the speaker to (–) on
low, try inverting the polarity
the amplifier. Wiring “out of
on one subwoofer – i.e., con-
Since the HTI88 is a passive
loudspeaker, only speaker-level
connections are available.
Depending on whether you are
using a dedicated subwoofer
phase” results in thin sound,
nect the (+) terminal on the
weak bass and a poor stereo
amplifier to the (–) terminal on
image. With the advent of multi-
channel surround sound
the speaker, and the (–) termi-
nal on the amplifier to the (+)
systems, connecting all of the
terminal on the speaker.
Connection Method #1, Using One HTI88
(Remove Shorting Straps)
Wire
Recommended
Size
Length
Up to 20 ft.
Up to 30 ft.
Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs
16-gauge
12-gauge
Left
Right
Greater than 30 ft.
10-gauge
–
+
–
+
Connection Method #1, Using One HTI88
With Back Box (Remove Shorting Straps)
Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs
Rear of HTI88
B L K
Left
Right
G R N
–
+
–
+
L 2
L 1
C 2
C 4
C 1
J 2 J 1
HTi88s
C 3
L 3
L 4
BLK
YEL/BLK
–
YEL
WHT/BLK WHT
ORG/BLK
–
ORG
GRE/BLK
–
GRE
+
ORN
+
–
+
+
INPUT 1
INPUT 2
OUTPUT 1
OUTPUT 2
Connections Panel
of HTI88 Back Box
Front Left Speaker
Front Right Speaker
–
+
–
+
Front Left Speaker
Front Right Speaker
–
+
–
+
4
amplifier or your main receiver/
amplifier to power the HTI88,
select one of the two con-
nection methods that follow.
your receiver/amplifier to the
Input 1 (for left channel) and
Input 2 (for right channel)
connectors on the HTI88
loudspeaker or connection
panel. Connect the Output 1
terminals to the correspon-
ding terminals on your front
left speaker, and the Output 2
terminals to the correspon-
ding terminals on your front
right speaker.
You may wish to mount the
HTI88 horizontally to preserve
the stereo image of the left
and right low frequencies.
Connection Method #1
Use this method when you
are using the HTI88 with
your main receiver/amplifier.
Connect the main left and
right speaker-level outputs on
The HTI88’s onboard cross-
over feeds the low-passed
signal (2nd order at 100Hz) to
the HTI88 subwoofers, and
Connection Method #1, Using Two HTI88 Loudspeakers (Use Shorting Straps)
Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs
Left
Right
–
+
–
+
Rear of Left HTI88
Rear of Right HTI88
B L K
B L K
G R N
G R N
L 2
L 4
L 2
L 4
L 1
C 1
L 1
C 2
C 4
C 2
C 4
C 1
C 3
J 2 J 1
J 2 J 1
HTi88s
HTi88s
C 3
L 3
L 3
BLK
BLK
ORN
ORN
Front Right Speaker
Front Left Speaker
–
+
–
+
Connection Method #1, Using Two HTI88 Loudspeakers
With Back Boxes (Use Shorting Straps)
Receiver/Amplifier Speaker Outputs
Left
Right
–
+
–
+
Connections Panel of
Left HTI88 Back Box
Connections Panel of
Right HTI88 Back Box
YEL/BLK
–
YEL
WHT/BLK WHT
ORG/BLK
ORG
GRE/BLK
GRE
YEL/BLK
–
YEL
WHT/BLK WHT
ORG/BLK
ORG
GRE/BLK
GRE
+
–
+
–
+
–
+
+
–
+
–
+
–
+
INPUT 1
INPUT 2
OUTPUT 1
OUTPUT 2
INPUT 1
INPUT 2
OUTPUT 1
OUTPUT 2
Front Right Speaker
Front Left Speaker
–
+
–
+
5
the high-passed signal to
the speaker-level outputs for
connection to the satellite
speakers.
Connection Method #2
not interfere with the higher-
order processing that is occur-
ring at the preamp stage.
Use this method when you are
using the HTI88 with a dedi-
cated subwoofer amplifier.
Connect your main receiver/
processor’s line-level subwoofer
output to the line-level input
on your subwoofer amplifier.
Connect the speaker terminals
on your subwoofer amplifier to
either Input 1 or Input 2. If your
amplifier has stereo outputs,
you may connect one channel
to each of Inputs 1 and 2.
However, you must remove the
shorting straps when using
stereo mode. Alternatively, you
may connect each channel to
a separate HTI88. When using
only one input on an individual
HTI88, you should leave the
shorting bars in place.
Using the HTI88BB Back Box
Whichever connection method
you choose, if you are installing
the HTI88BB back box, you will
need to connect all of the eight
wires coming out of the bottom
of the back box to the appropri-
ate terminals on the loud-
speaker. The wires are color-
coded as follows:
INPUT 1 (–): Yellow with black
stripe
NOTE: When using Connection
Method #1 with only one HTI88,
the shorting straps must be
removed.
If you are using two HTI88 sub-
woofers, connect the left speaker
outputs on your receiver/ampli-
fier to Input 1 on one subwoofer
(or the connections panel on its
back box), and the right speaker
outputs on your receiver/ampli-
fier to Input 1 on the second
subwoofer (or the connections
panel on its back box). Then
connect Output 1 from the left-
channel subwoofer to the inputs
on your main left speaker, and
Output 1 from the right-channel
subwoofer to the inputs on your
main right speaker. When using
the HTI88 in this mono mode,
you should not remove the
INPUT 1 (+): Solid yellow
INPUT 2 (–): White with black
stripe
INPUT 2 (+): Solid white
OUTPUT 1 (–): Orange with
black stripe
NOTE: The built-in network on
the HTI88 is a 2nd-order low-
pass filter, crossed over at 100Hz.
This filter is always active.
Although the subwoofer or LFE
output on your receiver/proces-
sor may already be crossed
over, the HTI88’s network will
OUTPUT 1 (+): Solid orange
OUTPUT 2 (–): Green with black
stripe
shorting straps.
OUTPUT 2 (+): Solid green
Connection Method #2, Using One HTI88 in Mono Mode (Use Shorting Straps)
Amplifier
Receiver/Processor
Speaker-Level
Outputs
Rear of HTI88**
Line-Level
Input
Subwoofer
Out
B L K
–
+
G R N
L 2
L 4
L 1
C 2
C 4
C 1
J 2 J 1
HTi88s
C 3
L 3
BLK
ORN
6
Connection Method #2, Using One HTI88 in Stereo Mode (Remove Shorting Straps)
Amplifier
Receiver/Processor
Speaker-Level
Outputs
Rear of HTI88**
Line-Level
Inputs
Subwoofer or
Main Amp
Out
B L K
–
+
G R N
L 2
L 4
Left
L 1
C 2
C 4
C 1
C 3
Left
Left
J 2 J 1
HTi88s
L 3
BLK
–
+
Right
Right
ORN
Right
** Use corresponding inputs on HTI88BB connections panel when installed with back box.
Connection Method #2, Using Two HTI88 Loudspeakers
With Back Boxes (Use Shorting Straps)
Receiver/Processor
Amplifier
Left HTI88 Back Box***
Speaker-Level
Outputs
Line-Level
Inputs
Subwoofer or
Main Amp
Out
YEL/BLK
–
YEL
+
WHT/BLK WHT
ORG/BLK
ORG
GRE/BLK
GRE
+
–
+
–
+
–
+
–
INPUT 1
INPUT 2
OUTPUT 1
OUTPUT 2
Left
Left
Left
Right HTI88 Back Box**
YEL/BLK
–
YEL
+
WHT/BLK WHT
ORG/BLK
ORG
GRE/BLK
GRE
+
–
+
–
+
–
+
–
INPUT 1
INPUT 2
OUTPUT 1
OUTPUT 2
Right
Right
Right
*** Use corresponding inputs on rear of HTI88 speaker when installed without back box.
INSTALLATION
Tools Needed
The JBL HTI Series in-wall
speakers were designed to be
easily installed. However, if
you are unsure of your ability
to properly install these loud-
speakers, please contact
your dealer or a qualified
installer.
Pencil
Phillips-head #2 screwdriver
Measuring tape
Utility knife
Awl
Carpenter’s level
7
EXISTING CONSTRUCTION
HTI88
Notes:
Level
• Use the cardboard template
when cutting the drywall.
Although the HTI88 may be
oriented either horizontally
or vertically, the installation
procedure is the same.
Template
• Please be aware the tem-
plate is slightly oversized to
allow for some margin of
error when cutting with the
drywall saw – there should
be no need to allow for fur-
ther margin of error as this
may risk the integrity of the
installation.
The grille is packed separately
from the speaker. If at some
later date you wish to remove
the grille from the speaker, to
avoid scratching the grille or
baffle you may unfold a paper
clip, insert the straight end
through one of the holes in the
grille, and gently pull up.
Determine the correct speaker
location.
1/2"
1/2"
1/2"
Cut the drywall.
Connect the speaker wires
to the speaker as
described on pages 4–7.
Note: Always allow at least
one-half inch between a wall
stud and the speaker cutout, or
the locking tabs will not be able
to swivel into place.
Place the frame assembly in
the wall until the frame surface
is flush with the wallboard.
Screw down each of the ten
Phillips-head screws. It is best
to use a low-speed cordless
driver or a hand-held screw-
driver to tighten the screws to
prevent over-tightening. The
locking tabs will swivel into
place and secure the unit to the
rear surface of the drywall.
Replace the metal grille. Attach
the JBL logo to the grille to cor-
respond to vertical or horizontal
installation.
8
NEW CONSTRUCTION
You may either purchase the
optional HTI88 back box kit, or
you may install the speaker
See
after the wallboard has been
Detail A
installed by following the
instructions for existing
construction on page 8.
L-Brackets
INSTRUCTIONS FOR
Detail B
INSTALLING THE HTI88 USING
THE HTI88BB BACK BOX KIT
See
Detail B
The HTI88BB enclosure (“back
box”) is optional. If desired, it is
installed during new construc-
tion before the wallboard is
installed.
Centering Bar
3. Fit the enclosure into the
wall. The bottom edge of the
bottom L-brackets will rest
against the baseboard 2 x 4.
At this time, make note of
adjustments necessary to
square the enclosure into
the wall (see Detail C).
Included With the HTI88BB:
(4) L-brackets
(8) #10 32 x 1" screws
(8) #10 split washers
(8) #10 flat washers
(8) #8 x 3/4" woofer screws
(2) wood centering bars
(4) #10 32 x 1-1/2" flat-head
screws
Centering Bar
Installation:
1. Install the two centering bars
as shown in Detail B in the
drawings. The centering bars
are for setting the depth of
the enclosure. They also help
locate the left/right position
of the enclosure as they can
be mounted into the studs at
the left and right to hold the
enclosure in the correct loca-
tion before final mounting.
Detail C
See
Detail C
L-Brackets
Detail A
4. After refitting and tightening
the L-brackets into the enclo-
sure (but not the wall studs
yet), fit the enclosure into the
wall once again.
2. Install the four L-brackets to
the four corners of the en-
closure. Each of the eight
screws should have both the
split washer and flat washer
installed; the split washer
goes on first. Leave the
screws a half-turn loose at
first to allow for adjustment
later (see Detail A). Do not
screw the L-brackets to the
wall studs at this time (see
step 6).
5. At this time, you may want to
screw through each side of
the wood centering bars to
mount the enclosure to the
studs. This will help hold the
enclosure in position before
the L-brackets are mounted
to the studs.
9
6. Screw the L-brackets into the
studs.
7. Remove the wood centering
bars and replace the flat-
head screws into the holes
left over (the holes left in the
cabinet face underneath the
bars are also counterbored to
accept the flat-head screws).
See
Detail A
8. The enclosure is now
installed and ready for the
wallboard to be installed
over it.
9. Make the connections from
your receiver/amplifier to the
HTI88 back box connections
panel, and to any other
speakers as appropriate for
your system, following the
instructions on pages 4–7.
Connect the eight wires
hanging from the bottom of
the HTI88BB back box to the
correct terminals on the
HTI88 loudspeaker. See
pages 6–7.
PAINTING THE SPEAKER
FRAME AND GRILLE
JBL HTI Series loudspeakers
can be painted to match any
décor. If you wish to change
their color, the satin finish on the
grille and frame will function as
a primer coat. Before painting,
install the plastic paint shield
securely into the recess in the
baffle. This will protect the
speaker components and baffle
from paint residue.
Use a high-quality spray paint,
and apply a thin coat of color.
Paint the grille separately from
the baffle before installing it.
Be certain the grille
perforations remain
free of paint. Filling
them with paint will
diminish the sound
quality.
10
TROUBLESHOOTING
If there is no sound
from any of the
speakers:
If the system plays at
low volumes but shuts
off as volume is
configured to enable all channels
that you are using.
increased:
If there is low (or no)
bass output:
• Check that receiver/amplifier
is on and a source is playing.
• Check all wires and connec-
tions between receiver/amplifier
and speakers. Make sure all
wires are connected. Make sure
none of the speaker wires are
frayed, cut, punctured or touch-
ing each other.
• If more than one pair of main
speakers is being used, check the
minimum-impedance require-
ments of your receiver/amplifier.
• Make sure the connections
to the “Speaker Inputs” have the
correct polarity (+ and –). If you
are using two HTI88 subwoofers,
try inverting the polarity on one
subwoofer as described on
page 4.
• Check all wires and connections
between receiver/amplifier and
speakers. Make sure all wires
are connected. Make sure none
of the speaker wires are frayed,
cut, punctured or touching each
other.
• Consider adding a separate
power amplifier to drive the
HTI88 subwoofer.
• Review proper operation of
your receiver/amplifier.
If there is no sound
coming from one
®
• In Dolby* Digital or DTS modes,
make sure your receiver/proces-
sor is correctly configured. When
using a power amplifier with your
HTI88 subwoofer, make sure
the subwoofer output of the
receiver/processor has been
enabled. See your receiver/
processor’s owner’s manual for
further information on correct
speaker configuration in Dolby
Digital, DTS and other surround
sound modes.
speaker:
• Check the “Balance” control
on your receiver/amplifier.
• Check all wires and connec-
tions between receiver/amplifier
and speakers. Make sure all
wires are connected. Make sure
none of the speaker wires are
frayed, cut, punctured or touch-
ing each other. In multichannel
applications, make sure that your
receiver/processor has been
11
SPECIFICATIONS
HTI88
Frequency Response
Maximum Recommended Amplifier Power
Impedance
30Hz – 100Hz (–6dB)
†
250 Watts per channel
8 Ohms nominal per woofer
94dB (2.83V/1m), both woofers driven
100Hz, 2nd order
Sensitivity
Crossover Frequency
Woofer
Dual 8" polymer-coated aluminum cones w/rubber surrounds
11-7/16" x 20-7/16" (290mm x 518mm)
10" x 18-5/16" (254mm x 465mm)
3-7/8" (98mm)
Plate Size (W x H)
Mounting Cutout Size (W x H)
Mounting Depth
Weight per Speaker
17 lb (7.7kg)
All features and specifications are subject to change without notice.
† The maximum recommended amplifier power rating will ensure proper system headroom to allow for
occasional peaks. We do not recommend sustained operation at these maximum power levels.
* Dolby is a registered trademark of Dolby Laboratories.
DTS is a registered trademark of Digital Theater Systems, Inc.
Declaration of Conformity
We, Harman Consumer Group International
2, route de Tours
72500 Chateau-du-Loir
France
declare in own responsibility that the product described in this
owner’s manual is in compliance with technical standards:
EN 61000-6-3:2001
EN 61000-6-1:2001
Laurent Rault
Harman Consumer Group International
Chateau-du-Loir, France 4/05
PRO SOUND
OWNER’S GUIDE
COMES HOME™
PRODUCT LINE:
JBL Home Theater In-Wall Series
JBL Consumer Products
250 Crossways Park Drive, Woodbury, NY 11797
8500 Balboa Boulevard, Northridge, CA 91329
MODEL: HTI88
NOTE: For new-construction applications, be sure
to purchase the HTI88BB back box kit.
DESIGN GOAL:
Combine the superior performance of traditional
JBL loudspeakers with the convenience of in-wall installation.
© 2005 Harman International Industries, Incorporated.
All rights reserved.
WOOFER TYPE: Polymer-coated aluminum cone with rubber surround
JBL is a registered trademark of Harman International
™
™
)
CROSSOVER NETWORK: Straight-Line Signal Path (SSP
Industries, Incorporated.
Part No.406-000-05223
PROFESSIONAL REFERENCE: Studio Monitor
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