1. BS 216
DUAL CHANNEL MASTER STATION
USER MANUAL
User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, Utrecht, The Netherlands.

2. CONTENT OF THIS USER MANUAL
1.0 GENERAL DESCRIPTION ................................................... 3
2.0 UNPACKING.......................................................................... 3
3.0 MECHANICAL INSTALLATION ............................................. 3
4.0 MAINS POWER ..................................................................... 4
4.1 SAFETY EARTHING ............................................................. 4
4.2 POWERING UP ..................................................................... 4
5.0 FRONT PANEL CONTROLS & CONNECTOR...................... 5
6.0 REAR PANEL CONTROLS & CONNECTORS...................... 6
7.0 INTERNAL CONTROLS ........................................................ 6
8.0 CABLING ............................................................................... 7
9.0 PARTY LINE, TECHNICAL CONCEPT ................................. 8
10.0 WARRANTY ....................................................................... 8
11.0 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS ........................................ 8
12.0 EARTHING CONCEPT....................................................... 9
13.0 BS 216 BLOCK DIAGRAM .............................................. 10
14.0 POSSIBLE SYSTEM CONFIGURATION ......................... 11
2 User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands

3. 1.0 GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The BS 216 is designed to be a master unit in For each channel separately, the intercom
an ASL intercom system and can be used in line impedance circuitry is installed.
portable as well as fixed applications. It
incorporates a dual channel intercom line An Aux input at the rear panel, allows
power supply with aux input, a dual channel injecting external audio signals of line or mic
headset station and uses only 1U of 19” rack level into the intercom lines. When ‘mic level’
space. is selected, +30V phantom power is available
at the Aux input connector.
This makes the BS 216 very versatile and
ideal for use in applications where standard Special attention has been paid to the
microphone cable is available and ease of intelligibility of speech. By applying low
setup is of paramount importance. noise/high speed circuitry, a speech presence
filter and a specially designed headphone
Each channel has a Volume (listen level) amplifier, communication is very comfortable
control, a Talk and a Call button with LED even in environments with high background
indicators and a side tone trimmer. noise levels.
The intercom line power supply is fully The unique ASL CALL system provides both
protected and can drive at least 10 beltpacks a flashing red LED and a very distinctive and
operating at full power. characteristic sound signal. Only a slight
The power supply is completely separated touch of the CALL button will make the LED
from all other functions and in case of power flash, whilst holding the button for two
failure the unit can accept line power from an seconds will activate the call sound signal.
external ASL power supply.
2.0 UNPACKING
The shipping carton contains the parts listed ASL has taken great care to ensure that
below this product reaches you in flawless
* The BS 216 condition.
* Mains power cable After unpacking the unit please inspect for
* Spare fuses any physical damage to the unit, and retain
* User manual the shipping carton and relevant packing
If any are missing, contact your dealer. materials for use should the unit need
With the BS 216 will be a small packet of returning.
spare fuses. Please keep them in a safe If any damage has occurred, please notify
place. your dealer immediately so that a written
There is also one spare fuse included in the claim can be initiated.
mains inlet. Please also refer to the warranty section of
this manual.
3.0 MECHANICAL INSTALLATION
A vertical rack space of 1U (1.75”, 44mm) is Forced cooling is not required.
required for the BS 216. It is not necessary The power supply regulator is mounted on the
to provide rear support by extra bracing or rear of the unit, and after a period of time it will
shelving. Adequate ventilation must be feel hot to the touch. This is quite normal, and
provided by allowing sufficient space around should be no cause for alarm.
the sides and rear of the unit to ensure free
circulation of air.
| User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands 3

4. 4.0 MAINS POWER
The BS 216 may be connected to the mains As the colours of the wires in the mains lead
power outlet to which other audio equipment is may not correspond with the coloured
connected. The outlet should have a clean markings identifying the terminals in your
earth. Avoid using mains power outlets which plug, proceed as follows:
also power dimmer controlled lighting
equipment. - The wire which is coloured green-and-
yellow must be connected to the
The used AC power source can be anything terminal in the plug which is marked
from 100 - 240 V AC, 50/60 Hz. There is no with the letter “E”, or by the ground
need to adjust the unit to the used mains symbol, or is coloured green.
voltage. - The wire which is coloured blue must
be connected to the terminal which is
The power cord supplied with this unit carries marked with the letter “N” or coloured
the following information label: black.
- The wire which is coloured brown must
WARNING be connected to the terminal which is
This appliance must be earthed
marked with the letter “L” or coloured
red.
IMPORTANT
The wires in this mains lead are colour Those units that are supplied to the North
coded in accordance with the following American market have an integral moulded 3
code: pin connector which is provided to satisfy
Green/yellow Earth / safety ground required local standards.
blue Neutral
brown Live
4.1 SAFETY EARTHING
The green-and-yellow wire of the mains cord other connected stations. This wire is
must always be connected to the electrical internally connected to all exposed metal
installation safety earth or ground. It is surfaces, any rack framework into which this
essential for personal safety as well as unit might be mounted is assumed to be
for proper operation of the BS 216 and the connected to the same grounding circuit.
4.2 POWERING UP
Powering up procedure:
- Make sure that the red power switch on - Turn on the power with the red
the left side of the front panel is OFF. button. The green power LED will go
on, indicating the station is active.
- Connect the power cord to the rear of the
station. For further installation and operation see the
concerning sections.
- Plug the other end of the power cord
into a PROPERLY GROUNDED mains
outlet.
4 | User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands

5. 5.0 FRONT PANEL CONTROLS & CONNECTOR
1 POWER ON/OFF switch
Mains power push button for switching The operating area is between fully
ON and OFF the internal power supply. clockwise and minimum level. Adjusting
the side tone does not affect the level of
2 POWER LED your voice as it is heard by other
This LED illuminates if line power is stations.
supplied by the internal power supply.
6 TALK A & B buttons
3A BUZZER VOLUME trimmer These buttons allow you to talk to each
This trimmer adjusts the volume of the channel separately or simultaneously.
buzzer. The large green LED indicates if the talk
function is activated.
3B BUZZER
This buzzer indicates an incoming or 7 CALL A & B buttons
outgoing call. It is activated by pressing These push buttons activate the CALL
a CALL button of the BS 216 or a CALL system. A momentary push will send a
button on any other station on channel CALL signal to all stations connected to
A or B for longer than two seconds. that intercom channel and the CALL
You can adjust its volume with the LEDS will start flashing.
buzzer volume control. Press and hold the buttons for 2 seconds
will activate the call buzzer.
4 VOLUME A & B control knobs After the CALL button is released the
These knobs adjust the listen level for LEDS will continue to flash for a further 2
the headset. Each channel can be seconds.
adjusted separately.
8 AUX VOLUME controls
5 SIDE TONE trimmers These knobs adjust the level of the Aux
These trimmers adjust the level of your input signal to each of the two intercom
own voice as you hear it in your lines.
headset.
Adjustment procedure: 9 HEADSET connector
- set the trimmer in start position: fully A XLR-4 type connector for the
clockwise. connection of the local headset. This
- switch off the microphone of all must have a can impedance of 200
connected stations. ohms or greater. The mic may be of the
- switch on the microphone of the dynamic or electret type.
required channel. Pin assignments:
- turn up the volume of the required 1. shield mic. (GND)
channel. 2. mic. +
- speak into the headset microphone. 3. phones +
adjust the listen level by turning the 4. phones – (GND)
side tone trimmer.
| User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands 5

6. 6.0 REAR PANEL CONTROLS & CONNECTORS
10 MAINS Inlet 13 INPUT LEVEL Switch
IEC Mains connector. For correct When mic level is selected, a +30V DC
wiring and operation refer to section phantom power is supplied to pins 2
4.0. and 3. The mic gain can be adjusted
with the mic gain trimmer.(see #14)
11 FUSE Holder
The fuse protects the BS 216 against 14 MIC GAIN Trimmer
severe internal damage, in case of When the input level select switch is
malfunction in the power section. To switched to mic level the mic gain can
remove the fuse the mains cord must be adjusted with the mic gain trimmer.
be removed.
15 A & B LINE connectors
It is most important to place the These XLR-3 type connectors are for
correct fuse in the holder: connecting the remote-stations, via
mains voltage fuse standard microphone cable.
100 – 240 VAC T 1250 mA There are two connectors for channel A
and two connectors for channel B.
Warning: before connecting to mains
check of the fuse is correct Pin assignments:
1. 0V / ground shield
Spare fuses will be found in the small 2. +30V power wire
packet supplied with the unit. 3. audio wire
12 AUX INPUT connector
This XLR-3 type aux input is
electronically balanced and accepts
audio levels between –18dBu to
+22dBu on line level, and –38dBu to
+2dBu on mic level.
Pin assignments :
1. 0V / ground
2. signal +
3. signal -
7.0 INTERNAL CONTROLS
MIC GAIN
The mic gain can be adjusted
internally by a trimmer located on the
pcb near to the headset connectors.
6 | User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands

7. 8.0 CABLING
For the BASIC Series Intercom system the Since the audio signal is transferred in an
interconnecting cables are of the shielded two- unbalanced * way, certain rules have to be
conductor microphone cable type and the obeyed when installing the cables of an intercom
intercom line connectors are of the XLR-3 type. network. This is to avoid earth loops and to
Audio and Call signals are on XLR pin 3, DC minimize power loss and the possible effect of
power is on XLR pin 2. XLR pin 1 is connected to electromagnetic fields.
the shield of the cable which functions as the
common return for audio and power. * See Party Line, Technical Concept
These rules are:
• Use high quality (multipair) cable. • Keep cables parallel as much as possible.
For interconnecting user stations, power When two (two channel) units in a network are
supplies and accessories in an ASL Intercom connected by more than one cable, make sure
network, use high quality shielded that these cables are parallel to each other
two-conductor (minimum 2x 0.30 mm2) over the whole distance between those units.
microphone cable only. In case of a two channel When using multipair cable, parallelism is
intercom network, use high quality ensured in the best possible way.
microphone 'multipair' cable only, each pair
consisting of two conductors (minimum 2x • Avoid closed loops.
0.15 mm2) with separate shield. Multipair Always avoid that cables are making a loop.
cable should also have an overall shield. So-called 'ring intercom' should not physically
be cabled as a ring. All cable routes should
• Use flexible cables. have a 'star' configuration, with the central
Use flexible single and multipair microphone earthing point (usually close to the power
cable instead of cable with solid cores, supply position) as the centre of the star.
especially when the cable is subjected to
bending during operation or installation. • Keep cables away from electromagnetic
sources.
• Separate cable screen to XLR pin 1. Keep intercom cables away from high energy
The screen of each separate microphone cables, e.g. 115/230/400V mains power or
cable and/or the screen of each single pair in dimmer controlled feeds for spotlights.
a multipair cable, should be connected to pin Intercom cables should cross high energy
1 of each XLR-3 connector. Do not connect cables at an angle of 90° only.
this cable screen to the metal housing of the Intercom cables should never be in the same
connector or to metal wall boxes (outlets). trunking as energy cables.
See page 9 for Earthing Concept.
• Place power supply in a central position.
• Cable trunks, connection boxes and In order to avoid unacceptable power losses,
overall multipair cable screen to clean place the power supply as close as possible to
earth. where most power consumption occurs or, in
Metal cable trunks, metal connection boxes other words, most user stations are placed.
and overall multipair cable screen should be
interconnected and, at one point (the 'central • Connect ASL power supply to a 'clean'
earthing point') in the intercom network only, mains outlet.
be connected to a clean earth or a safety The ASL power supply may be connected to
earth. See page 9 for Earthing Concept. the mains power outlet to which other audio
equipment is connected. Avoid using mains
• Keep metal connection boxes and cable outlets which also power dimmer controlled
housings isolated from other metal parts. lighting systems.
Metal housings for intercom cables and
connectors should be mounted in such a way In case of more complex installations, don't
that they are isolated from other metal cable hesitate to contact us. Please send us a block
and connector housings and from any other diagram of the planned network with a list of
metal construction parts. all user stations and their positions, and we
are happy to advise you on cabling lay out.
| User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands 7

8. 9.0 PARTY LINE, TECHNICAL CONCEPT
ASL's BASIC Series offers a complete two way developed which can be further amplified and
('full duplex') communications system. sent to the headphones.
Users of the system are connected via a 'party This principle has three advantages:
line'. Master stations (with built-in power - the use of a single audio line allows several
supply), beltpacks and power supplies are stations to talk and listen simultaneously.
interconnected via standard microphone cable. - due to the high bridging impedance offered
One wire is used as an audio line, one as a by each station, the number of stations 'on
power line and the screen of the cable line' has no influence on the level of the
functions as earth/return. communications signal.
- power and audio to the intercom stations
Current drive is used for signal transfer. Each use the same cable.
station utilizes a current amplifier to amplify the
microphone signal and place it on the common The Call signal is also sent as a current on the
audio line where, due to the constant line audio line. It develops a DC potential over the
impedance (situated in the power supply line impedance which will be sensed by each
between XLR pin 3 and 1), a signal voltage is station and interpreted as a Call signal.
10.0 WARRANTY
This unit is warranted by ASL Intercom to the modifications or accidents are not covered by
original end-user purchaser against defects in this warranty. If the unit is faulty it should be
workmanship and materials in it's manufacture sent in it's original packing, to the supplier or
for a period of one year from date of shipment your local ASL dealer, with shipping prepaid. A
to the end-user. note must be included stating the faults found
Faults arising from misuse, unauthorized and a copy of the original suppliers invoice.
11.0 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
System Headphone Driver Amps
Dynamic range: 80 dB (1kHz, THD <1%) Max. output level: 10.6 Vrms (at 200 ohms)
Call signal (send): +2.8 mA Max. output power: 0.5 Wrms (at 200 ohms)
Call signal threshold (receive): +2.4 V DC
Supply voltage: +30 V DC (12 V to 32 V) Side Tone
Rejection: 0 - 30 dB adjustable
Intercom line
Impedance: 350 ohms (1 kHz), 2.2 kOhms (DC) Buzzer
Audio level: nom. -18 dBu, max. +4 dBu Max. SPL: 100 dBA
Switch Mode Power Supply Aux Inputs
Mains voltage range: 100 - 240 V AC, 50/60 Hz Input Impedance: 30 kOhms (line level)
Output voltage: +30 V DC (+/- 5%) 4.6 kOhms (mic level)
Max output power: 45 W Nominal Input Level: -18 to +6 dBu (line level)
-38 to -14 dBu (mic level)
Mic Preamps Max. Input Level: +22 dBu (line level)
Headset mic impedance: 200 ohms +2 dBu (mic level)
Gain: 40 - 60 dB (adjustable internally)
Presence filter: +6dB @ 5 kHz Phantom Power: +30 V DC (mic level selected)
Frequency response: 200 Hz - 15 kHz (-3 dB)
Power to electret mic: +9 V DC 0 dBu defined as 775 mV rms into open circuit
ASL reserves the right to change specifications
without prior notice.
8 User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands

9. 12.0 EARTHING CONCEPT
| User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands 9

10. 13.0 BS 216 BLOCK DIAGRAM
10

11. 14.0 POSSIBLE SYSTEM CONFIGURATION
| User Manual BS 216 / Issue 2010 ASL Intercom, The Netherlands 11

12. DESIGNED & MANUFACTURED BY:
ASL Intercom B.V.
Zonnebaan 42
3542 EG Utrecht
The Netherlands
Tel: +31 (0)30 2411901
Fax: +31 (0)30 2667373
Email: info@asl-inter.com
Web: www.asl-inter.com
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