Contents Instructions for: The Surround 5.1 & The Surround II 5.1 Speakers by Henry Kloss Introduction ............................................................................................. Unpacking And Checking For Shipping Damage ...................................... Multipole Technology ............................................................................... Placement ................................................................................................. Speaker Connections ................................................................................ Finalizing Your Installation ..................................................................... Surround Configuration Options .............................................................. About Amplifier Power ............................................................................. Cleaning The Cabinets .............................................................................. Difficulty? ................................................................................................. 10-Year Limited Warranty ........................................................................ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 7 8 8 9 Introduction hank you for choosing a Cambridge SoundWorks speaker system. Our innovative surround products were designed specifically for use in a variety of surround sound systems. These systems include Dolby Digital® (AC-3), Dolby Surround® with Pro Logic®, DTS® and the wide variety of digital sound processors (DSP) available. Please read the simple instructions that follow. Optimum surround performance depends on factors discussed in these instructions, such as insuring all the speakers are "in-phase" and correctly positioned. If you have any questions or problems, consult the retail location from which you bought the speakers or call Cambridge SoundWorks at the appropriate number listed to the right. T Cambridge SoundWorks 1-877-YES-HIFI (1-877-937-4434) 24 hours a day, every day In Canada: 1-800-987-9104 Outside US or Canada: Tel: 617-332-5936 Fax: 617-527-3194 www.cambridgesoundworks.com E-mail: info@cambridgesoundworks.com The Surround 5.1 The Surround II 5.1 1 Unpacking And Checking For Shipping Damage 1. As you unpack your new speakers, please examine each speaker unit carefully for signs of shipping damage. If there is any damage, do not install or use the speakers. Keep the shipping carton and packing material, since you may need to ship the speakers. Consult the store where you purchased the speakers for assistance. If you purchased the speakers through our mail order catalog service, call Cambridge SoundWorks at 1-877-937-4434. 2. All the items shown to the right should be included; inform the retail location that sold the speakers, or Cambridge SoundWorks if anything is missing. The accessory pack for either The Surround 5.1 or The Surround II 5.1 should contain the following: 2 screws, 2 anchors, 8 rubber feet. The Surround 5.1 speaker system The Surround II 5.1 speaker system SOUNDWOR CAMBRIDGE KS SOUNDWOR CAMBRIDGE KS SOUNDWORK CAMBRIDGES SOUNDWORK CAMBRIDGES D I P O L A R B I P O L A R D I P O L A R B I P O L A R D I P O L A R B I P O L A R D I P O L A R B I P O L A R Surround speakers (2) Stick-on feet (2 strips of 4) Wall mounting hardware (2) Screws (2) Anchors Stick-on feet (2 strips of 4) Wall mounting hardware (2) Screws (2) Anchors Surround II speakers (2) 2 Multipole Technology We are pleased to introduce the first surround systems using MultiPole technology, which allows you to switch our surround speakers between dipole (diffuse radiation) and bipole (direct radiation) operation. As Dolby Digital 5.1's recording capabilities become more familiar to movie and music sound studios, it is difficult to predict how many recordings will feature multiple discrete sound sources spread between the surround speakers. But with MultiPole technology in Surround 5.1, you're literally ready for anything...at the flip of a switch. Setting the MultiPole Switch The MultiPole switch alters the directionality of the speaker. "Dipole" mode sends the mid and high-frequency output along the side walls, so all listeners hear a diffuse, enveloping sound. "Bipole" mode concentrates this output toward the listening area, providing central listeners more precise imaging. For all Dolby Surround with Pro Logic recordings and most current Dolby Digital recordings, we recommend the dipole mode. It insures that each listener experi- ences the sound coming from all directions, regardless of seating position, with little degradation of the sound positioning found in most Dolby Digital recordings. For some Dolby Digital recordings, however­those with lots of lateral sound positioning crafted into the rear channels­the bipolar mode of our MultiPole systems allows them to act as wide dispersion direct radiators, for more focused sound. In particular, some current Dolby Digital music recordings feature vocalists spread between rear speakers. Bipole mode offers the most precise positioning of these sounds. Dipole Bipole 3 Placement The Surround 5.1 and The Surround II 5.1 should be positioned in a room according to the following guidelines. Be sure to observe the "LEFT" or "RIGHT" markings on each surround speaker. Mount the "LEFT" speaker on a surface to the listener's left and the the "RIGHT" speaker on a surface to the listener's right. If possible, mount each surround speaker to a side wall, not a rear wall. Avoid placing the speakers too far behind the listening position. If you do not have walls on both sides of your listening location, it is possible to ceiling mount one or both of the surround speakers. Cambridge SoundWorks has mounting hardware available for mounting the surround speakers to vertical surfaces. For more information, call a Cambridge SoundWorks Audio/ Video Consultant at 1-877-YES-HIFI. Ideally, you should have more separation between the two surround speakers than between the Left and Right Main speakers. These surround speakers sound best mounted fairly high, approximately 18 inches from the ceiling or a few feet above the listeners. Be sure to connect each surround speaker "in-phase", as described in the "Speaker Connections" section on the next page. Left Surround Right Surround Center Left Front Right Front 4 Speaker Connections Use 18-gauge speaker wire or electrical "zip" cord for runs up to 50 feet. Use 16 gauge or heavier wire for longer runs. To prepare the speaker wires, first separate the two insulated conductors at the end of each wire for a distance of about one inch (as shown in A, below). Then remove about 1/2 inch of insulation from each conductor. Twist the exposed strands of each wire into a tight spiral. Before making any connections, be sure no individual strands of wire short across the terminals of your amplifier, receiver or the speakers. Note: finger-tighten the connectors only -- using pliers could damage the plastic connectors or strip their threads. If your speaker cables terminate in banana plugs, insert them through the binding post holes, which will permit the speaker unit to fit flush against a wall. Do not over tighten the connectors. If flush-mounting isn't necessary, you can insert the banana plugs directly into the ends of the speaker units' connectors. It's important that you connect speaker pairs identically, so that they are electrically in-phase. All two-conductor speaker cable is coded along one conductor with lettering, with a stripe or a raised bead­or­the appearance of the two conductors differs, usually one copper and one silver. On each speaker, connect the cable's coded conductor to the red terminal and the blank conductor to the black terminal. At each speaker output on your amplifier or receiver, connect the coded conductor to the "+" terminal (red) and the blank conductor to the "­" terminal (black). While reversing the connections on one speaker will do no damage, the speakers would be out-of-phase, diminishing the surround effect. B The Surround II 5.1 Push down on the spring-loaded terminal tabs to expose the connector holes. Insert the bare wires into the holes and release the connectors, as shown in C. The Surround 5.1 The stripped ends of the speaker cable can be inserted directly through the holes in the speakers' binding posts, as shown in B. Turn the red and black connectors counter-clockwise until the holes are exposed, insert the stripped ends of the cables, then tighten the connectors back down (clockwise). A 1" C 1/2" 5 Finalizing Your Installation · Our surround speakers are usually hung directly on a wall. Simply screw the supplied No. 10 screws into the wall so that their heads protrude about 3/8 inch, allowing them to fit into the keyhole slots on the back of each speaker. The plastic anchors supplied may be needed to secure the screws in particularly hard or soft material. If so, drill 1/4 inch holes in the wall, and tap the anchors into the holes until they are flush with the wall. Then screw the screws into the anchors until they protrude 3/8 inch from the wall. · Apply four stick-on feet to the back corners of each speaker (see diagram). These feet will insure a secure, vibration-free installation. Adjust the screw of each anchor so that the surround speaker can be hung on it with just a small amount of pressure. · If you need to mount one of the Surround speakers on a surface that is not vertical, you can use our special swivel mounts, available from your store or directly from Cambridge SoundWorks. For more information, call a Cambridge SoundWorks Audio/Video Consultant at 1-877-YES-HIFI. THE SURROUND 5.1 MULTIPOLE TM SURROUND SPEAKER TM RIGHT PATENTS: 5,043,970; 5,189,703; 5,222,059; 5,109,416 CAMBRIDGE SOUNDWORKS, INC. NEWTON, MASSACHUSETTS USA 1-800-367-4434 USA 617-332-5936 OUTSIDE THE USA MADE IN TAIWAN 8 OHMS MAGNETICALLY SHIELDED 00000 6 Surround Configuration Options Surround sound processors may provide configuration choices for the user. Use the following guidelines to set them. About Amplifier Power · For Dolby Surround-encoded program material, Dolby Laboratories recommends the combined amplifier power for both surround speakers need be only one-half that provided for one main front channel (there's no harm in having more). · Dolby Digital (AC-3) systems can justify more power to the rear left and rear right channels. · The power needed varies significantly with such factors as the size of the listening room, its acoustics and furnishings, the type of music you listen to, and how loud you like it to play. · The Surround 5.1 can be used safely to play music with the most powerful amplifiers and receivers designed for home listening. We suggest that The Surround II 5.1 speakers be used with amplifiers rated at 50 watts per speaker or less. Most Pro Logic amplifiers (not Dolby Digital amplifiers) cite only the combined power sent to both rear speakers. However, use common sense to prevent strong non-musical transients; keep the volume down when connecting or disconnecting components, raising or lowering a turntable's tonearm, and so on. This will help protect your ears as well as the speaker units. Other surround sound systems (DTS, DSP devices) Choose a setting that reduces lowfrequency content sent to the rear speakers below 100 Hz. Wallmounted compact speakers (like surround speakers) cannot produce enough output in this frequency range to be audible compared to larger front speakers. Sending low-bass information to these speakers results in higher distortion with no benefit to directivity or output. Dolby Surround with Pro Logic There are no configuration options for the surround outputs. Dolby Digital (AC-3) Your choices for the Left and Right rear channels in a Dolby Digital system are typically LARGE, SMALL, and OFF. Always set The Surround 5.1 and The Surround II 5.1 to the "SMALL" setting. This setting will prevent very lowfrequency bass sound from being sent to the rear channels. This, in turn, will allow your surround speakers to sound their best at high output levels. No useful lowfrequency output will be lost by this choice. 7 Cleaning The Cabinets If the cabinet ever requires more than simple dusting, use a window cleaning product. Avoid spraying the cleaner directly on the speaker grilles to prevent damage to the speaker drivers. Use a soft, lint-free cloth. Do not use paper towels or other material which could leave lint behind on the textured Nextel finish. Difficulty? If you suspect there's a problem with your surround speakers, contact the store where you purchased them. If a problem is confirmed, you will need to return the speakers to that store or its Authorized Service Center. If you purchased the speakers through our mail order catalog service, call a Cambridge SoundWorks Audio/Video Consultant at 1-877-YES-HIFI. He or she will help you track down the problem, which ...