Xcn T
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o
-W
ay MB/HF System
Xcn Two-Way MB/HF System
2
ity with the nature of that coloration vary-
ing with level. Often, the listener perceives
that coloration as imbalance in the fre-
quency response, and will attempt to elec-
tronically adjust the system to restore the
spectral balance. However this electronic
equalization has the negative effect of
changing the program material itself.
Ring-Mode Decoupling (RMD™) ad-
dresses mechanical resonances with me-
chanical solutions, and acoustical reso-
nances with acoustical solutions. In the
Xcn development, RMD™ was applied at
every level – to the individual mid-bass
and high-frequency drivers, the mid-bass
and high-frequency horns, the mid-bass
chamber, the interaction between the mid-
bass and high-frequency bands and the
interaction between multiple enclosures.
The design process included, for example,
the driver diaphragm, cone, suspension
and phase-plug geometry and materials,
horn geometry and materials, enclosure ge-
ometry and materials, absorptive materi-
als, etc. The result is a dramatic improve-
ment in clarity and with a much more neu-
tral sound (a lack of coloration), with the
loudspeaker system maintaining its sonic
integrity from the very-lowest sound-pres-
sure levels, to the very-highest sound-pres-
sure levels. This means that the front-of-
house engineer will not have to retune the
EQ and level settings as the SPL is in-
creased throughout the show. This also
means that the sound-system performance
will remain consistent in different array con-
figurations and from venue to venue.
The X-Array™ systems utilizes a unique
rigging system. A hinge assembly is used
to link cabinets together at their rear cor-
ners, while wire-rope/fitting assemblies are
used at the front to adjust the relative angle
between systems. (See the Flying the X-
Array™ Systems section for more details.)
The Xcn utilizes the half-size X-Array™
enclosure shell, which is identical to that
of the Xcb bass system. They have the
same footprint and rigging as the full-size
X-Array™ systems; however, the height
of the compact systems is approximately
half that of the full-size systems.
The durable Xcn enclosure is constructed
of 18-mm, 13-ply birch plywood and has a
wear-resistant black, textured paint finish.
The system is trapezoidal, forming an
18° wedge, and includes a heavy-duty
steel grille with a water-resistant charcoal-
gray foam interlining. The enclosure fea-
tures vinyl bumper pads on the front cor-
ners and feet on the bottom to resist wear.
A variety of accessories are available for
the X-Array™ loudspeaker systems, in-
cluding rigging hardware, dollies, covers,
electronic crossovers, amplifier racks and
speaker cabling. Consult the X-Array™ Ac-
cessories section for a complete listing the
available accessories.
Applications
The X-Array™ loudspeaker systems were
designed for optimal performance in both
concert-sound and permanent-installation
applications where studio-monitor sound
quality is required at concert-sound lev-
els. The X-Array™ loudspeaker systems
work well individually, in small arrays and
in large arrays. The high-acoustic output
from these compact, lightweight systems
provide the highest acoustic-power-to-
weight ratio, the highest acoustic-power-
to-frontal-area ratio, and the highest acous-
tic-power-to-bulk-volume ratio in the in-
dustry. That means that X-Array™ sys-
tems will be considerably smaller and lighter
compared to competitive systems having
equivalent acoustic output.
The 60° x 40° coverage pattern of the Xcn
makes it ideal for sound-reinforcement ap-
plications with short- to medium-throw
requirements. With its response from 125-
20,000 Hz, the Xcn is recommended for mid-
bass/high-frequency applications, and
should be used with an X-Array™ bass
box (like the Xb, Xcb or Xds) for full-range
performance. The Xcn may be used indi-
vidually or in multiples to construct arrays.
In addition, the Xcn may be used with the
MB/HF- or LF/MB/HF X-Array™ loud-
speaker systems (like the Xf, Xn or Xcn) to
construct large full-range arrays. The Xcn
enclosure is identical to that of the other
half-size X-Array™ systems (like the Xcb).
The footprint of the half-size X-Array™
enclosures is identical to that of the full-
size X-Array™ systems (like the Xn, Xf
and Xb), as is the rigging hardware, mak-
ing array integration easy whether flying
or stacking. The rotatable horn pattern of-
fers tremendous flexibility to tailor the pat-
tern to the application. For example, the
60°H x 40°V orientation would be well
suited for front-of-house, front-fill and side-
fill applications while the 40°H x 60°V ori-
entation would be well suited for down-fill
applications.
The Xcn is a two-way active system that
requires an active electronic crossover.
Both the Electro-Voice Dx38 and Klark
Teknik DN8000 digital crossovers are rec-
ommended for signal control. (See the
Crossover, Equalization and Signal De-
lay Controller section.) The Electro-Voice
P3000 amplifier is recommended for pow-
ering the Xcn. (See the Amplifier Recom-
mendations section.)
Power-Handling Capabilities
The Xcn systems are rated as per the
“ANSI/EIA RS-426-A Loudspeaker Power
Rating, Full Range Test,” which uses a
shaped-random-noise signal to simulate
typical music to test the mechanical and
thermal capabilities of the loudspeakers.
A digital crossover was used to provide
the appropriate filtering and equalization.
The test parameters are as follows:
High-Frequency Section
P
E(MAX)
:
75 watts
Test Voltage:
30.1-volts rms
60.2-volts peak
R
SR
(1.15 R
E
):
12.1 ohms
Mid-Bass-Frequency Section
P
E(MAX)
:
300 watts
Test Voltage:
45.5-volts rms
91.0-volts peak
R
SR
(1.15 R
E
):
6.90 ohms
Amplifier Recommendations
Power amplifiers with the following ratings
are recommended for use with the Xcn
loudspeaker systems:
HF:
800 watts per channel
into 8 ohms
