Rooms with different height, width and length are preferable for best low frequency
performance, but obviously you must work with the room available to you. If possible, place
the speakers so they are firing along the longest wall in order to most efficiently fill the room
with music. In other words, if the room is 10-feet (3m) wide and 20-feet (6m) deep, place
them along the 10-foot (3m) wall. There will be less wall reflection and therefore a more
natural sound.
Reflective surfaces have individual sound absorption characteristics so it is important that the
left and right reflective walls have the same, or very similar, reflective qualities. For example,
a tapestry or curtain on wall will absorb more frequencies than a plain painted surface.
Experiment with toe-in/toe-out positioning of your speakers until you've reached the desired
stereo imaging results. A good starting point is to toe in the speakers so approximately
1-inch (25mm) of the cabinet side walls can be seen from your seating position.
The FRx-One and FRx-Three are considered "Bookshelf" speakers because their small size
permits them to be easily placed, among other places, in a bookshelf. If this is your preferred
placement, affix the isolating pads provided to the bottom of the speaker to help isolate the
speaker from the shelf and eliminate any transference of vibration.
If the speakers are to be placed on stands, they should be approximately 2-feet (60cm) tall,
or tall enough so the tweeter will be close to ear level when you are seated. The back of
the speaker is equipped with a 3/8 inch (9mm), 16-thread brass insert, suitable for a variety
of wall and ceiling mounting brackets.
The FRx-Five and FRx-Seven are floor standing models and come with four stabilizing feet
that are easily screwed into the threaded inserts located on the bottom of the speaker.
Spikes are provided and are recommended for added stability on carpeted floors. A solid
floor foundation will avoid exaggerated low frequencies.
A center channel can be expected to reproduce as much as 60% of a movie's soundtrack,
most of which is dialogue. In order to maintain the effect of voices emanating from the
actor's mouth, the "FRx-Center" should be centrally located between the left and right
main channels and be placed above or below the television. Be sure that the front baffle
of the "FRx-Center" is aligned with the front face of the television or cabinet to maximize
dispersion.
The "FRx-Rear" surround/effects speaker should be positioned adjacent to, and slightly
behind and above the primary listening area, on the side or rear wall or on the ceiling to
provide a sense of spaciousness and ambience for all Surround Sound formats.
(See figure 7)
The FRx-Rear is equipped with keyhole mounting brackets. Simply drive the screws into the
wall, leaving approximately 1/4-inch (7mm) of the screw exposed, then mount the speaker
like you would a picture. Four rubber feet are provided and can be affixed to the box
around the hook-up terminals to prevent the speaker from resonating on the wall.
(see figure 8)
SPEAKER WIRE
Contrary to popular belief, not all speaker wire is the same.The speaker wire is the "straw"
through which the speaker "drinks" from the amplifier. The lower the quality, the poorer the
signal that reaches the speaker. Ordinary "lamp cord" will degrade the signal, particularly in
lengths of 10-feet (3m) or more, so we strongly recommend the use of high quality speaker
cable to obtain the best performance from your Mirage
®
speakers.
Be sure to turn off your amplifier when connecting speakers to your amplifier. Not doing so
could result in shorting from the speakers leads and potential damage to the amplifier.
CONNECTING THE SPEAKER TO AN AMPLIFIER
Conventional Connection:
Connect the speaker wire from the positive (RED +) terminal on the amp to the
positive (RED+) terminal on the speaker. Connect the negative (BLACK-) terminal on the
amplifier to the negative (BLACK-) terminal on the speaker. This method can be applied to
bi-wireable speakers as long as the shorting straps are in place on the terminals. (see figure
1,2)
Bi-Wire Connection:
The musical improvements of bi-wiring your speakers can approach those of bi-amping at a
substantially lower cost. The standard connection makes the wire common to the low, mid,
and high frequency crossover, which is not ideal. Bi-wiring eliminates the common imped-
ance and as a result dramatically cleans up the transition between low and high frequencies.
This type of connection is possible on the Mirage FRx-Five, FRx-Seven and FRx-Nine. Some
companies sell bi-wire cables, but you can also use one cable for low frequencies and one
for high frequencies for this purpose. Remove the shorting straps.The tweeter's terminals
are on top, the woofer's on the bottom. Twist the positive leads of the two wires together
so they can both be inserted into the positive terminal on the amplifier. Follow the same
procedure for the negative leads.Then connect the two positive leads to the positive termi-
nals in back of the speaker, and the negative leads to the negative terminals. (see figure 3)
Bi-amp/Bi-wire Combination Connection:
This method uses separate amplifiers for the left and right speakers. Make sure the shorting
straps have been removed. Take the negative leads from both the left and right channels of
the left amplifier and connect one to the top negative lead, the tweeter, and one to the
bottom negative lead, for the woofer. Repeat this process for the positive leads. Follow the
same method for connecting the right amplifier to the right speaker. (see figure 4)
POSITIONING & CONNECTING YOUR
MIRAGE
®
FRx-Nine SPEAKERS
The speaker is equipped with stabilizing bars which are required for stability and must be
fastened to the bottom of the speaker with the machine bolts provided. These bars must be
fastened to prevent risk of damage to equipment and fatal injuries to persons.
A. Parts supplied:
a. 4 Phillips machine bolts b.Two stabilizing bars
B. Mounting instructions (See Diagram 2):
a. Position the FRx-Nine so the threaded inserts on the bottom are visible.
b. Bolt the stabilizing bars to the inserts with the supplied bolts and ensure
that both are securely tightened.
POWERED MODELS
The FRX-Nine has a built in amplified subwoofer that requires connecting the supplied
power cord to the speaker and an AC outlet.Then, the FRX-Nine can be connected exactly
like a non-powered model, using either conventional, bi-wire, or bi-amp/bi-wire configura-
tions.This model is also equipped with a Level Control and Low Frequency Equalization
Control.
The variable level control will adjust the bass output level. Start with the level in the
12 o'clock position which produces balanced output between the low, mid and high fre-
quencies, and adjust to suit personal taste.
The low frequency equalization allows control of the extreme low frequencies for perfect
tailoring to the room's acoustic characteristics. Start at the 12 o'clock position and rotate
counter clockwise if the bass is too boomy or unclear, clockwise for more bass reproduction.
A proprietary clipping circuit in this model senses the input signal and automatically adjusts
to ensure clear, undistorted bass reproduction.
The LED located on the front may turn off during extended periods of low frequency
absence, but will immediately turn on upon the return of a low frequency signal.
Recommended placement for best imaging, bass response and magnetic shielding
(see diagram 1).
CARE OF FINISH
To maintain the beautiful finish on your new "FRx-Series" speakers from time to time, gently
wipe them down with a soft, damp cloth to remove any dust or stains.
WARRANTY OUTSIDE OF THE
UNITED STATES AND CANADA:
Product warranties may be legislated differently from one country to another. Ask your local
dealer for details of the LIMITED WARRANTY applicable in your country.
IMPORTANT: Please retain the carton and packing material for this Mirage
®
product to protect it
in the event it ever has to be shipped to a service center for repair. Product received damaged by
a service center that has been shipped by the end user in other than the original packaging, will be
repaired, refurbished and properly packaged for return shipment at the end user's expense.
WARRANTY FOR UNITED STATES
AND CANADA
(see back cover)
"MIRAGE", the "MIRAGE" logo, "The Original Bipolar Loudspeaker", "Omnipolar" and "API Accessories" are
trademarks of Audio Products International Corp. "Dolby", "Dolby Pro-Logic" and "Dolby Digital Surround" are
trademarks of Dolby Laboratories Licensing. DTS is a Trademark of Digital Theater Systems Inc.
o w n e r s m a n u a l
s p e a k e r s
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