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YOUR NEW SPEAKER
Break-In
Although your speaker will sound great ‘out of the box’, it will sound even better once it’s ‘broken in.’
Allow your speaker to play for several hours before you begin to listen critically.
Drivers use ferro-fluid that can thicken at temperatures below 10° C (50° F). Surround material used
in the bass/midrange units is made of a compound that may stiffen in colder temperatures. If your
speaker has been transported or stored in the cold, let it warm to room temperature before use.
Cleaning
Your speaker has a premium finish that must be treated with care. Use only a damp, soft cloth to
clean. Never use strong, abrasive or corrosive cleaning products. Common household cleaning
products should be avoided.
Speaker Grilles
Your speaker is designed to be played with the grille either on or off.
HOW TO AVOID SPEAKER DAMAGE
To prevent damage to your speaker, please read the following guidelines before hooking it up.
Amplifier Distortion — The #1 Culprit!
Amplifier distortion is the principle cause of speaker damage. When listening at higher volume
levels, your amplifier may run out of clean power and begin to produce a distorted signal if
levels are increased any further. This will damage any brand of speaker very quickly. (See your
Authorized Paradigm Dealer for amplifier recommendations).
A More Powerful Amplifier is Safer
When choosing an amplifier, always select an amplifier with a power rating greater than that of
the speaker. Using a 100 watt per channel amplifier on a 50 watt speaker allows the amplifier
adequate headroom in order to provide a distortion free signal. Conversely, using a 40 watt per
channel amplifier on a 50 watt speaker limits the amplifier’s headroom. This causes the amplifier
to enter its distortion level much sooner, potentially damaging the speaker.
Volume Control
Do not be fooled by the Volume Control of your receiver/preamplifier. It only adjusts listening
level—it is not a “power-output” dial. The amount of amplifier power actually used at a given
Volume Control setting depends solely on the nature of the music you are listening to.
At a given Volume Control setting a quiet section of music will use less amplifier power than a
loud section. With typical pop-rock, jazz or large scale classical music, the rated output power
of many receivers/amplifiers is often reached when the Volume Control is between the “11 and 1
o’clock” settings (with bass/treble and loudness controls not used—otherwise rated power may
be reached at even lower Volume Control settings).
