Technical specifications and operating manual
10
·
System 5 THX
®
Select
Settings
Speaker loads
Please note: This operating
manual assumes that the
signal loads sent to the satellite
speakers are issued from an AV
receiver, i.e., that any potentially
damaging bass content has been
filtered out by the receiver.
Setting up the AV receiver/amplifier
For the System 5 THX
®
Select with M 5500 SW
Active Subwoofer, set the “Speaker Setup” sec-
tion of your AV receiver to “small” or “normal” (not
“large”). This ensures that the speakers receive
the right amount of signal, and that the subwoof-
er and front speakers have matching volumes.
Also in the receiver's “Speaker Setup” section
(Bass Management/Speaker Management), make
sure the subwoofer is set to “On”. Set the cross-
over frequency for the System 5 THX
®
Select
to 80 Hz.
Setting up the M 550 D dipole speakers
The M 550 D provides a speaker response switch,
which is located between the “plus” and “minus”
speaker terminals on the rear connection panel.
Two response modes are available: “Dipole” and
“Monopole”. For the speaker to run in “Dipole”
mode, set the switch to the inwards position. For
the speaker to run in “Monopole” mode, set the
switch to the outwards position. This disables
half of the M 550 D so it runs as a conventional
direct-radiating loudspeaker. To determine which
response mode the switch is set to, simply per-
form a quick listening test: If the signal radiates
out both sides of the speaker cabinet, it is run-
ning in “Dipole” mode. If there is no signal coming
out of the rear tweeters and woofers, it is run-
ning in “Monopole” (direct) mode. We recommend
using the dipole response mode in most settings.
Direct monopole response is only advisable in ex-
ceptional situations, e.g.:
1) The speaker cannot be placed close to a wall to
reflect off.
2) Some multi-channel music recordings, e.g., on
SACD or DVD-Audio media, require a surround
sound setup where all the speakers have a dis-
tinct directionality.
Setting up the subwoofer
Set the subwoofer itself to “Full Range”. This
means that the phase and crossover frequency
are controlled by the AV receiver. Make sure
that the subwoofer's frequency control is set to
maximum.
Modern AV receivers determine the subwoofer's
phase automatically. This happens within the re-
ceiver's “Speaker Setup” utility, which analyses
the distance between the different speakers
and the listening spot. For this to work correctly,
the subwoofer's own phase switch needs to be
on “0°”.
If your system uses an older-model AV receiver
or another type of amplifier without a setting for
the subwoofer distance,
you can use the subwoofer's phase switch
to manually adapt the phase to the other
speakers. The goal here is for all the bass
loudspeaker membranes that reproduce the
frequency range around the crossover fre-
quency to vibrate in the same direction. If
the phase is set incorrectly, this may cause a
reduced bass response or even bass cancella-
tions. If the subwoofer is positioned between
the front speakers, we recommend a phase set-
ting of “0°”; if the subwoofer is positioned closer
to the listening spot, a phase of “180°” may be
more appropriate. Similarly, the “180°” setting
may help to eliminate bass cancellations if you
position the subwoofer in other areas of the
room. Always set the phase control to the posi-
tion where the bass response is best.
The subwoofer's output setting may vary de-
pending on usage, e.g., home theatre sound
system or music playback. Whereas an action-
packed DVD typically contains very defined sub
bass signals, many music-only sources do not.
This is especially noticeable if your system is
calibrated for optimum DVD playback. To find
the best compromise between differing sound
sources, use your own subjective judgement.
Our recommendation is to determine the best
subwoofer volume gradually over time.
Avoid configuring the subwoofer volume auto-
matically via your AV receiver's integrated room
analysis computer (advanced receivers only). In-
stead, set the subwoofer level provided in the
Bass Management/Speaker Management section
(“Speaker Setup”) to a high value, such as +4 to
+12 dB. This will guarantee that the subwoofer
activates itself at the right times when in “Auto
On/Standby” mode, and you can then use the sub-
woofer's own level control to experiment with dif-
ferent bass levels.
