Xstat Ethos User Manual Download Page 10

10     Placement

extend beyond the edges of each  speaker (left and right), 

yet a vocalist should appear directly in the middle. The 

size of the instruments should be neither too large nor 

too small, subject to the intent and results of each unique 

audio recording.

Additionally,  you  should  find  good  clues  as  to  stage 

depth. Make sure that the vertical alignment, distance from 

the front wall, and toe-in is exactly the same for both 

speakers. This will greatly enhance the quality of your 

imaging.

Bass .Response—

Your bass response should neither be 

one note nor should it be too heavy. It should extend 

to  the  deepest  organ  passages  and  yet  be  tight  and 

well defined. Kick-drums should be tight and percus-

sive—string bass notes should be uniform and consistent 

throughout the entirety of the run without booming or 

thudding.

Tonal .Balance—

Voices should be natural and full and 

cymbals should be detailed and articulate yet not bright 

and piercing, pianos should have a nice transient char-

acteristic and deep tonal registers. If you cannot attain 

these virtues, read the section on Room Acoustics (pages 

12–13). This will give you clues on how to get closer to 

these ideal virtues.

Final Placement

After the full break in period, obtaining good wall treat-

ments, and the proper toe-in angle, begin to experiment 

with the distance from the wall behind the speakers. 

Move your speaker slightly forward into the room. What 

happened to the bass response? What happened to the 

imaging? If the imaging is more open and spacious and 

the bass response is tightened, that is a superior posi-

tion. Move the speakers back six inches from the initial 

setup position and again listen to the imaging and bass 

response. There will be a position where you will have 

pinpoint imaging and good bass response. That position 

is the point of the optimal placement from the front wall.

Now experiment with placing the speakers farther apart. 

As the speakers are positioned farther apart, listen again, 

not so much for bass response but for stage width and 

good pinpoint focusing. 

Your .ideal .listening .position .

and .speaker .position .will .be .determined .by:

• Tightness and extension of bass response

• Width of the stage

• Pinpoint focusing of imaging

Once you have determined the best of all three of these 

considerations, you will have your best speaker location.

The Extra “Tweak”

This extra “tweak” may be useful when your speakers 

are placed in a dedicated listening room. Use the  fol-

lowing procedure and measurements for your speakers  

placement to see what can happen to your system’s per-

formance. These formulas will help determine optimum  

placement of your speakers to minimize standing waves.

Distance from the front wall (in front of the listening 

position) to the center of the curvilinear transducer:

 To 

determine distance from the front wall, measure the   

ceiling height (inches) and multiply the figure by 0.618 

Figure .2 .

 Final placement.

Summary of Contents for Ethos

Page 1: ...E T H O S u s e r s m a n u a l tm...

Page 2: ...on tainer Each individual unit has a unique serial number Bass Setting ________________ ________________ left channel right channel This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules Operation is subj...

Page 3: ...Thank you to you the MartinLogan owner for loving what we do and for making it possible for us to do what we love...

Page 4: ...ordance with the European Union WEEE Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive effective August 13 2005 we would like to notify you that this product may contain regulated materials which up...

Page 5: ...ith the lightning bolt symbol should be connected by an instructed person or by way of ready made terminals The power cord should remain readily oper able should any abnormal conditions occur Step 1 U...

Page 6: ...This advanced crossover topology flawlessly preserves microscopic subtleties while effortlessly handling the broadest range of dynamics con tained within even the most demanding sonic source The mater...

Page 7: ...the meaning of the different colors No color No power The Ethos is not plugged in Blue Play mode This indicates the Ethos detects an audio signal and has automatically switched into play mode Red Sta...

Page 8: ...udible effect Under no circumstance should a wire of gauge higher thinner than 16 be used In general the lon ger the length used the greater the necessity of a lower gauge and the lower the gauge the...

Page 9: ...face if the rest of the room is not too bright and hard Walls can also be too soft If the entire front wall consists of heavy drapery your system can sound dull You may hear muted music with little am...

Page 10: ...ers Move your speaker slightly forward into the room What happened to the bass response What happened to the imaging If the imaging is more open and spacious and the bass response is tightened that is...

Page 11: ...18 x 5 the distance from the side walls to the center of the curvilinear transducer The Ethos is a very refined speaker and benefits from care in setup With these tips in mind you will find over your...

Page 12: ...your system The smaller sound waves are mostly affected here and occur in the mid and high frequencies This is where voice and frequencies as high as the cymbals occur Resonant Surfaces and Objects A...

Page 13: ...s to your ears and then the reflected informa tion as it arrives at your ears later in time can result in confusion of the precious timing information that carries the clues to imaging Consequently th...

Page 14: ...Large flat panel speakers exhibit venetian blind effects due to this phenomenon This is one reason why many manufacturers opt for small drivers i e tweeters and midrange to approximate what is known a...

Page 15: ...placed on each speaker Front Left and Front Right If these speakers will be the same two used for your stereo playback they should be of very high quality and able to play loudly over 102 dB and repr...

Page 16: ...or to the sonic purity of the electrostatic concept due to its exceptional linearity and low distortion Since the diaphragm of an electrostatic speaker is uniform ly driven over its entire area it can...

Page 17: ...e designed to operate within a nar row fixed bandwidth of the frequency range and then combined electrically so that the sum of the parts equals the total signal While nice in theory we must deal with...

Page 18: ...atic transducer a controlled horizontal dispersion pattern could be achieved yet the purity of the almost massless electrostatic diaphragm remained uncompromised After creating this technology MartinL...

Page 19: ...linearity and efficiency AirFrame Technology Ultra rigid extruded aerospace grade aluminum alloy AirFrame technology rigidifies and secures the XStat electrostatic panel to the woofer cabinet while at...

Page 20: ...rostatic speaker After a short time Rice and Kellogg had narrowed the field of contestants down to the cone and the electrostat The outcome would dictate the way that future generations would refer to...

Page 21: ...t could not be played very loud it had poor bass performance it presented a dif ficult load that some amplifiers did not like its dispersion was very directional and its power handling was limited to...

Page 22: ...nuts in another We use many brands with great success Again we have no favorites we use electronics and cables quite interchangeably We would suggest listening to a number of brands and above all els...

Page 23: ...static electricity that builds up on the surface of your television screen How do MartinLogan speakers hold up over a long term in the humidity of tropical climates We should tell you that MartinLogan...

Page 24: ...tably dust Vacuuming is recommended These noises may be caused by dirt and dust particles collecting on the speaker by high humidity Dirt and dust may need to be vacuumed off Please see the FAQ regard...

Page 25: ...Dimensional Drawings 25 Dimensional Drawings...

Page 26: ...ation at www martinlogan com MartinLogan may not honor warranty service claims unless we have a completed Warranty Registration card on file If you did not receive a Certificate of Registration with y...

Page 27: ...und wave caused by some type of mechanical interference such as a cabinet edge grill frame or other similar object Diaphragm A thin flexible membrane or cone that vibrates in response to electrical si...

Page 28: ...mean square The effective value of a given waveform is its RMS value Acoustic power is proportional to the square of the RMS sound pressure Resistance That property of a conductor by which it opposes...

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