VIII - Speaker Aurum - Free user manual and instructions

USER MANUAL VIII Aurum

Safety advice for passive loudspeakers 3-4

Setting up 5-6

Stands 6

Connecting to the amplifier 6-9

Tips for better acoustics 9-10

Beware of clipping 11

Care of your loudspeakers 11

What to do if your speakers don't sound right? 2

DEUTSCH

First of all, thank you for deciding on AURUM loudspeakers.

It is to satisfy the high expectations of music lovers and connoisseurs such as you that we build loudspeakers of a class that is well above average. Even though you may already be familiar with them, we list below a few ground rules that will enable you to make optimal use of your loudspeakers.

Safety advice for passive loudspeakers

Please take time to read through the manual carefully and follow all the steps describing how to set up and operate the loudspeakers. Keep the manual somewhere you can quickly access it should you have any questions later on.

• The stability of loudspeakers (especially large units) depends on the nature of the surface on which they stand. Carpets are often very poor for stability. Even an average bump can cause a loudspeaker to fall over and be a hazard for persons or pets in the vicinity. Stability can be significantly improved by using "spikes", but care should be taken during assembly as the sharp points can cause injury and the spikes can damage the floor. On smooth floors, the loudspeakers can be stabilised with Velcro or double-sided tape. Loudspeakers should never be used as a seat or as a substitute for a ladder!
• Use only wheeled furniture, stands or wall mounting systems and other devices for attaching and installing the products, which are available from the manufacturer and are sold for or with the product. To avoid damage or injury through tipping over, please be careful when moving table devices or stands on which the speakers are mounted. If wall-mounting the product, take special care that all components are securely screwed! Additional securing equipment (chains, etc.) should be fitted.
• The location for the loudspeakers should be dry and not too cold. Constant high humidity or strong sunlight (UV radiation) can cause your loudspeakers to age prematurely and consequently affect their functioning.
• Very high volume levels for long periods of time are not only annoying for your neighbours, but can also be harmful to the health of the user!
• When loudspeakers are overloaded with very high volume levels, there is a risk of individual components in crossover circuits or individual speakers burning out. In particularly bad cases, it is even possible for fire to break out inside a speaker. Speakers operated at these extremes should therefore not be left unattended.

- Improper handling of mains voltage can cause fatal injury!

• At high volumes, voltage levels of 30 - 50V can be present at speaker terminals and components. Be very careful not to touch uninsulated terminal contacts of speakers when in operation. To avoid injury, never put hands or arms into sound outlets (bass reflex tubes). Children and pets, in particular, are at risk from this.
• For safety reasons, we generally forbid the opening of loudspeaker cabi when in operation or connected since, as explained in the above paragraph, voltages of up to 50 volts can be present inside.

Passive loudspeakers must on no account be connected to the electricity supply!

Speaker terminals may only be connected to the appropriate output terminals of the amplifier. You should never connect these terminals to the electricity supply (230 V/115 V) in any way since that will otherwise also immediately destroy the loudspeaker and all connected products. Avoid fitting plugs to ends of speaker cables that could even remotely be confused with mains supply plugs.

• Loudspeakers that are not magnetically shielded can affect the colour of the TV picture or cause distortion. A distance of 50~cm is generally sufficient to avoid problems of this kind. Avoid placing items such as credit cards, diskettes, audio or video cassettes or other magnetic media on the loudspeaker. This could destroy the information stored on them. Similarly,

Setting up

To obtain optimal sound results, it is generally necessary to try out different set-ups. Since the room conditions have a major effect on sound reproduction, we suggest below a few useful approaches for positioning your AURUM loudspeakers.

Main speakers (front)

Where the speakers are positioned in the listening space has a decisive effect on their sound. Placing the speakers near the corners of the room will essentially give you loud bass reproduction but with little outline. On the other hand, speakers

HSIN

positioned well away from the walls sound precise, but also very bright and thin. The best solution is to place the speakers with at least 30~cm between their backs and the nearest wall. To avoid loud wall reflections, the distance from the side walls of the room can even be 50~cm or more. With their slanted fronts, the floorstand speakers are specially adapted to acoustic demands. Bookshelf speaker units sound best on a speaker stand or shelf, with the tweeters arranged at ear height. The cases should be angled and slightly tilted to achieve this.

So far as possible, the speakers should be equidistant from the listening position, while the distance of the speakers from each other can be rather less than the distance from the listener.

Front center speaker

The center speaker isn't magnetically shielded and therefore causes colour and geometry problems in TV images and must not be placed directly on the television, if at all possible. Since it can't be placed on the TV set, the center speaker can be set lying down underneath it. The speaker should be at least 30cm from the television, and a minimum of 20cm from the floor.

Apart from the above, we recommend angling the center speaker so that the tweeter is aimed at the listener in order to enjoy its full sound potential.

Rear center speaker

In contrast to 5.1 surround sets, 6.1 systems have an additional rear cer

speaker that should be placed behind and slightly above the typical listening position.

Rear speakers

Whether you direct the rear spot toward the listening position is a matter of taste. Also, many listeners prefer the rear speakers to be positioned above ear height. This can be achieved by mounting the units on a sturdy wall bracket, a high speaker stand, a sideboard or shelf.

Stands

For optimal front and rear speaker setup, quadral has suitable stands in its product range.

Should you have any questions, please contact us on tel.: [phone],

e-mail: [e-mail] or [e-mail]

Connecting to the amplifier

Before connecting up the speakers to your hifi or surround sound system, please ensure that the amplifier/receiver is switched off and its pilot light is not connection, you will need a twin-core loudspeaker cable for each speaker cabinet. Make sure these cables are sufficiently long and cut them to a length that will subsequently enable you to lay them behind furniture or under the carpet where necessary. For cables more than 5m in length we recommend a cross-section area of at least 2.5mm^2 per core in order to avoid any unnecessary loss of output. To enable optimum contact, about 10mm of the cores at each end of the cable must be isolated, and thus bare.

Screw terminals

For connection, the speakers are provided with colour-coded screw terminals on the back of the cabinet. Loosen the screw terminals and feed the stripped end of the core into the hole that is now free. The two cores of speaker cables have different colouring or shape for recognition. Connect the "+" core to the red, positive termini

the remaining core to the black terminal. Tighten the screws hand-fight. To ensure correct polarity, check that the core connected to the red "+" terminal of the speaker is also the core that is connected to the red "+" terminal of the amplifier and that the other core is connected to the black "-" terminals of both the speaker and amplifier.

With AURUM loudspeakers you can choose between three modes of operation:

a) Conventional mode

Do not remove the jumpers, connect the speaker cable as shown in the illustration.

HSITONE

b) Biwiring mode

Remove the jumpers after loosening the four screw terminals on the back of the speaker and connect the cable as shown in the illustration

c) Biamping mode

Remove the jumpers and connect the cables as shown in the illustration.

For operating AURUM VIII speakers with bi-wiring/bi-amping, both screw terminals for

the woofers are located below, and for the midranges and tweeters above on the connection panel.

Make sure you use the correct polarities in these modes and that you remove the jumpers on the speaker terminal to avoid damaging your amplifier.

Operation with a surround amplifier

Once you have positioned and connected your speakers as shown in the illustration, you should perform the necessary settings in the bass management system of your surround amplifier.

Make sure you read the user manual supplied by your amplifier's manufacturer before doing this.

Since bass management primarily depends on the loudspeaker configuration, we give only typical settings below.

a) Small and very small satellite speakers must be operated in "small" mode. Perform the setting on your amplifier as follows:

Front: small Centre: small

Rear: small Subwoofer: yes

b) There is no definitive formula for the settings for compact speakers. In this case, the suitable mode may be "large" or "small". This depends on the volume level you prefer or the sound effect you wish to obtain (refer to the section "Caution, clipping!). The settings on your amplifier can optionally be configured as follows:

Front: large/small Centre: large/small

Rear: large/small Subwoofer: yes

c) Floorstanding speakers or large bookshelf speakers that are suitable for powerful bass reproduction should be operated in "large" mode.

Perform the setting on the amplifier as follows:

Front: large Centre: large

Rear: large Subwoofer: yes/no

For the special AURUM centre speakers, we generally recommend "small" mode.

Subwoofer

If your surround amplifier has a "line subwoofer" output, you can make use of this by using the Y cable supplied with the subwoofer (see illustration page 8). In this case, you connect the front speakers directly to the front speaker terminals of your amplifier. Refer to the connection diagram for wiring your surround system.

Refer to the user manual of the active subwoofer for the necessary settings on your subwoofer!

Tips for better acoustics

1. To achieve better acoustic isolation of the loudspeakers from the floor, floorstanding speakers are designed to accept spikes. Use of the spikes can be advantageous, depending on the living room / floor.

Fitting the spikes

All AURUM floor and shelf speakers come factory-equipped with aluminium spacer disks between the housing and the base plate. Upon request, floorstanding speakers the aluminium disks can be exchanged for spikes, which can be obtained free of charge if you send in an order coupon and a copy of the proof of purchase to quadral's service department.

Mount the spikes as follows:

a) Lay the speakers on a soft surface and undo the four countersunk screws holding the base plates using the supplied hexagon wrench.
b) Then remove the base plates and the aluminium spacer disks. Screw the threaded sleeves off the spikes.
d) Screw all spikes hand-tight into the threaded sockets provided for this c bottom of each speaker cabinet,

e) Place the base plates in their final position in the listening area,

f) Insert the four round support discs in the recesses provided for them in the base plates,

g) Place the speaker cabinets on the base plates so that the tips of the spikes sit in the central holes of the support discs.

h) Adjust the lock-nuts of the spikes achieve precise and equal height adjustment!

i) Keep any not needed accessory materials safe together with the manual for possible later use!

1. For better acoustic insulation of shelf or central speakers from the surface they are set on, attach four self-adhesive rubber footpads to each speaker.

Soft foam to prevent loud basses

Depending on the acoustic properties of the listening room and the positioning of the loudspeakers, bass notes can occasionally appear too loud.

Some AURUM speakers are therefore supplied with pre-cut cylindrical pieces of large-pore foam.

If low basses are unpleasantly loud in the listening area, we recommend inserting this foam cylinder into the bass reflex tube of

your AURUM speaker. But avoid pushing it too far inside as you could have problems removing it afterwards. A noticeable improvement in bass reproduction can be achieved this way.

Beware of clipping!

Even if an amplifier's nominal output is significantly lower than the rated power-handling capacity of the speakers connected to it, there is still every possibility that the speakers might be damaged if not used correctly. The nominal output quoted merely indicates the number of watts the amplifier is capable of delivering to the speakers with low distortion. If an amplifier is overloaded it delivers far more power on the one hand while adding destructive direct current as well as high-frequency oscillation on the other. This process is known as clipping and negatively affects the sound through severe distortion in loud passages of music. When distortion becomes

audible you should turn the volume down straight away to avoid damaging the speakers. Amp-clipping is a typical indication of overloading and always occurs when the volume and/or tone controls is/are turned up too high. Even when the tone controls are set in neutral (12 o'clock) position, conventional amps already reach their limits when subject to loud impulses as soon as the volume control is turned well beyond the 12 o'clock position.

Care of your loudspeakers

Your AURUM loudspeakers are best cleaned with a soft, dry cloth. Do not use solvents. You should only clean the loudspeaker systems (woofer, midrange units) when they have become very dirty (small amounts of dust have no effect on the acoustics). Use a soft, dry cloth or a soft brush with very gentle pressure, otherwise there is a risk of damaging the diaphragms.

We strongly advise not cleaning the tweeter ribbons, because they are extremely pressure sensitive.

If the front frame becomes dirty, spray dry foam cleaner (such as Centralin spray) onto dirty areas, leave to work in, then simply remove with a vacuum cleaner.

Do not brush off black front frames, instead tap off or remove the dirt carefully with adhesive tape. On no account clean using anything damp!

The technical details for your product can be found on the back of the speaker cabinet or on the packaging!

Should you have any questions, please contact us on tel.: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail] or [e-mail]

Fault

Cause

Rectification

Audible distortion even at low volume

a) Fault in the electronics

a) The fault lies in the electronics if the problem affects both speakers. Swap over the left and right speakers if only one speaker is affected. If the problem is still on the same channel, your electronics are faulty. The speaker is faulty if the problem is now on the other channel.

b) Fault in the speaker

b) Please contact your dealer or our service (tel. [phone]).

No sound

a) Cabling incorrect

a) Check the cabling.

b) Amplifier switched off

b) Switch on the system.

Slender, bright sound. Sounds distant and unrealistic.

a) Incorrect polarity

a) Check to see if a terminal marked with + on the amplifier has been inadvertently connected to a terminal marked with - on the speaker or vice versa.

b) Unfavourable set-up

b) Set up the speaker closer to a wall, but maintain a minimum clearance of 5 cm between the back of the speaker and the wall.

Bass notes too powerful

a) Unfavourable speaker set-up (e.g. in the corner of a room)

a) Move the speaker further away from the adjacent walls.

b) Bass control on amplifier set high

b) Set the bass control on your amplifier to a neutral position.

Lack of treble

a) The tweeters are not properly aligned

a) Position the speakers so that the tweeters are facing directly towards your listening position.

Front: small Center: small

Rear: small Subwoofer: yes

Front: large/small Center: large/small Rear: large/small Subwoofer: yes

Front: large Center: large

Rear: large Subwoofer: yes/no

Frontal: small Central: small

Arrière: small Caisson de graves: yes

Frontal: large/small Central: large/small

Arrière: large/small Caisson de graves: yes

Frontal: large Central: large

Arrière: large Caisson de graves: yes/no

Altavoz principal (frontal)

Frontal: small Central: small

Posterior: small Subwoofer: yes

Frontal: large/small Central: large/small

Posterior: large/small Subwoofer: yes