Definitive Technology Mythos Seven User manual

Congratulations
Congratulations on your purchase of a Definitive Technology
Mythos Audio/Video Loudspeaker System. These superb
loudspeakers utilize state-of-the-art components (homopolymer-
coned bass-midrange drivers, moving coil ferrofluid-cooled pure
aluminum dome high frequency radiators, long excursion pressure
coupled woofers, uniphase crossover networks, etc.), a non-reso-
nant aircraft-grade aluminum monocoque cabinet, low diffraction
construction and complete magnetic shielding in order to achieve
the most lifelike sound possible in your listening room for many
years to come.
The Definitive Technology Mythos loudspeakers are compact
high-definition loudspeaker systems designed for use in audio/
video systems of the highest quality. Because of their compact
size, wide range, high power handling and natural articulate
clarity, they are ideal for use as a left main, right main, and
center speaker (which may be on-wall or in-cabinet mounted) in
conjunction with all surround sound decoding systems, including
Dolby Pro Logic*, Dolby Digital AC-3*, DTS*, Dolby Digital
EX*, as well as all 6.1 and 7.1 systems. In addition, the Mythos
loudspeakers are ideal for use as rear or side surround speakers
in all surround sound decoding systems or as audiophile quality
main speakers in a high quality stereo system.
On-Wall and On-Shelf
Audio/Video Magnetically Shielded Loudspeakers
Owner’s Manual
*Registered Trademark
Mythos™Six &
Mythos™Seven

Your new Mythos speakers are very flexible in terms of positioning
and placement options.
The Mythos Six will generally be positioned vertically.It can be easily
mounted on a wall using its unique mounting system. When attached to
its optional glass base, it can be placed on a tabletop, on a bookshelf or in
acabinet, etc. The Mythos Seven is designed for horizontal mounting and
it can be easily mounted on a wall, using its unique mounting system.
It can also be placed on a tabletop, on top of a TV (if the top provides a
deep enough platform for stable placement), on a shelf, etc. when used
with its rear stabilizing/angle adjustment foot.
Please remember that although the following recommendations are
usually valid, all rooms and listening set-ups are somewhat unique, so
do not be afraid to experiment with the speakers. Remember,whatever
sounds best to you is correct.
Positioning Mythos Six as Left/Right Main Speakers
Because of its vertical orientation, the Mythos Six will normally be
used as a right or left main front speaker or as a rear or side surround
speaker.Nevertheless, it can certainly be used as a center speaker if its
vertical orientation is appropriate for a center speaker in your installation.
When used as left and right front speakers, the Mythos Sixes can be
placed right next to the TV with excellent results or may be separated by
adistance greater than the width of the TV.As with any speaker,agreater
separation (5 to 7 feet or more) will normally result in a bigger sound-
stage and this is recommended from a sonic point of view.
Unpacking Your Mythos Loudspeakers
Positioning Your Mythos Speakers in Your Room
Please Inspect For Shipping Damage
Each loudspeaker leaves our plant in perfect condition. Any visible or
concealed damage most likely occurred in handling after it left our plant
and should be reported at once to your Definitive dealer or the delivery
company that delivered your loudspeaker. Please unpack your system
carefully. Save all cartons and packing materials in case you move or
need to ship your system. Record the serial number found on the back of
the Mythos loudspeakers in the appropriate place on your warranty card.
2

Positioning Mythos Six as Rear/Side Surrounds
When used as rear or side surround speakers, Mythos Six may be
located on the side or behind the listeners. When used on the sides,
take care never to locate the speakers forward of the listeners. The
speakers may be placed at or above ear level. If the speakers are placed
on the rear wall, it is suggested that they be positioned fairly wide apart
if possible. (For instance, if there is a couch in the center of the rear wall
on which the listeners will sit, try to position the speakers wider apart
than the couch.)
Positioning Mythos Seven as a Center Channel
The Mythos Seven is designed for horizontal use and will normally
be used as a front or rear center channel speaker.Of course, if you have
aneed for a horizontal Mythos for left and right main channel use or
surround use, the Mythos Seven is perfect for that also.
As a center channel, the Mythos Seven can be positioned either above
or below the TV. Of course, it can be mounted on the wall, placed on a
shelf, or on top of the TV itself if the top of the TV is big enough and flat
enough to provide a safe mounting surface.
Your Mythos loudspeakers should sound good right out of the box;
however, an extended break-in period of 20-40 hours or more of normal
playing is required to reach full performance capability.Break-in allows
the suspensions to work in and results in fuller bass, a more open
“blossoming” midrange and smoother high frequency reproduction.
Speaker Break-In
Mythos Seven Vertical Angle Adjustment
Your Mythos Seven has a simple built-in device which stabilizes it and
allows you to adjust the vertical angle when the system is placed on a flat
horizontal surface. If the foot is not screwed in, screw it into the threaded
hole on the bottom of the speaker. When you set the speaker down, the
speaker will lean back and rest on the foot. By varying how far you screw
in the foot, you can adjust the vertical angle of the speaker. We suggest
that you aim the speaker so that it points directly towards the height of the
listeners’ ears.
3

Hooking Up Your Mythos Loudspeakers
Your Mythos loudspeakers each have one pair of gold 5-way
binding posts. Normally, you will hook up the left main/front channel
red(+) terminal of your receiver or amplifier to the red(+) terminal of
your left Mythos loudspeaker and the left main/front channel black(-)
terminal of your receiver or amplifier to the black(-) terminal of your
left Mythos loudspeaker.Connect the right channel main/front
channel red(+) terminal of your amplifier or receiver to the red(+)
terminal of your right Mythos loudspeaker and the black(-) terminal of
the right main/front channel of your receiver or amplifier to the
black(-) terminal of your right Mythos loudspeaker.
If you are using the Mythos as a center channel, connect the center
channel red(+) terminal of your amplifier or receiver to the red(+)
terminal of your Mythos center channel speaker and the black (-)
terminal of the center channel of your receiver or amplifier to the
black(-) terminal of your Mythos center channel loudspeaker.
If you are using the Mythos as side/rear surround speakers, hook up
the left surround red(+) terminal of your receiver or amplifier to the
red(+) terminal of your Mythos left surround speaker and the left sur-
round black(-) terminal of your receiver or amplifier to the black(-)
terminal of your Mythos left surround speaker.Connect the right sur-
round red(+) terminal of your amplifier or receiver to the red(+) termi-
nal of your Mythos right surround loudspeaker and the black(-) termi-
nal of the right surround channel of your receiver or amplifier to the
black(-) terminal of your Mythos right surround loudspeaker.
If your receiver/ decoder has a bass management system and you
are using a separate subwoofer, set bass management to “Small”left
and right main speakers, “Small”center channel, “Small”surround
speakers and “Yes”subwoofer.Ifyour receiver/decoder has a choice
of crossover frequencies, set the crossover to 80 Hz or 100 Hz if avail-
able (for greater dynamic range). If you are not using a separate sub-
woofer,set bass management to “Large”left and right main speakers,
“Large”center channel and “Large”surround speakers, and “No”sub-
woofer.Westrongly recommend the use of a separate subwoofer.
Connecting Your Mythos Loudspeakers
4

5
Mounting Your Mythos Six with the Supplied
Wall-Mount Bracket
Your Mythos Six comes with an optional wall-bracket designed to
securely mount your speaker flush to your wall. The bracket can ONLY
be used with a vertical installation. (For horizontal installations, the
Mythos Seven speaker should be used instead.) For safety, it is extremely
important that this bracket be installed with molly-bolts or similarly
effective fasteners appropriate for the construction of your wall. Be sure
to use all six of the mounting holes when fastening the bracket to the
wall. Never use unanchored or improperly anchored screws in your wall.
Professional installation is strongly recommended. Your dealer can either
arrange this for you, or refer you to a qualified installer.
Todetermine the bracket’sposition on the wall, the following measure-
ments will be helpful. When the Mythos Six is installed on the bracket,
the top edge of the speaker is 15/8inches (41 mm) from the top edge of the
bracket, the bottom edge of the speaker is 7 inches (177 mm) from the
bottom of the bracket, and the outer edges of the speaker are 13/8inches
(35 mm) from the sides of the bracket. If you are mounting your Mythos
Six close to anything above it, please allow an extra 11/2inches (38 mm)
for the speaker to slide onto its bracket.
If your speaker wires are to be hidden inside the wall, be sure to
conform to your local building codes. When installed on the bracket,
Setting Bass and Treble Controls on Your
Receiver or Amplifier
Normally we recommend that you set the Bass and Treble controls
on flat or 0 dB. This will give you the most linear and natural sound.
Also, if your amplifier or receiver has a graphic equalizer, we recom-
mend that you leave it flat. The reason for this is that we have spoken
with many consumers about what they thought were improperly
sounding speakers when, in fact, the problem was misadjusted tone
controls. When in doubt, leave them flat; this almost always
sounds the best.
Usually if distortion is heard when the speakers are being driven
at loud levels, it is caused by driving (turning up) the amplifier too loud
and not driving the speakers with more power than they can handle.
Remember, most amplifiers put out their full-rated power well before the
volume control is turned all the way up! If your speakers distort when you
play them loud, turn down the amplifier or get a bigger one.

the center of the Mythos Six speaker terminals will be 31/4inches (82 mm)
below the bottom edge of the bracket.
To install the Mythos Six on its bracket, securely fasten the two mount-
ing screws supplied into the two threaded holes on the rear of the speaker,
screwing them in as far as they will go. The speaker will then hang in the
two “keyholes” on the bracket. After placing the screws in these open-
ings, pressing down firmly on the top of the speaker will seat the speaker
properly and avoid any rattles during use.
Using Your Mythos Six on a Shelf or Furniture
Your Mythos Six comes with an optional tempered glass base for
standing the speaker on a horizontal shelf or on furniture. (For horizontal
installations, the Mythos Seven speaker should be used instead.) For
safety, please make sure the location where you place the speaker is flat
and level. The base must be installed with the included plastic spacer’s
smooth silver side against the glass on the surface opposite the feet.
Please make sure that the plastic washers are used with the four supplied
mounting screws. Do not over-tighten the mounting screws.
Your Mythos Seven comes with an optional wall-bracket designed to
securely mount your speaker flush to your wall. The bracket can ONLY
be used with a horizontal installation. (For vertical installations, the
Mythos Six speaker should be used instead.) For safety, it is extremely
important that this bracket be installed with molly-bolts or similarly
effective fasteners appropriate for the construction of your wall. Be sure
to use all six of the mounting holes when fastening the bracket to the
wall. Never use unanchored or improperly anchored screws in your wall.
Professional installation is strongly recommended. Your dealer can either
arrange this for you, or refer you to a qualified installer.
Todetermine the bracket’sposition on the wall, the following measure-
ments will be helpful. When the Mythos Seven is installed on the bracket,
the top edge of the speaker is 1 inch (25 mm) from the top edge of the
bracket, the bottom edge of the speaker is 11/4inches (32 mm) from the
bottom of the bracket. The right outer edge of the speaker is 31/2inches
(89 mm) from the sides of the bracket. The left outer edge of the speaker
is5inches (129 mm) from the sides of the bracket. The center of the
Mythos 7 speaker terminals will be 11/2inch (37 mm) from the sides of the
bracket. If you are mounting your Mythos Seven below your display
Mounting Your Mythos Seven with the
Supplied Wall-Mount Bracket
6

7
(or any other solid object), please allow an extra 1 inch (35mm) for the
speaker to slide onto its bracket.
If your speaker wires are to be hidden inside the wall, be sure to
conform to your local building codes. When installed on the bracket,
the Mythos Seven speaker terminals will be even with the right edge
of the bracket.
To install the Mythos Seven on its bracket, securely fasten the two
mounting screws supplied into the two threaded holes on the rear of the
speaker, screwing them in as far as they will go. The speaker will then
hang in the two “keyholes” on the bracket. After placing the screws in
these openings, pressing down firmly on the top of the speaker will seat
the speaker properly and avoid any rattles during use.
Using Your Mythos Seven on a Shelf or Furniture
Your Mythos Seven may be used on a shelf or on the top of a
television, as long as the flat surface chosen has 5 inches of depth. Please
find the supplied threaded foot for your speaker and screw into the
threaded hole on the bottom of the speaker. This foot can be used
to adjust the vertical angle of the front of the speaker up or down. For
optimum performance, we suggest that you aim the speaker toward the
height of the listeners’ ears.
The Mythos
TM
Home Theater Systems
Acomplete Mythos Home Theater System will normally combine
afront left, right and center Mythos loudspeaker with rear surround
speakers (which can also be Mythos speakers or any other Definitive
Surround Loudspeaker including our Bipolar In-Walls, ProMonitors,
StudioMonitors, etc.) and one or more Definitive subwoofers. These
superb systems offer exceptional music and home theater performance
with all decoding technologies. Remember,to achieve proper blending
and full performance, it is essential to use only Definitive speakers to
complete your home theater system.

If you use a subwoofer, we strongly suggest using a Definitive
PowerField SuperCube, PowerField or ProSub in order to achieve
the highest level of sound quality possible.
With Dolby Digital Receivers and Decoders
Most systems using the Mythos loudspeakers with a subwoofer will
be Dolby Digital Systems. Simply hook the Mythos speakers up to the
left and right front (main) channels (assuming you are using them as
front speakers) and hook the Mythos Seven to the center channel
(assuming you are using it as a center channel). Using a low-level
RCA cable, hook the subwoofer up to the LFE output on your receiver
or processor.If you are using a Definitive subwoofer, input this LFE
cable into the LFE input on the sub. Then set the bass management
system on the receiver or decoder to “Small”left and right main speak-
ers, “Small”center, and “Yes”subwoofer. If your receiver/decoder has
achoice of crossover frequencies, set the crossover to 80 Hz. The cir-
cuitry inside the receiver or decoder will perform the necessary
crossover functions.
With Non-Dolby Digital Systems
With non-Dolby Digital systems, there are many options for using
your Mythos loudspeakers with a subwoofer. The specific hook-up
will depend on the specific subwoofer you are using. With Definitive
subwoofers, you can run the Mythos loudspeakers full range (i.e. hook
them up normally to the amplifier receiver) and connect the subwoofer
to the sub-out with a low-level RCA cable. With Definitive sub-
woofers this would input into the left or right channel input. You
would then set the woofer’s low-pass crossover: we would suggest
starting around 80 Hz and then experiment up or down from there.
You also have the option with Definitive subwoofers of using the
subwoofer’s built-in speaker level high-pass crossover as described in
the subwoofer instruction manuals. In this case, also start with the
subwoofer low-pass crossover at about 80 Hz and experiment.
Using Your Mythos Loudspeakers with
aSeparate Subwoofer
Mythos loudspeakers make excellent rear or side surround speakers.
In order to use the Mythos speakers as rear or side surround speakers,
Use of Mythos Six as Rear or Side Surround Speakers
8

simply hook them up as normal to the rear or side channel amplifier out-
puts of your system. Set the bass management system of your decoder to
“Small”rear and/or side surrounds if your system is using a separate
subwoofer, or “Large”rear or side surrounds if your system is not using
aseparate subwoofer.
It is our pleasure to offer assistance if you have any questions
regarding your Mythos loudspeakers or their set-up. Please contact
your nearest Definitive Technology dealer or contact us directly at
410-363-7148 or www.definitivetech.com.
Technical Assistance
Service and warranty work on your Definitive loudspeakers will
normally be performed by the Definitive Technology dealer from
whom you have purchased your loudspeakers. If, however, you wish
to return the speaker to us, please contact us first, describing the prob-
lem and requesting authorization as well as the location of the nearest
factory service center. Please note that the address given in this
booklet is the address of our offices only. Under no circumstances
should loudspeakers be shipped to our offices or returned without
contacting us first and obtaining return authorization.
Definitive Technology Offices
11433 Cronridge Drive
Owings Mills, Maryland 21117
Phone: [phone]
Service
Visit us at www.definitivetech.com
9

VERY IMPORTANT: SETTING CHANNEL BALANCE AND BASS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
Dolby Digital and Dolby ProLogic systems and decoders have a critical channel balancing
procedure for the left and right front speakers, center channel, rears and subwoofer (if it is hooked
up through the LFE or Sub Out low level connection) which must be followed if the system is to
perform properly. We have spoken with many system users with problems relating to the overall
sound of their system which could be clearly traced back to improper system balance.
Also note that Dolby Digital decoders have bass management systems (systems which direct the
bass to the various channels) which vary from unit to unit. This bass management system must
also be properly adjusted. If your Mythos loudspeaker is hooked up with speaker level wires and
you are using a separate subwoofer, your receiver or decoder’s bass management system should
be set for “Small”left and right main speakers, “Small”center, “Small”surrounds, and “Yes”
subwoofer. If you are using rear surround speakers with very extended low frequency response,
set the rear channels of your decoder’s bass management system to “Large.”If not, set them to
“Small”. If you are using the Mythos speaker as a rear or side surround speaker, set the rear or
side surround bass management to “Small”. If you are using Mythos loudspeakers without a sepa-
rate subwoofer, set bass management to “Large” left and right main speakers, “Large” center,
“Large”surrounds, and “No”subwoofer
. (Also, do not be afraid to experiment.) Remember,
whatever sounds best to you is correct.
All specifications subject to change.
Mythos Six
Dimensions 4.07" W x 4" D x 19.57" H
Frequency Response 60 Hz – 30 kHz
Efficiency: 89 dB
Nominal Impedance 4 – 8 ohms
Driver Complement Two 3.5" high-definition bass/midrange
drivers, two 3.5" pressure-driven planar low
frequency radiators, one 1" pure aluminum
dome tweeter
Recommended
Associated Amplification 10 – 175 watts/channel
Magnetically Shielded
Mythos Seven
Dimensions 19.57" W x 4" D x 4.07" H
Frequency Response 60 Hz – 30 kHz
Efficiency: 89 dB
Nominal Impedance 4 – 8 ohms
Driver Complement Two 3.5" high-definition bass/midrange
drivers, two 3.5" pressure-driven planar low
frequency radiators, one 1" pure aluminum
dome tweeter
Recommended
Associated Amplification 10 – 175 watts/channel
Magnetically Shielded
Mythos Loudspeakers Specifications
10