Energy Audissey Series User manual

MUSICAL TRUTH
®
LOUDSPEAKERS
owners manual
Audissey
Series
PRINTED IN CANADA
7AI//E-EA

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Features and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Room Acoustics & Subwoofer Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Selection of Proper Wire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Amplifier Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Amplifier to Loudspeaker Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Conventional hook-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Bi-Wire hook-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Combination Bi-Amp/Bi-Wire hook-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Care of Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Distortion Causes Speaker Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
owners manual Audissey Series
1

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF ENERGY
“AUDISSEY” LOUDSPEAKERS.
We are sure you will enjoy this superb product.The following advice is offered to
facilitate proper installation of your Energy speakers in your home.
Extensive research along with great care at every design stage has enabled Energy to
produce loudspeakers with extraordinary performance characteristics: a performance
level that is equal, or superior to other speakers costing many times their price.
The finest components and materials, made with sophisticated manufacturing and quality
control ensure that you will enjoy this exceptional performance for many years.
IMPORTANT: Please retain the carton and packing material for this Energy
product to protect it in the event it ever has to be shipped to a service center for
repair. Product received damaged by a service center that has been shipped by the
end user in other than the original packaging, will be repaired, refurbished and
properly packaged for return shipment at the end user’s expense.
FEATURES AND BENEFITS
Your new Energy “Audissey”Bipolar Series speakers feature state-of-the-art tech-
nologies derived from development of the flagship of the line...the world acclaimed
“Veritas™”v2.8.
Elegant Styling:
Representing an exciting new look, these lean and elegant floor-standing models take up
less than one square foot of floor space, yet their high-tech design suggests they conceal
an entire stage full of musicians.
Bipolar Design:
Unlike conventional front-radiating speakers, the “Audissey”Bipolar Series speakers
employ the exclusive Energy Assymetrical Bipolar™design that disperses sound in a
360 degree pattern imparting the depth, breadth and emotional involvement to your
music and home theater entertainment.
Audissey Series owners manual
2

ROOM ACOUSTICS AND SPEAKER PLACEMENT
Energy loudspeakers have been designed to provide high performance in a wide vari-
ety of domestic settings. It is important to note however, that building structure, dimen-
sions and furnishings all play a part in the quality of sound you will ultimately achieve.
Where possible the following should be taken into consideration when placing Energy
speakers in your listening room:
1. Low frequency performance (below 100 Hz) can be affected by the structure of the
room. A solid floor is preferred to avoid exaggeration of low frequencies.
2. Rooms with different height, width and length are preferable for best low frequency
performance.
3. Mid and high frequencies are affected by the mix of soft and hard furnishings in the
room. An excess of soft items such as curtains, carpets, sofas and wall coverings can
produce a dull, lifeless reproduction.The same room without any soft furnishings will
produce a brighter, harder sound, so a balance of soft and hard furniture, floor and
wall coverings should be your goal for optimum sonic performance.
4. Most of the sound heard from a loudspeaker has been reflected from one or more
walls of the room. Usually, less than half the sound is heard directly from the
loudspeaker.The remaining information you hear has been reflected from the
surfaces of your room.
Reflective surfaces have individual sound absorption characteristics, and it is
important for good stereo perception that frequency response be the same from
both left and right channels. It is therefore important that consideration be paid to
the left and right reflecting walls. First, they should be symmetrical, equally spaced
from the speakers and the listeners. Secondly, they should have the same, or very
similar reflective properties. Example: A curtain on one wall and a painted surface
on the opposite wall will result in unbalanced reflections, which in turn affect the
stereo image. Experiment with toe-in/toe-out positioning of your speakers until best
results are achieved.
5. Audissey Bipolar loudspeakers are designed to be free standing.They should
therefore be positioned with an open space between the loudspeakers and the
walls of the listening room.
6. The distance from the left and right speaker to the side walls should be equal. For
best results, placement distance from the rear wall should not be the same as from
the side walls. (see figure 1).
owners manual Audissey Series
3

7. Floor standing models should be positioned at least 38 cm (15”) from the back
wall. Spiked feet are recommended for stability on carpeted floors.
8. The loudspeakers should be placed 2 to 3 meters (6’to 10’) apart.The distance
from loudspeakers to listener should be about 1 to 1.5 times the distance
separating the speakers. (see figure 1).
Audissey Series owners manual
4
SPEAKER PLACEMENT
(FIGURE 1)
FIRST WALL REFLECTION
BIPOLAR REFLECTION
DIRECT RADIATED SOUND ENERGY
BIPOLAR REFLECTION

Selection of Proper Wire
We recommend the use of high quality speaker cable.The speaker cable you select will
ideally be fitted with high quality connectors with either 5/16”spade lugs or dual banana
plugs.
In most installations, ordinary lamp cord (16-18 gauge) has enough resistance to
degrade the signal between amplifier and speakers, particularly in lengths over 3 meters
(10’). If possible the speaker cables should be the same length for both channels and the
shorter they are, the better the sonic performance will be.
* When connecting your speakers to your sound system, turn off your
amplifier to avoid damage which could result from shorting of the
speaker leads.
Amplifier Requirements
Energy loudspeakers have been designed to be driven to high listening levels with
moderate power, while at the same time being capable of handling the power output of
large amplifiers.
NOTE: The Energy “Audissey”Bipolar series speakers are 6 ohms nominal (4
ohm minimum) and will function well with most amplifiers. If using more than one set
of speakers, powered by one amplifier, please check with the amplifier manufacturer
to confirm that the amplifier can handle loads of 3 ohms.
Amplifier to Loudspeaker Connection
The Audissey Bipolar loudspeakers utilize two sets of binding posts.The upper set is for
high frequencies and the lower for lower frequencies. Bi-amp/bi-wire allows three
different wiring options.
1) Conventional Hook-up - You will note shorting straps have been installed.
(see figure 2) - Positive (+) to Positive, Negative (–) to Negative. Connect speaker
wire from the red positive (+) terminal on amplifier to lower positive terminal on
speaker. Connect black negative (–) terminal from amplifier to lower negative
terminal on speaker.
2) Bi-Wire Hook-up - Remove shorting straps. Use two dual conductor cables; one
cable for low frequencies and one cable for high frequencies. Separate connections
are made between the power amplifier to the low frequencies binding posts on the
speaker and from the power amplifier to the high frequency binding posts.This
allows you to choose separate wires that are best suited for the low or high
frequencies. (see figure 3)
owners manual Audissey Series
5

Audissey Series owners manual
6
LEFT CHANNEL RIGHT CHANNEL
AMPLIFIER OR RECEIVER
–+–+
OUTPUT
–
LEFT CHANNEL RIGHT CHANNEL
AMPLIFIER OR RECEIVER
+–
+
CONNECT TO RIGHT SPEAKER(AS SHOWN ABOVE FOR LEFT SPEAKER)
CONNECT TO RIGHT SPEAKER (AS SHOWN ABOVE FOR LEFT SPEAKER)
IMPORTANT: REMOVE GOLD SHORTING
BARS, WHICH HAVE BEEN FACTORY INSTALLED BETWEEN BOTH RED INPUT TERMINALS AND BOTH BLACK INPUT TERMINALS.
NOTE: ENSURE THAT ONE GOLD
SHORTING BAR IS CONNECTED AS SHOWN BETWEEN THE TWO RED INPUT TERMINALS AND ONE BETWEEN BLACK INPUT TERMINALS.
LEFT SPEAKER LEFT SPEAKER
CONVENTIONAL HOOKUP
(FIGURE 2)
BI-WIRE HOOKUP
(FIGURE 3)

owners manual Audissey Series
7
CONNECT TO THE LEFT CHANNEL
OUTPUT OF YOUR PRE-AMPLIFIER CONNECT TO THE RIGHT CHANNEL
OUTPUT OF YOUR PRE-AMPLIFIER
TWO CHANNEL
AMPLIFIER (1) TWO CHANNEL
AMPLIFIER (2)
OUTPUT
CHANNEL A CHANNEL B
INPUT
OUTPUT
CHANNEL A CHANNEL B
INPUT
LEFT SPEAKER RIGHT SPEAKER
IMPORTANT
REMOVE GOLD SHORTING
BARS WHICH HAVE BEEN
FACTORY INSTALLED
BETWEEN BOTH RED INPUT
TERMINALS AND BOTH
BLACK INPUT TERMINALS.
COMBINATION BI-AMP/BI-WIRE HOOKUP
(Figure 4)
(THIS METHOD USES TWO IDENTICAL CHANNEL AMPLIFIERS FOR IMPROVED SYSTEM PERFORMANCE

3) Combination Bi-Amp/Bi-Wire Hook up - This method uses separate
amplifiers for the low frequency section and high frequency section of the speaker.
This dramatically improves musicality.The amplifier’s gains and the phase relationship
of the amplifier’s input to output must be identical. (see figure 4)
Care of Finish
Your Energy speakers are attractively finished and should be gently wiped clean, from
time to time, with a damp cloth to remove any dust or stains.
Distortion Causes Speaker Damage
When an amplifier is “overdriven”it produces distorted output power several times
greater than its rated power. All amplifiers produce high levels of distortion when they
are driven beyond their rated power output and this distortion can damage any speaker.
Overdriven amplifier distortion is called “Clipping”.
Clipping can be identified by a fuzzy or distorted sound. If this is heard, lower the vol-
ume immediately to avoid damage to your system. If louder volumes are desired, the
only practical solution is to obtain an amplifier capable of more clean (undistorted) out-
put power.
Audissey Series owners manual
8

SPECIFICATIONS
A2+2 A3+2 A5+2
SYSTEM TYPE: Asymmetrical Asymmetrical Asymmetrical
Bipolar Radiated Vented Bipolar Radiated Vented Bipolar Radiated Vented
TWEETERS: 2x1 (25mm) Aluminium 2x1 (25mm) Aluminium 2x1 (25mm) Aluminium
Dome Tweeter with cloth Dome Tweeter with cloth Dome Tweeter with cloth
suspension in Bipolar suspension in Bipolar suspension in Bipolar
array array array
WOOFERS: 2x5 1/2”(14cm) I.M 2x5 1/2”(14cm) I.M 2x5 1/2”(14cm) I.M
Carbon/Mica polypropylene Carbon/Mica polypropylene Carbon/Mica polypropylene
woofers with compression woofers with compression Mid Bass drivers with
molded N.B.R. surrounds in molded N.B.R. surrounds in compression molded N.B.R.
a Bipolar array mounted on the front Baffle surrounds mounted on the
rear Baffle
1 x 5 1/2”(14cm) I.M. 1 x 5 1/2”(14cm) I.M.
Carbon/Mica polypropylene Carbon/Mica polypropylene
woofer with compression Mid Bass drivers with
molded N.B.R. surrounds in compression molded N.B.R.
mounted on the front Baffle surrounds mounted on the
rear Baffle
SUBWOOFERS: 2x8”(20.3 cm) Integrated
subwoofers - side firing
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 35 Hz - 25 KHz 30 Hz - 25 KHz 25 Hz - 25 KHz
CROSSOVER POINTS: 2.0 KHz 1.8 KHz 200 KHz, 1.8 KHz
SENSITIVITY: 90 dB 91 dB 93 dB
IMPEDANCE: 6 ohms (nominal) 6 ohms (nominal) 6 ohms (nominal)
4 ohms (minimum) 4 ohms (minimum) 4 ohms (minimum)
REC.AMP POWER: 30 - 175 watts RMS 30 - 225 watts RMS 30 - 225 watts RMS
clipping less than 10%
DIMENSIONS:
(in) 36 7-1/2 x 10-1/2 40-1/4 x 7-1/2 x 13 45-1/4 x 8-5/8 x 13
(cm) 91.44 x 19 x 27 102 x 19 x 33 114.9 x 21.8 x 33
WEIGHT (each): 40 lbs. (18.2 kg) 48 lbs. (21.8 kg) 65 lbs. (29.5 kg)
FINISH: Black High Gloss Black High Gloss Black High Gloss
GRILLE COLOUR: Black Black Black
DESCRIPTIONS AND SPECIFICATIONS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.
owners manual Audissey Series
9

LIMITED WARRANTY POLICY
Warranty in the United States and Canada
Mirage warrants this product to the retail purchaser against any failure resulting from
original manufacturing defects in workmanship or materials.The warranty is in effect for
a period of five (5) years from date of purchase from an authorized Mirage dealer and
is valid only if the original dated bill of sale is presented when service is required.
The warranty does not cover damage caused during shipment, by accident, misuse,
abuse, neglect, unauthorized product modification, failure to follow the instructions out-
lined in the owner’s manual, failure to perform routine maintenance, damage resulting
from unauthorized repairs or claims based upon misrepresentations of the warranty by
the seller.
Warranty Service:
If you require service for your Mirage loudspeaker(s) at any time during the five (5)
year warranty period, please contact: 1) the dealer from whom you purchased the
product(s), 2) Mirage National Service, 203 Eggert Road, Buffalo, N.Y. 14215
Tel: [phone]or 3) Mirage Loudspeakers,a division of Audio Products
International Corp., 3641 McNicoll Avenue, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, M1X 1G5,
Tel: [phone].You will be responsible for transporting the speakers in adequate
packaging to protect them from damage in transit and for the shipping costs to an
authorized Mirage service center or to Mirage Loudspeakers. If the product is returned
for repair to Mirage Loudspeakers in Scarborough or Buffalo, the costs of the return
shipment to you will be paid by Mirage, provided the repairs concerned fall within the
Limited Warranty. Mirage Warranty is limited to repair or replacement of Mirage prod-
ucts. It does not cover any incidental or consequential damage of any kind. If the provi-
sions in any advertisement, packing cartons or literature differ from those specified in
this warranty, the terms of the Limited Warranty prevail.
Warranty Outside of The United States and CANADA:
Product warranties may be legislated differently from one country to another. Ask your
local dealer for details of the LIMITED WARRANTY applicable in your country.
Audissey Series owners manual
10

WARNING
IMPORTANT TECHNICAL NOTE
PLEASE READ BEFORE OPERATING SPEAKERS
THE WARRANTY ON SPEAKERS IS VOID IF THE VOICE COILS ARE BURNED OR
DAMAGED AS A RESULT OF OVERPOWERING OR CLIPPING.
OVERPOWERING: The volume control of most amplifiers and receivers is a
logarithmic type, which means that full power may be reached with volume control at
as little as the halfway point. In addition, operating the loudness feature or boosting
the treble or bass controls increases power output well beyond rated levels.
AS A RESULT OF THE ABOVE FACTORS, A 30 WATT AMPLIFIER CAN PRODUCE
OUTPUT LEVELS OF OVER 100 WATTS AND MAY DAMAGE YOUR LOUDSPEAKER.
CLIPPING: Clipping refers to the power level at which an amplifier begins to
distort a waveform by flattening its top and bottom into a square wave-shape.When
fed to tweeters and/or midrange speakers, this may result in exceeding their
maximum power handling capacity, causing damage to the speaker voice coil.
CLIPPING CAN BE IDENTIFIED BY A FUZZY OR DISTORTED SOUND. IF THIS IS
HEARD, LOWER THE VOLUME IMMEDIATELY TO AVOID DAMAGE TO YOUR SYSTEM.
CONTINUOUS CLIPPING WILL DAMAGE OR BURN OUT THE SPEAKERS.
3641 McNicoll Ave.
Scarborough, Ontario,
CANADA
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
owners manual Audissey Series
11