Gryphon Speaker System User manual

Owners Manual
The Gryphon Atlantis
Speaker System
Version 1 July 1 2007
Atlantis – Fabled island with advanced
technologies given by the sea god
Poseidon to his mortal wife

Atlantis set-up, top view

Atlantis set-up, side view
Note how curve on speaker front is
matching the circle.

The Gryphon Atlantis
loudspeaker system
Atlantis – Fabled island with advanced
technologies given by the sea god
Poseidon to his mortal wife
Welcome to our world
Words by Flemming E. Rasmussen, CEO and
Founder of Gryphon Audio Designs
Nearly two decades have pas-
sed since the first Gryphon
saw the light of day. It wasn't
a case of planned parenthood,
more an inevitable love child -
the fruit of a long-standing
love affair with music and
audio.
Gryphon embarked on a long
journey back then, made long
not by detours, but simply
because our destination is so
far away. I have always belie-
ved that we experience music
with our hearts as much as
with our ears. For me, the ulti-
mate test is very simple - the
music must reach out and
touch the heart. Looking back
over those twenty years, I
must confess that Gryphon
has always developed the
audio products that I perso-
nally needed and wanted.
Nothing was ever built to
meet a demand defined by
market research. Some might
find that arrogant and per-
haps it is, but I prefer to see it
as an honest approach, while
accepting that not everyone
shares my point of view.
Fortunately, the passing years
have proven that there is a
sufficiently large group of like-
minded individuals around the
world who have come toget-
her in this common quest.
I would like to take this oppor-
tunity to personally thank all
of you who have shared this
journey with me.
Down through the years,
Gryphon has expanded from a
single Head Amplifier to
encompass the full audio
spectrum with the definitive
music playback system. This
didn't happen because we can
do everything ourselves, but
because we recognize quality
when we encounter it and
have the ability to assemble a
team of dedicated specialists
for each new project. The
Gryphon company - like its
products - is greater than the
sum of its parts.
There is certainly a family
resemblance across the
Gryphon range and by that we
mean more than mere tech-
nology. We like to think that
Gryphon is not perceived as
Class A amplifiers, upsampling
CD players or silver cables,
but more as a degree of quali-
ty, a sense of "rightness" that
brings it all home for you. And
you don't reach that place by
following your ears, only by
following your heart.
In responding to queries as to
why Gryphon took the major
step of expanding into the
field of loudspeaker design,
the temptation is to take the
easy way out with a flippant
reply like "Because it's there."
But the simple fact is that,
having earned a global repu-
tation for unsurpassed excel-
lence in amplification, it was a
natural evolutionary move to
broaden our scope and turn
our attention to the other links
in the audio chain.
Beginning with source compo-
Flemming E. Rasmussen

nents, Gryphon designed the
world's first single-chassis CD
player with onboard upsamp-
ling. The third generation of
this innovative technology, the
Gryphon Mikado, has won
numerous awards around the
world. The next logical step
was to apply the uncompromi-
sing Gryphon take-no-priso-
ners approach to the final link
in the chain. But this decision
was by no means made on the
spur of the moment.
In fact, the Gryphon speaker
adventure began nearly 18
years ago with a chance
encounter between Gryphon
founder Flemming E.
Rasmussen and Steen
Duelund, a Danish mathema-
tician who has dedicated his
professional life to loudspea-
ker theory.
Duelund's theories on con-
stant phase in crossover net-
works can be summed up in a
single statement: "All drivers
must be in phase at all times
at all frequencies." Following
this theoretical "Eureka," the
hard part then becomes
making that happen in a real
room with a real loudspeaker.
Initially on a strictly informal
basis, an in-depth exploration
was undertaken that would
take full advantage of
Gryphon's assembled experti-
se and extensive experience
in design and manufacturing
to transform Duelund's theori-
es into real-world products
with scant regard for such
minor details as pricing, parts
availability, prevailing attitu-
des and preconceived notions.
Imperfect Drivers
The first step was to acknow-
ledge that the greatest chal-
lenge facing loudspeaker
designers was the simple fact
that dynamic drive units are
by nature fundamentally fla-
wed and compromised. Many
driver designs defy all sound
design principles, because
they are the result of penny-
pinching exercises under
heavy market pressure to deli-
ver "acceptable" performance
at the lowest price. There is
little motivation to allocate
resources to making drivers
that are truly the best that
they can be.
In order for the mission to
succeed, Rasmussen and his
hand-picked design team
began from scratch with dri-
ver design, literally building by
hand drivers with baskets that
did not introduce compres-
sion, hand-made multi-lami-
nate cones, exotic home-brew
coatings, adjustable wire sus-
pension to replace the con-
ventional spider, heavy-duty
magnetic systems, ventilated
pole pieces, machined phase
plugs and special surrounds to
optimize the transition betwe-
en cone and baffle. All edges
were beveled for a deliberate
aerodynamic profile. Double
wiring was employed on the
cones to ensure perfect sym-
metry. The list of break-
throughs goes on and on.
Every aspect of driver design,
assembly and function was
thoroughly investigated wit-
hout prejudice and with scant
respect for received wisdom,
which often proved to be ill-
founded dogma formulated by
Steen Duelund 1943 -2005
Lars Matthisen, Chief Acoustic advi-
ser at Gryphon, carrier of the
Duelund flame.

individuals promoting their
own specific agendas.
The end result was drive units
with extremely low Q, high
power handling, no dynamic
compression and a linear pis-
tonic range that pushed back
the limits of driver design.
In order to live up to the
uncompromising design goal
of perfect phase all the time at
all frequencies, the enclosure
incorporated a concave cur-
ved front to form a direct ang-
led, time-aligned system with
identical distance from the lis-
tener to the acoustic center of
each driver.
The finished loudspeakers can
only be described as an open
window, utterly transparent to
the original recorded event
with equally remarkable dyna-
mic headroom that re-creates
the true power and full weight
of live music, both in details
such as a drum rimshot and in
the effortless expansion of an
orchestral crescendo in a
large-scale symphonic piece.
Gone were the sluggishness
and "whitewashed" uniformity
typical of loudspeakers with
complex crossovers where
60% of the components are
dedicated to the thankless
task of compensating for the
basic imperfections of inferior
drivers. In such speakers, the
crossover becomes a virtual
"black hole," sucking up ener-
gy instead of conveying it to
the drivers. The result is a
neat and tidy musical presen-
tation with everything appa-
rently in its place and a liste-
ning experience that quickly
becomes tedious and uninspi-
ring.
By the millennium, Gryphon
had become firmly established
as a major international player
with a range of amplification
components and CD players
widely regard as among the
very best in the esoteric world
of High End audio. Gryphon
innovations included the worl-
d's first single-chassis CD pla-
yer with onboard upsampling
and critical system enhance-
ments such as the acclaimed
Exorcist, the world's first sys-
tem demagnetizer, as well as
a range of cables and acces-
sories.

Owner's Manual
When You Have Purchased
the Atlantis System
Yourauthorized Gryphon dea-
ler delivers and installs the
Atlantis system. His staff has
been meticulously schooled in
the proper unpacking of the
system and in the set-up of
the system. Your dealer will
return after a two-week
break-in period for final
adjustment.
After three months, your dea-
ler will come back for a final
check-up.
This service is included in the
price of the Atlantis system
and is crucial to optimizing
system performance.
The Listening Room
This section outlines ideal
room dimensions and speaker
placement. Specific acoustic
conditions may permit some
deviation from these recom-
mendations. Atlantis curved
baffle is designed so that the
sound from all drivers integra-
tes at a point 5 m in front of
the high frequency driver.
(Think of the drivers as rows
of spotlights all angled to illu-
minate the same spot.)
The cabinerts should be at
least 1 m from any side wall.
We recommend as much dis-
tance from the backwall as
possible.
Imagine a circle on the floor
at a diameter of 10 meters
with the listener in the middle.
The Atlantis should be set up
following the line of this circle
forcing all the drivers to point
direct at the listener at a dis-
tance of 5 meters. This is the
basic designformula and not
all locations will allow this. We
have tested Atlantis in a num-
ber of different room sizes
from very small rooms to
halls. What is important is in
all cases to set the speakers
up with a toe- in pointing
direct at the listener.
Note: plush furnishings provi-
de high acoustic damping,
requiring greater system out-
put.
Atlantis was developed in a
50 sq.m. room with typical
acoustic damping correspon-
ding to most modern residen-
tial spaces.
We do NOT recommend room
treatments for added damping
behind the loudspeakers.
Some damping behind the lis-
tening position is recommen-
ded, especially if it is close to
the rear wall.
Diffusion is generally a far
better acoustic solution in that
it removes unwanted reflec-
tions without restricting dyna-
mics or exerting excessive
influence on tonal balance.
Because Atlantis design requi-
res angling the cabinets in
towards the listener, the influ-
ence of side walls is minimal.
The curved baffles also reduce
reflections from floor and cei-
ling. If the ceiling is low, a dif-
fuser placed at the point of
the first reflection may be
useful. A rug on the floor bet-
ween listener and speakers
will help. The conventional
coffee table in front of the lis-
tener is typically the source of
most problems with unwanted
reflections.
We strongly suggest that all
effort are made to optimize

the acoustic properties of the
room before any electronic
manipulation ( Room correc-
tion ) is considered. - ( no
electronics are correcting any
rooms, they manipulate the
sound to compensate for poor
acoustics).
We consider this to be the last
resort.
Because of its design and
comprehensive adaptability,
Atlantis is nowhere near as
demanding as other large spe-
akers. However, because of
Atlantis extreme phase linea-
rity, you will discover that it is
more revealing than any other
loudspeaker.
Be prepared for a radical revi-
sion of everything you had
previously learned about loud-
speakers or heard from them.
Unpacking
Do NOT try to lift a cabinet
out of the crate. Instead, raise
the box so the speakers
stands in the correct upright
position inside the box and
then slide the box away from
the rear of the speaker,
CAUTION! Atlantis is a very
heavy loudspeaker and should
only be moved by 2-3 people
to avoid damage or injury.
Labels at top and bottom ind-
icates the orientation of the
speaker inside the box.
Set-Up
Atlantis is designed to form
two hemispheres - one hori-
zontal and one vertical. The
vertical hemisphere is defined
by the curvature of the front
baffle.
The cabinets must be angled
in so that they are aimed at
the same point (ear level for a
centrally placed listener), for-
ming a curve in front of the
listener. PROPER PLACEMENT IS
CENTRAL TO THE ATLANTIS CON-
CEPT AND REQUIRES PATIENCE
AND ATTENTION. TRADITIONAL
WISDOM IS NOT THE ANSWER
HERE.
The difference between the
merely outstanding and the
ultimate is a fine line.
Break-in
The Atlantis requires at least
100 hours of break-in. Do NOT
use special break-in discs.
Often, they tend to result in
break-down instead. Choose
dynamic music instead.
Michael Jackson is a popular
choice for burn-in purposes,
...
Tweak alert
Atlantis is the fruit of an extre-
mely protracted, very open-
minded development process.
We assure you that it is not
possible to improve this sys-
tem by replacing a few
lengths of wire or a capacitor.
Remember - most critical
components are not just spe-
cially selected - they are spe-
cially developed specifically
for the Atlantis.
X-over biasing
By biasing the electrolyte
capacitors with a dc voltage,
connected to the joined node
of a bipolar coupled electroly-
tic capacitor, the following
advantage is obtained. The
electrolyte capacitor’s “memo-
ry effect”, which is disturbing
the zero crossing of the music
signal, is removed or at least
reduced. In other words, the
music signal is passing the
biased bipolar capacitor with
less coloration than an unbia-

Atlantis Speaker system
performance:
Frequency response:
26Hz - 32.000 kHz +/- 3db.
Room dependent
X-over freq: 250/2500Hz. 4th.
order acoustical Duelund CP
Sensitivity:
90db /2.8v.
Nominal impedance 4 ohm
Dimensions:
W: 39cm D: 72 cm H: 118 cm
Shipping weight: 85 kgs per
cabinet.
Flemming E. Rasmussen and
the Atlantis design crew take
immense satisfaction in this
new addition to the history of
the company.
When the privileged owner of
the Atlantis sits back and
experiences how music rises
above technology as walls
fade away and a direct con-
nection is made to the very
souls of the performers, we
know that our work is done
and we take great pride in it.
We have made the loudspea-
kers disappear, leaving in its
place the only thing that real-
ly matters... Music.
sed electrolyte capacitor.
To check if the biasing is acti-
ev you can test it on the
switch on the backside. A lLED
will light up indicating that the
bias is actiev. If the LED do
not light on, it is time to repla-
ce the battery.
The speaker will still perform
with a dead battery.
The batteries will last 1 - 2
years.
Checking the batteries is actu-
ally consuming more power
than the constant biasing.
Battery type:
PP3
9 volt ( x 2 )

Warranty
The Gryphon Atlantis is warranted against failures arising
through faulty workmanship and materials for a period of 3
years from date of purchase. The warranty is not transferable.
This warranty is only valid in the country where the product
was purchased. All claims under this warranty must be made
to the distributor in the buyer`s country by returning the unit
securely packed in the original box with all accessories, posta-
ge/freight prepaid and insured. The unit will be repaired or
replaced at no charge for parts and labor.
This warranty remains valid only if the serial number of the
unit has not been defaced or removed and if repairs are per-
formed only by authorized Gryphon dealers or distributors. It
does not cover damage due to misuse, accident or neglect.
This warranty is not valid if the operation voltage of the pro-
duct has been changed. The distributor or manufacturer,
Gryphon Audio Designs, Denmark, retains the exclusive right
to make such judgement on the basis of inspection.
The retailer, distributor or manufacturer of the Gryphon shall
not be liable for consequential damage arising from the use,
misuse or failure of this product, including injuries to persons
or property.
To qualify, the enclosed warranty registration card must be fil-
led out and returned to the manufacturer within 10 days of
purchase.
Alternatively, you may choose to register your Gryphon on our
website:
www.gryphon-audio.com