Janszen zA1.1 User manual

1/28/2015
Model zA1.1 Electrostatic Hybrid Loudspeaker
Passive Version
O WNER ’ S M ANUAL

zA1.1 Owner’s Manual
 2014, 2015 Janszen Loudspeaker, Ltd.
480 Trade Road
Columbus, Oh o 43204 USA
Phone [phone]
ema l [e-mail]
Th s Owner’s Gu de s publ shed only n PDF form n order to save trees and not burden people w th even
more paper than they are already barraged w th. If you’d l ke a pr nted copy and do not have a color pr nter,
there are FedEx Off ce and Staples stores nearly everywhere that can do the pr nt ng job at low cost; you can
ema l them the f le or br ng t to them on a d sk or thumb dr ve. We hope th s s alr ght w th everyone.

Table of Contents
Safety Information ...................................................................... 1
Welcome..................................................................................... 5
Unpacking................................................................................... 6
Carton contents............................................................................... 6
Unpacking ....................................................................................... 6
Grills................................................................................................ 7
Cleaning ..................................................................................... 8
Wooden baffles ............................................................................... 8
Painted and metal surfaces............................................................. 8
Grill cloth ......................................................................................... 8
Warnings......................................................................................... 8
Quick Start.................................................................................. 9
A good starting setup: ..................................................................... 9
Tips: .............................................................................................. 10
Connecting and Powering ........................................................ 12
Binding Posts................................................................................ 12
Cables........................................................................................... 12
Power Cords ................................................................................. 12
Powering ....................................................................................... 13
Setup Details ............................................................................ 15
Stereo Image ................................................................................ 15
Room Compensation .................................................................... 16
Exaggerated Treble .............................................................................16
Exaggerated Bass................................................................................16
Room Boom and Suck Out...................................................................16
Features and Specifications..................................................... 18
Warranty ................................................................................... 21

S A F E T Y N F O R M A T O N
1
Safety nformation
WARNING: DO NOT EXPOSE THESE SPEAKERS TO RAIN OR
WETNESS, WHICH MAY CREATE A DANGEROUS SHOCK HAZARD,
AND MAY DEGRADE OR RUIN THE SPEAKERS.
WARNING: DANGEROUS HIGH VOLTAGES MAY BE PRESENT
INSIDE THE SPEAKERS. TO AVOID THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK,
DO NOT REMOVE THE REAR PANELS OR GRILLS OR OTHERWISE
DISASSEMBLE THE SPEAKERS. THERE ARE NO USER SERVICEABLE
PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED PERSONNEL.
WARNING: CHANGES OR MODIFICATIONS TO THESE SPEAKERS
NOT AUTHORIZED BY JANSZEN LOUDSPEAKER, LTD. MAY
INVALIDATE REGULATORY COMPLIANCE AND THUS RENDER THE
SPEAKERS UNSUITABLE FOR HOME USE. THIS INCLUDES KEEPING
THE GRILLS INTACT.
WARNING: JANSZEN SHALL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY
PHYSICAL DAMAGES OR INJURY THAT OCCURS AS A RESULT OF
MISUSE, DISASSEMBLY, OR UNAUTHORIZED CHANGES OR
MODIFICATIONS MADE TO THESE SPEAKERS.
WARNING: CONTINUOUS EXPOSURE TO LOUD SOUND CAUSES
HEARING DAMAGE.
WARNING: AMPLIFIERS CAN DELIVER HIGH VOLTAGES TO THE
INPUT TERMINALS TO THE SPEAKERS. TO AVOID THE RISK OF
ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT ALLOW CHILDREN OR ANIMALS
ACCESS TO THE BINDING POSTS.
Caution:
1. Read these instructions – All safety and operat ng nstruct ons should be
read before the speakers are operated.
2. Save these instructions – keep the safety and operat ng nstruct ons for
future reference.
1

S A F E T Y N F O R M A T O N
2
3. Heed the warnings – All warn ngs about these speakers should be followed.
4. Follow the instructions – All operat ng and use nstruct ons about these
speakers should be followed.
5. Condensation – When mov ng the speakers from a cold to warm locat on,
such as dur ng del very on a cold w nter day, mo sture may condense on
components w th n. If th s should occur, the speakers m ght not operate
properly. Consequently, after br ng ng the speakers n from the cold, we
adv se leav ng them dle for a day before connecting or powering them.
6. Water and moisture – The speakers should not be used near water – for
example, they should not be placed near a bathtub, pool, s nk, lawn spr nkler,
etc., and generally should not be placed outdoors.
7. Heat and flames – The speakers should be located well away from strong
sources of heat or flames, such as f replaces, propane heaters, stoves, etc..
. Particulates – Smoke from tobacco or cook ng, aerosol or splattered grease
from cook ng, and a r pollut on over a long per od of t me can have a
deleter ous effect on any speakers, nclud ng these. In part cular, avo d
spray ng anyth ng anywhere near the speakers.
9. Power cords – As w th any power cords, they should be routed so that they
are not l kely to be walked on or p nched by heavy objects. It s also mportant
to prevent access from an mals or ch ldren that may chew or otherw se
damage the power cords.
10. Liquids – Care should be taken not to sp ll l qu ds onto the speakers.
11. Foreign objects – Care should be taken not to press, poke or otherw se push
fore gn objects nto the cloth gr lls, such as penc ls, f ngers, toy a rplanes, cat
claws, etc..
12. Cleaning – Do not use abras ve cleaners. Do not spray or let anyone else
spray any sort of cleaner, pol sh, cond t oner, or anyth ng else on or near the
gr lls.
Paint: For remov ng d rt and f nger marks, the pa nt can w thstand glass
cleaner, l ghter flu d, alcohol, kerosene, or naptha. Avo d gett ng any of these
substances on the wood or gr lls. Apply any of these to a soft cloth. W pe gently,
because w p ng hard can pol sh away the matte f n sh and leave a sh ny area.
Wood: The wooden surfaces should be w ped w th noth ng more than a soft
cloth dampened w th pla n water. Do not use cleaners, pol shes, cond t oners,
or any other chem cal preparat on. The f nal coat of wax f n sh on the wood
w ll be removed by most of these.
Grill cloth: The gr ll cloth can be vacuumed.

S A F E T Y N F O R M A T O N
3
13. Overload – It s best not to connect the speaker to an ampl f er that can
del ver more than 400W/channel nto 8 Ohms. We cannot guarantee aga nst
the poss b l ty that trans ents del vered by such ampl f ers w ll cause ser ous
damage that requ res serv ce.
If the ampl f er s capable of del ver ng excess ve voltage, then any br ef
trans ent can ru n the electrostat c elements. In other words, f the ampl f er
can ru n the elements, then t probably w ll at some po nt, even when always
play ng “not loud”. Th s can happen from a power-on or power-off trans ent,
a cable pulled or nserted wh le the ampl f er s on, scrap ng across even just
one groove on an LP, jarr ng a m crophon c component or cable, switching
the preamp to a louder source while it is playing, performing tests that
involve sine wave sweeps or impulse signals, etc.
We can detect th s type of damage eas ly, and t w ll vo d the warranty.
14. YOUR EARS – D stort on and compress on are what make ord nary
speakers seem loud when the volume goes up, but electrostat c speakers do
not do th s.
Because your zA1.1’s are capable of produc ng h gh sound pressure levels
(SPL) w thout d stort on or compress on, t s easy to exceed safe loudness
w thout not c ng. As a general rule, f you can feel the bass n your belly, or f
you have to shout to be heard by a person s tt ng next to you, t m ght be too
loud.
A pa r of zA1.1 speakers can produce a peak SPL of over 105 dB, even n a
fa rly large room, 111dB n a small room, and w th some k nds of mus c, a
steady level over 100 dB s poss ble. This can damage your ears
permanently, and fairly quickly.
If you hear r ng ng n your ears soon after or w th n a day or so of l sten ng to
loud mus c, you have damaged your ears, perhaps sl ghtly, but permanently. It
s also poss ble to damage your ears even w thout hear ng r ng ng.
It s mportant to know --
No one notices the usual bits of hearing loss right away after each
overexposure. It adds up over time. If you don't avo d exposure to loud
sound, then at a relat vely young age, mus c w ll sound dull, or certa n notes
w ll be m ss ng, or you w ll hear constant no se n your ears, and you w ll have
trouble understand ng what people are say ng, f rst n no sy places l ke
restaurants, and then everywhere. If you th nk you may already have hear ng
loss, t’s never too late to stop mak ng t worse.
15 minutes s the NIOSH and CDC 2002 recommended maximum
exposure time to a steady SPL of 100 dB. The t me l m t s 4 hours at 85
dB. Th s 4 hour t me l m t s cut n half for each add t onal 3 dB n loudness: 2
hours at 88 dB, 1 hour at 91 dB, and so on.
SO PLEASE BE CAREFUL and you will not hurt your ears and thus
your future enjoyment of music.

S A F E T Y N F O R M A T O N
4
You can measure loudness w th a s mple sound level meter. If you w sh to
check your exposure, JansZen can supply a good qual ty sound level meter
such as we use ourselves at modest cost. Rad o Shack also offers one. There
are also apps for smart phones that work as sound level meters and spectrum
analyzers, although they w ll probably m ss the h gh frequency extremes due
to m crophone qual ty. Follow the nstruct ons for the dev ce or app to make
sure your read ngs are val d.

W E L C O M E
5
2
Welcome
ou have chosen JansZen loudspeakers!
The zA1.1 w ll br ng you the utmost n mus c l sten ng enjoyment through ts
except onal pur ty and naturalness n sound reproduct on. Wh le these
speakers nclude esoter c technology, you can rest assured that they are des gned and
bu lt w th the best of advanced mater als and techn ques, and are ready to br ng you
cons stent, unwaver ng performance for decades to come.
Please feel free to keep n touch w th us, lett ng us know anyth ng you’d l ke to tell
about your l sten ng exper ences, or about great ampl f ers, source gear, or mus c that
you have found su t you and the speakers part cularly well. We’re also here to help w th
any setup challenges or other quest ons.
Happy l sten ng.
JansZen Loudspeaker, Ltd.
480 Trade Rd.
Columbus, Oh o 43204
[phone]
[e-mail]
Y

U N P A C K N G
6
3
Unpacking
o not allow the delivery person to leave until you are satisfied that there
has been no shipping damage.
If there s damage, please refuse the sh pment, and t w ll automat cally come
back to us for repa r/replacement. The s tuat on w ll be harder to handle f you not ce
damage after the del very person has left.
Carton contents
The carton should conta n two speakers and two power cords.
Unpacking
The follow ng steps w ll get your new speakers out of the cartons and onto your floor
w thout m shap:
1) Move the carton onto a carpeted area, or lay a blanket, bath towel, or other
soft mater al down onto the floor to use as an unpack ng surface.
2) Set the carton on ts long s de w th the flaps up, wh ch matches the “th s
s de up” mark ngs on the s des of the carton, and sl ce through the tape to
free the flaps. We’ll call th s s de the top.
3) Remove the power cords.
4) Bend the flaps back as far as poss ble. If you are work ng alone, the next
steps w ll be eas er f you tape the flaps down aga nst the s des of the
carton.
5) Roll the carton completely over so that the top has now become the
bottom.
6) L ft the carton away and set t as de.
7) L ft the blue foam nsert away from the speakers.
8) L ft each speaker, be ng careful not to let the bag sl p from your gr p.
9) Cl p the t e that holds each bag shut, and remove each speaker.
10) Unwrap the protect ve f lm from the enclosure.
11) We adv se that you reta n all pack ng mater als n case you want to sell or
return the speakers. The cartons can be folded flat, and the nserts can be
nterleaved to occupy less space.
D

U N P A C K N G
7
Stands
If you have ordered stands from JansZen, they w ll be packed separately and
nclude the r own nstruct ons.
Grills
The speakers are des gned to offer opt mal sound reproduct on w th the gr lls n
place, and they also help protect the electrostat c elements, both from mechan cal
damage and from collect ng part culates from the a r.
The gr lls are permanently nstalled. Any attempt to remove them w ll cause
rreparable damage.

C L E A N N G
8
4
Cleaning
Wooden baffles
The f nal wood f n sh coat s wax, wh ch w ll be removed by most cleaners. W pe
only w th a soft, damp cloth.
Painted and metal surfaces
These surfaces can w thstand strong cleaners as well as alcohol, but do not spray
anything directly onto the speakers. Dampen a soft cloth w th your solvent or
solut on of cho ce, and w pe gently w th that.
Grill cloth
The gr ll cloth can be vacuumed d rectly w th a brush attachment.
Warnings
•Do not spray anything near the grill cloth. Any sort of cleaner or
water mist can harm the speakers if it gets through the grill
cloth.
•The grills cannot be removed. Any attempt to remove them will
cause irreparable harm.

Q U C K S T A R T
9
5
Quick Start
t m d and h gh frequenc es, the zA1.1’s d rect v ty keeps the stereo mage from
be ng affected much by room placement n all but the most reflect ve rooms.
As w th any non-d pole speakers, though, the bass s pract cally
omn d rect onal, so nearby walls w ll re nforce t.
A good starting setup:
•The speaker w th the even ser al number should be placed to the r ght, and the
odd to the left. The speakers are acoust cal m rror mages of each other, and
opt mal sound occurs nboard when so arranged.
•An equ lateral tr angle s a popular arrangement, that s, an equal d stance
between the speakers, and also between each speaker and you. Of course,
some w ll prefer or be pract cally l m ted to a smaller angle between the
speakers, wh ch s perfectly f ne. It can be argued that an equ lateral tr angle
setup s merely an art f ce cooked up n the early days of h -f n an attempt to
standard ze th ngs. In real ty, t makes l ttle d fference, other than the obv ous,
namely stage w dth.
•Sl ghtly toed out from your l sten ng pos t on, so that the r axes cross a foot or
two beh nd you.
•D stance from front wall:
oStand mount. Set the rear compensat on sw tch to Stand mount.
Pos t oned close to the front wall, w th the rearmost corner between
24 and 32 nches [60 to 80 cm] out. Correct prox m ty to the front wall
s very mportant for bass reproduct on, because these speakers are
des gned to rely on wall re nforcement for th s, but not too much or
too l ttle. When the speakers are also close to the s de walls, however,
better bass m ght be had w th a b t more d stance from the front wall.
Also, changes to the d stance from the walls can be used to decrease
exc tat on of a problemat c room mode.
oWall mount or bookshelf. Set the rear compensat on sw tch to
Bookshelf. Th s w ll allow you to place the speakers w th the r rearmost
corner touch ng the front wall, or any d stance out to about 7” [18 cm]
away, w thout substant al problems w th the bass reproduct on.
A

Q U C K S T A R T
10
•Pos t oned a d fferent d stance from the s de walls as from the front wall, to
prevent overlap of the re nforcement spectra. For smoothest bass, the s de wall
d stances should be asymmetr cal, w th the pa r sh fted a foot or so to one s de,
and for best mag ng, they should be symmetr cal.
•The stand he ght should place the center of the rectangular electrostat c
element w th n an nch or two of your ear he ght when you are seated. The
center s about 12” [30 cm] from the bottom of the speaker, so the stand
should be about 12” [30 cm] shorter than your ear he ght. It s alr ght to use a
stand w th a t lted platen to get the same effect, but n that case, make sure to
account for your d stance from the speakers when select ng the he ght.
•Tweeter control set at max mum.
•200W/ch/8 Ohm sol d state amps are a good place to start. As de from that,
one should use at least a 40W/ch/8 Ohm ampl f er; 90W to 120W w ll prov de
max mum steady state SPL, but 250W w ll g ve the headroom needed for full
trans ent reproduct on; 400W max. If dr v ng w th a tube ampl f er, use the 4
Ohm output taps for best woofer control (h ghest damp ng factor), or the 8
Ohm tap for h ghest SPL.
That sa d, an 18W parallel 300B SET w ll somewhat surpr s ngly produce
adequate volume levels for small ensemble mus c n a large room, so f what
you own now s a tube ampl f er w th relat vely low power, t’s worth wa t ng
unt l you hear t w th these speakers before shopp ng for a new ampl f er.
Tips:
•The tweeter level changes qu ckly w th control ncreases but very slowly to
decreases. For decreases, the speed w ll be ncreased by sw tch ng the speaker
supply off for a wh le, such as f ve or ten m nutes, before repower ng and
l sten ng at the new sett ng. The qu ckest approach s to start low, and ncrease
the level to what you l ke, so each change you make happens qu ckly.
•Too much bass? F rst make sure the tweeter control s all the way up (set at
zero). Then try mov ng the speakers away from walls, and part cularly out of
corners.
•Not enough bass? Try mov ng them closer to walls, part cularly nto corners.
•Lumpy bass? Try mak ng the s de to s de pos t on asymmetr cal.
•Imag ng problems?
oIf your back wall s closer than about 10 feet [3 meters] beh nd you, try
add ng some absorpt on ( f your room s l vely) or d ffus on ( f you
room s already well damped) to that wall.
oIf your l sten ng seat has a h gh back, change to a seat w th a back that
does not come h gher than your shoulders.
oTry mov ng them farther from the front wall, wh le real z ng that the
trade-off w ll be less bass.

Q U C K S T A R T
11
oAdd absorpt on or d ffus on at the s de wall f rst reflect on po nts.
oMake the s de to s de pos t on symmetr cal
•Upper treble response can be rolled off to taste by reduc ng toe- n.
•Chang ng the he ght, although less conven ently done, w ll also ta lor the treble
response.
•For record ngs made us ng a Blumle n m crophone arrangement, a 90° angle
between the speakers s best, although th s s hard to arrange n most rooms
w thout s tt ng very close to the speakers, wh ch not everyone w ll want to do,
and where the dr vers do not converge as well n t me. In many cases, a very
w de arrangement s just more enjoyable for the extra soundstage w dth, and
the mage s always cr sp enough to support th s w thout degrad ng focus.
•For the most holograph c effect, try two-m crophone record ngs, espec ally
b naural!

C O N N E C T N G A N D P O W E R N G
12
6
Connecting and Powering
Binding Posts
The standard b nd ng posts accept spades or bare w re, but not banana plugs,
although they can be clamped nto the posts n a p nch, so to speak. We have
noth ng aga nst banana plugs, but came to apprec ate the des gn of the Cardas
Patented post assembly, w th ts handy, s ngle knob clamp ng mechan sm, sol d
copper posts, and rhod um plat ng. (Rhod um has the corros on res stance of gold,
but s much harder.) A proper connect on s well assured n all env ronments
w thout per od c t ghten ng.
We also offer 5-way posts on spec al order that w ll accept banana plugs.
Cables
We recommend 12 gauge, stranded, pure copper w re, well term nated to h gh
qual ty spade lugs for any length run up to 50 feet [15 meters]. Heav er w re can be
used, of course, and for shorter runs, l ghter w re s generally alr ght.
Note that the res stance, nductance and capac tance of “z p cord” are at least ten
t mes better than needed to avo d nfluence on the sound. Note also that f
hardware store w re s your th ng, two parallel runs of more commonly ava lable
16 gauge w re s about the same as 13 gauge, .e., qu te close to 12 gauge.
We offer well-made cables at a reasonable pr ce. These are 12 gauge, heavy-
jacketed cables term nated to h gh grade connectors, made to last, and ava lable
w th a cho ce of several outer bra d colors. They are amaz ngly flex ble, as f from
a much l ghter gauge, due to the f neness of the strands and the suppleness of the
jacket ng. No other cable w ll produce better results w th our speakers.
Power Cords
The power cord s for the b as supply that charges the electrostat c panel
membrane. Note that the supply n each speaker draws ma ns current of only
0.008 to 0.08 Ampere, depend ng on the ma ns voltage. The supply c rcu t s
unrelated to the s gnal path. The speakers have no suscept b l ty to a rborne or
power l ne borne electr cal nterference.

C O N N E C T N G A N D P O W E R N G
13
There s consequently no benef t to us ng a spec al power cord.
The b as supply w ll work correctly w th any ma ns voltage, and f the speakers are
moved nternat onally, su table power cords for any wall socket arrangement can
be obta ned worldw de and used w thout concern for convert ng/adapt ng the
voltage.
Powering
As mpl ed n the prev ous sect on, the speakers must be powered to obta n sound
from the electrostat c elements. You may note that there s an on/off power
sw tch. The speakers may be left powered on at all t mes w thout harm, but f they
w ll be left dle for an extended t me, or f the a r often conta ns smoke or other
contam nants, t s best to power them off.
The speakers can be powered on at any t me relat ve to the other equ pment.

A R L A Y E R
14
7
airLayer Option
As of th s wr t ng, th s opt on s not yet ava lable on the zA1.1, but w ll be eventually. It s
ava lable on the zA2.1.
The zA1.1 speakers are very d rect ve n the vert cal, and rather d rect ve n the
hor zontal. Th s serves to m n m ze the nvolvement of the room, thereby mak ng setup
eas er, and max mally conserv ng the recorded amb ance and the prec s on of the mage.
W th record ngs that do not have real st cally recorded amb ance w th well conserved
phase nformat on, a potent al drawback s the percept on of a closed n soundstage,
extend ng only from one speaker to the other.
The a rLayer opt on compr ses a h gh grade dome tweeter mounted on one s de of each
speaker, restr cted to about a 2 kHz to 6 kHz frequency range, f r ng s deways toward ts
near s de wall. The purpose of bounc ng some sound off the s de walls s to w den the
soundstage, more or less s mulat ng the s de walls n a performance venue, and prov de a
sense of spac ousness that can be m ss ng from d rect ve speakers such as the zA1.1 when
the record ng does not conta n accurately recorded amb ence.

S E T U P D E T A L S
15
8
Setup Details
Height
The zA1.1 speakers are very d rect ve n the vert cal. There s thus about a 22 cm [9”]
range of ear he ght that w ll exper ence full spectrum sound. It s thus mportant to
ensure that your speakers are placed so that the center of the rectangular electrostat c
element w th n an nch or two of your ear he ght when you are seated.
The center s about 12” [30 cm] from the bottom of the speaker, so the stand should be
about 12” [30 cm] shorter than your ear he ght. It s alr ght to use a stand w th a t lted
platen to get the same effect, but n that case, make sure to account for your d stance
from the speakers when select ng the he ght.
Stereo Image
The stereo mage w ll be good when an equ lateral tr angle s created by the speakers and
the l sten ng pos t on. On the other hand, there s a strong argument that th s angle was
s mply made up for no good reason other than memorab l ty, and everyone should use
whatever they want.
It s very mportant to avo d the use of a h gh backed cha r that w ll reflect unwanted
sound nto your ears w th pract cally no delay, even when the headrest appears to be
made of soft, sound absorbent mater al. Th s has a d sastrous effect on real sm as well as
the stereo mage.
For max mal seat ng w dth, you can try revers ng the pos t ons of the speakers, plac ng the
even ser al numbered un t on the left, and a m them so the r axes cross a couple or a few feet
ahead of your l sten ng pos t on, rather than beh nd t.
Lastly, f the back wall s less than a few meters [ten feet] beh nd the l sten ng pos t on,
and your room acoust cs are relat vely l vely, t s helpful to add absorbent mater al there,
such as heavy curta ns, a decorat ve carpet, or purpose bu lt absorbers. If your room s

S E T U P D E T A L S
16
already relat vely well damped, then d ffus on s preferable, wh ch w ll control the d rect
reflect ons w thout decreas ng “a r”.
Room Compensation
To start, n a moderately l vely, fa rly large room, you w ll probably get the best sound when
the speakers are toed n so that they face each of your shoulders or toward a pos t on a couple
of feet beh nd you. Th s w ll also g ve the w dest seat ng area w th un form sound from both
speakers.
Exaggerated Treble
Of course, the tweeter sett ng can be reduced as a f rst pass. Remember that th s control
responds very slowly to decreases, but qu ckly to ncreases. You can reduce the t me you spend
adjust ng th s by turn ng off the b as supply and turn ng the control all the way down, do ng
someth ng else for 15 or 20 m nutes, then repower ng the suppl es and gradually ncreas ng the
tweeter level unt l you are happy w th the sound.
Another way of reduc ng the h gh frequenc es s to s mply reduce the amount of toe- n.
The upper treble m ght be exaggerated by reflect ons from the wall beh nd the l sten ng
pos t on, or by a generally l vely room, that s, one w th lots of hard surfaces and not many soft
ones. Add ng absorpt on s the cure for th s, and the top c s covered well n many places on
l ne and n pr nt.
You can also try revers ng the pos t ons of the speakers, plac ng the even ser al numbered un t
on the left and the odd on the r ght, then a m ng them so the r axes cross a couple or a few
feet ahead of your l sten ng pos t on, rather than beh nd t. By a m ng the speakers more at the
far s de walls than the near ones, th s w ll ncrease the mean d stance from the speakers to the
s de walls and thus reduce the net amount of wall splash.
Exaggerated Bass
If you f nd that t s necessary to place the speakers near walls or nto corners, the bass w ll be
re nforced by the nearby surfaces. If your equ pment has a bass knob or low frequency
equal zat on control, or your f le player has some DSP capab l t es, that w ll be the best way to
handle the s tuat on. Otherw se, f the tweeter level s not all the way up, set t so.
Note that there s no f le player software at th s t me that can perform DSP d rectly on DSD
f les, .e., your player EQ w ll only work on PCM f les. If you need your player to EQ DSD
f les, you’ll need to set t to convert the streams to PCM.
Room Boom and Suck Out
Room resonant modes can cause certa n bass notes to be greatly exaggerated and others to be
nearly m ss ng. Properly tuned and pos t oned bass traps are the ult mate solut on, but no one
w ll blame you f you don’t want to bother.

S E T U P D E T A L S
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You can make some headway aga nst these effects w th no add t onal hardware by decreas ng
the setup symmetry. Th s s done by plac ng each speaker a d fferent d stance from each s de
wall or rotat ng your ent re l sten ng tr angle 10 or 15 degrees relat ve to the walls or both. Fore
and aft adjustment of the l sten ng tr angle w ll also have an effect.
By chang ng one’s seat ng he ght, one can get one’s ears more or less away from where the
floor/ce l ng mode has ts strongest effect. One can e ther reta n the hor zontal pos t on ng of
the speakers, thus mov ng your ear he ght n lock step w th the speaker he ght, or t lt the
speaker to create a d fference n the speaker he ght vs. your ear he ght.