MAGICO S-Sub User guide

Magico Subwoofer Setup
and DSP Control Manual
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Thank you for the purchase of your new Magico S-Sub or Q-Sub.
The goal of this setup manual is to first integrate the
subwoofer into your stereo system and also to describe the
various aspects of crossover and equalization optimization
using our highly adjustable Digital Signal Processing
software. (For those with home theater applications please
consult the setup literature for your home theater processor
to setup the subwoofer using the available functions of the
processor: auto calibration, room correction etc.)
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DSP Password: Fact_ory

To optimize the subwoofer’s performance you will need some basic
measurement equipment and software. listed below are relatively
easy and inexpensive options:
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Software:
REW - http://www.roomeqwizard.com/ - Free
or
Omni Mic - http://www.daytonaudio.com/index.php/omnimic-v2-precision-
measurement-system.html!
Includes Microphone and uses CD as signal source, minimal physical
connection required.
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Measurement Microphone: !
UMIK-1 - http://www.minidsp.com/products/acoustic-measurement/
umik-1
or
UMM-6 - http://www.daytonaudio.com/index.php/test-measurement/
umm-6-usb-measurement-microphone.html!
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for this guide we will use REW measurement software, but any modern
software should work fine. Since we are measuring bass frequencies
there is no need for high end microphones or hardware to enable the
measurement of high frequencies or distortion.
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General information
The Magico QSub is designed to add Ultra low frequencies and
improve overall bass behavior in a high end stereo system. The
common cutoff frequency will be 50 Hz and optimal integration will
be achieved when used with Magico S or Q Series loudspeakers, which
employ a sealed box design.!
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We will rely solely on measurements of the bass frequency response.
(Our ears are not sensitive enough to determine the source or the
magnitude of problems in the bass region, yet they easily notice if
there are problems in that region). place the measurement microphone
in the listening position. (for a wider listening area one must take
multiple measurements from a variety of locations and average the
response, this is beyond the scope of this guide)
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Safety
Before plugging the processor in, always make sure that the power
supply matches the product specification voltage (110-220V). Do not
supply power before all components of the system are set up and
connected properly. After connecting all cables, you should mute
all outputs first or turn the gain/level settings to minimum.
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8 Steps
1. Position your main speakers
2. Unpack your QSub
3. Install the Magico DSP Control Software from the CD
accompanying your QSub
4. Hook up your QSub
5. Position your QSub
6. Remove the casters and apply feet to the QSub
7. Determine Level of the QSub
8. Determine Crossover of the QSub
9. Determine EQ in the QSub
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1.Position your Main speakers to achieve the flattest frequency
response possible. Adjust distance from the rear and side walls by
increments of 6” at a time to remove as many frequency response dips
as possible. Once you are satisfied with the position of the main
speakers you are ready to bring the QSub into the room and position
it.
2. Unpacking your QSub
Using a flat-head screwdriver remove the four clamps from the door.
With a 9/16” Socket bit attached to a cordless drill remove the
bolts from around the bottom of the crate. Remove the door. With
one person on each side, lift up the walls of the crate and walk it
back way from the speaker. on the top of the crate door are two
small holes, lie the door down so that the two dowels on the open
end of the crate base fit into the holes and the hinged support on
the bottom of the door is folded down to support the door/ramp.
loosen the straps holding the speaker in place and carefully lift "
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them over the ends of the speaker and remove the two wooden
constants from the top of the subwoofer. Disengage the caster
brakes. With one person on either side carefully and slowly roll the
subwoofer off of the crates based, down the ramp and onto the
floor.
3. Install the Magico DSP Control Software from the supplied CD to
your PC or Apple computer
4. Hook up your QSub
You will need a 20amp C19 IEC power connector. Connect the
output(s) from the Preamp to the Ch. 1 XLR input connector (mono)
or both, Ch.1 and Ch. 2 XLR input connectors (stereo). Connect a
USB cable from your computer to the subwoofer. Make sure that the
subwoofer’s power switch is in the down (off) position. Plus in the
power cord, make sure that your source is on with a minimal volume
setting and your can switch your QSub ON. (You can a find a more in
depth description of all of the connections on the rear panel as
well as the capabilities when configured via ethernet connection to a
network later on in this manual)
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5. Position your QSub(s)
We will start by measuring the QSub bass frequency response.!
We will try to optimize the QSub location so we will have smooth
frequency response up to 100Hz while trying to minimize the dips in
the frequency response. Follow the instructions of your
measurement software to take SPL measurements of the subwoofer
alone from a microphone placed at ear height in the listening
position.
Start by placing your QSub between your main speakers. if this is not
possible, try to place it near one of the corners behind your main
speakers. Measure it at the first location. Begin by making
incremental movements (6 inches at the time) both in relation to the
side and back wall until you get the smoothest response from the
subwoofer in a reasonable position in the listening environment.
Try to compare your measurements using overlays:
You can overlay them all under the “All SPL” tab. Now deselect
them all. You can do this by right clicking over the legend area. You
can choose which to overlay, making it easier to analyze the results.
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Here you can see for a single subwoofer the Left position rear
corner positioning is the best. It is much smoother from 50 – 100 Hz.
Here is the same Measurement with the window expanded to
50-200Hz.
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The aspect that many find difficult is knowing what to do with the
results. One of the main things we are looking for here is to combine
acoustic sources in different locations that, when summed, remove
frequency response dips. Combine two speakers with the same dip and
you are stuck with it. Combine two speakers each with a dip in a
different place and the other counteracts it. Where all sources are
in-phase, they will sum as shown.
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SPL response Summed for two speaker with major dips
You can see that where both speakers have the same level and are
both flat, they gain a 6 dB increase in level combined. When one of
them has a dip, the speaker with the dip simply fails to contribute as
much, and the result is that the dip tends to be smoothed. In some
cases the dip has very little effect. You can use this to your
advantage by selecting positions that cancel out the dips.The
measured response of speakers in a room is quite complex, so
predicting the combined response is not quite as simple as one might
expect.
The main priority is to avoid dips. The peaks at this stage are less of
a concern as they can often be tamed with EQ later in the process. If
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dips remain after treatment and the placement of multiple bass
sources, then they will most likely remain unfixable.
Here we show the results (20-291Hz) when the main speakers are
added and frequency response is further smoothed from overlapping
of the main speakers and the Sub. The left red corner positioning
(yellow) is still the best. This position is both smoother overall and
the dip the once existed at 100 Hz for the subwoofer alone has been
eliminated by the main speakers.
You are finished positioning your Subwoofer.
6. remove the casters and apply the feet.
apply the brakes on both casters which have them. While two people
lift up the side of the speaker without the brakes, a third person
unscrew the casters and replace them one at time with the feet.
carefully lower the subwoofer to the ground and repeat the process
by tilting the subwoofer in the opposite direction and screwing in the
remaining two feet. Be very careful to have ample help the hold the
speaker safely while this process is performed.
7. Determine the level of the QSub
Before applying any EQ or crossover, make a final measurement of
the QSub and both main speaker. Make sure the measurement is done
in minimum 85 dB level so it will represent normal listening level.
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Compare the two (Using Overlay if using REW); adjust the level of
the QSub with the QSUB Gain Control (the right level control on the
screen shot below)
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The level of the sub should be between the mains levels up to 6 dB
more. See the graph below. !
This is subject to the room structure and low frequencies behavior,
generally speaking, wood houses in North America will work better
with the higher level and stone houses in European style will work
better with the lower level.
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8. Determine Crossover of the QSub
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In this section we will determine the low pass frequency and slope
and the phase of the subwoofer. Our approach is to use the QSub to
help smooth the overall in room bass response and extend the low
frequencies.in order to achieve this goal it is recommended to allow
overlapping. You should use the frequency, phase and slope setting
of the sub to achieve the smoothest overall bass response. This way
the mains and a single QSub load the room from three positions. In
the example in Figure 6 below, the best location for the sub (red line)
has a dip at 70 Hz. The mains (black line) don’t have the same dip so
they are allowed to run down to about 60 Hz to eliminate the dip.
With this arrangement all dips below 100 Hz are eliminated. Below
100 Hz, EQ is required only to shape the response to match the
target curve. A conventional crossover would fail to eliminate the
dips regardless of the number of subwoofers. No possible subwoofer
locations were able to remove the dip.
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9. Determine EQ for the QSub
This is the final step in which we will try to achieve two targets:
1. Using eq filters to remove as much as possible persist peaks
that comes from room modes.
2. Use eq filters to shape the response into a desirable in room
response.
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Step 1
Since REW has a very useful EQ tool to calculate filter settings we
will use it to demo how to achieve our target.
1. Click on the Overlays icon in REW: !
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2. Set graph limits with sensible settings, limiting the x range to
10 - 100 Hz and excluding empty data.
3. Click on the EQ icon in REW:!
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4. In the right menu, select the Generic EQ device.!
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5. Return to the overlays window, and then select the “Predicted
SPL” tab.
6. In the legend area showing all the plots, right-click and select
“clear selections.”
7. Now select the plot that you want to EQ. With this in the
background return to the EQ window and select EQ filters.
8. Choose a peak to target, and then set the frequency,
attenuation and filter width (Q) until it is removed.
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Step 2:
Targets in the bass region have a wide area of flavors. Applying a
target curve. Once you have a smooth response you can then apply a
room target curve to your taste and source material.
In the graph below we show a start point of the commonly used
target range between the two graphs which shows the sum of the
system in room.
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In Room common target limits
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Magico DSP Control Instruction
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Introduction
This User Manual describes how to operate the Magico’s DSP
settings via the USB Computer Interface. Alternatively, the DSP can
be configured completely via a remote connection to a PC or MAC
using the LAN options (Ethernet). After you have become to
familiarize yourself with the processor, we encourage you to
experiment and find the most effective and efficient way to run your
system by utilizing the powerful processing of the Magico Control
DSP. This powerful processor with two analog inputs, four outputs
and ten PEQ bands per input and output and a frequency range up to
26 kHz. The rugged analog input stage accepts input voltages of up
to +23dBu thus matching any source on the market today, with an
excellent dynamic range of 110dB.
Features:
- 110dB dynamic range (inputs)
- Electronically balanced inputs
- Matched-impedance outputs
- Ten parametric filters per input and output
- EQs are Bell, High Shelf, Low Shelf, Notch, All Pass, Band Pass,
High Pass, and Low Pass
- 1000ms delay per input, 5ms delay per output
- Butterworth, Bessel, Linkwitz-Riley filters up to 24dB / Oct.
- True RMS Compressor
- Zero Attack Peak Limiter
- Latency 990 microseconds
- Full configuration and real-time monitoring via PC or MAC (USB and
Ethernet interface)
- 50 Presets
- 64 bits multi-mode digital processing
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I. Overview of Connectors and Controls
Rear Panel
USB Connector
The USB connector is used to connect the DSP to a PC or MAC. It
can then be configured and controlled in real time with the freely
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available PC and MAC configuration program. With this program you
can also update your DSP to the latest firmware.
Power Connector
The Magico DSP has an internal amplifier that utilizes standard 20A
250VAC IEC cable. (C19 pin connection)
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Power Switch
The Power Switch turns the Q-Sub15 (18) on and off.
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Ethernet Connector
This RJ-45 connector is used to connect your product to a network.
It can then be configured and controlled in real time with the freely
available PC and MAC configuration program. With this program you
can also update your DSP to the latest firmware.
Analog inputs
The analog input section of the DSP offers two electronically
balanced XLR connectors. The input level is +23dBu max,
electronically balanced.
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II. Getting Started
Quick Start
For those of you that wish to jump right in, the following
information has been provided to act as a quick start guide for
optimizing performance of your QSub.
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Connections
When setting up your subwoofer, make connections as follows:
- Always make connections prior to applying power to the subwoofer.
- Connect the output(s) from the Preamp to the Ch. 1 XLR input
connector (mono) or both, Ch.1 and Ch. 2 XLR input connectors
(stereo).
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Remote Monitoring and Control
When connecting the unit via USB, make sure to connect it directly to
your computer or to use a USB hub that supports USB1.0. If you
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have problems with the USB connection, please refer to the
Installation Guide for details on how to install the proper driver.
When connecting the unit via an Ethernet network, you have several
options. The PC/MAC application has an auto-discovery tool that will
automatically connect to any unit found on the network.
Standard DHCP Network
For the easiest connection, use a standard Ethernet Router, plug in
the unit and your computer, and the connection should be made
automatically. Standard routers have a DHCP server built in and
enabled. A DHCP server assigns a network address to your computer
and to the DSP, allowing them to connect automatically.
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Connection without DHCP server
Alternatively, you can use a direct (cross) cable or a simple Ethernet
Switch to connect the unit to your PC or MAC. Please note that in
this case, especially Windows computers may take up to several
minutes to assign themselves a network address (indicated by the
text: "This connection has limited or no connectivity"). The computer
and the DSP both will assign themselves a network address in the
ZeroConfig range (169.254.0.0 - 169.254.255.255), and the DSP
will be discovered automatically by the PC/MAC application.
To facilitate connections without DHCP router, it may be convenient
to set your computer to a fixed IP address. If you do this, please
choose any address in the ZeroConfig range, and set the subnet
mask to 255.255.0.0.
Fixed IP address
It is also possible to set a fixed IP address and subnet mask for the
1800B. WARNING: If you set a wrong address (in a different range
than your computer), you may not be able to connect anymore. It is
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to consult a system administrator before
making such settings.
Firewall
After starting the software application for the first time, your
computer may ask you to allow or block the application access to the
network. Please make sure to allow this; if there is a firewall
between the application and the DSP the application will not find the
DSP.
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System Setup and Gain Structure
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This product offers a wide range of tools for sound system design
and setup. These tools can make your system more efficient and
better sounding, but to get the best possible sound it is important to
use these tools properly. The following section explains how to
maximize system gain and how to use the limiters to protect your
amplifiers from clipping. In traditional system design, the output of
your console would be routed to a system EQ, a compressor, and a
crossover with output level control. From the crossover, there may
be additional filters that are employed to improve the response of
your speakers. There may also be limiters set up to keep your
amplifiers from going into clipping and protect your speakers from
the hazards of a clipped signal. Your amplifiers play a vital role in
system setup, because they are last item in the chain before your
speakers and offer the greatest amount of gain (that is their job
after all). If your limiters and amplifiers are incorrectly setup you
will not be using your system to its fullest potential and could be
harming your speakers.
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Operating Pages
Input/Main Menu Screen
Gain
The gain is adjusted in steps (0.01dB) and can be set via the Left
(Channel One Input) and Right (Channel Two Input) channel input
virtual faders on the PC or MAC interface. The Output Level can
also be adjusted from the Main Menu Page by using the Far Right
Single Virtual Fader.
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Channel Link
By linking 2 channels, the settings are guaranteed to be identical
for both channels, except for mixer and mute.
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X-Over Screen
Low Pass Filter/ High Pass Filter
You can choose from: Butterworth 6dB, Bessel 6dB, Butterworth
12dB, Bessel 12dB, Linkwitz Riley12dB, Butterworth 18dB, Bessel
18dB, Butterworth 24dB and Bessel 24dB.
You also have options for Gain, Delay, Mute and Phase Inversion.
This can also be changed from the bottom of the output screen (see
Output Display Screen).
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Output Display Screen
Delay
Displayed in unit of ms or s, mm or m, feet, inches, or mils:
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Low Pass Filter/High Pass Filter
You can choose from: Butterworth 6dB, Bessel 6dB, Butterworth
12dB, Bessel 12dB, Linkwitz Riley12dB, Butterworth 18dB, Bessel
18dB, Butterworth 24dB and Bessel 24dB.
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Parametric Equalizer (PEQ)
There are ten bands of parametric equalization. Each band can be
adjusted freely over the complete frequency range of 20 Hz to 20
kHz. The available parameters are: Frequency (20 Hz to 20 kHz), Gain
(-12dB to +12dB), Q (0.2 to 25), Enabled (On or Off), Type (Bell,
High Shelf, Low Shelf, Notch, All Pass, Band Pass, High Pass, Low
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Pass). For the Shelving filters, the Q value sets the steepness of
the filter in dB/Oct.
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Compressor
The compressor is a true RMS compressor. The available parameters
are: Threshold, Attack, Hold, Release, Ratio, and Makeup Gain.
To access click on the grey colored Virtual button labeled
“Compressor”
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Limiter
The limiter is a zero-attack peak limiter. Only the threshold and
release can be set. The release value is displayed in dB per second.
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Save Preset
To save a single preset- select an empty preset slot from the drop
down menu; and enter the name you wish to call your preset in the
name location (where it says “Default Preset”). Then press the
“Store” button that is underneath the preset drop down. Not the
store Button above the drop down menu- This “Store” button will
store all of your presets you made. You should use this Back up
“Store” button after you have made all the presets you would like
during your Q-sub setup session or any future session. This will
allow you to create a back-up file to recover your presets from.
When setting a preset in an empty slot it is good to know that, the
preset in that location will be overwritten. This action cannot be
undone but you can edit and store over your preset if you need to
make changes. Now your preset is saved in the selected location. The
presets contain all filter, dynamics, gain settings etc; in other words
everything that makes out a loudspeaker configuration. Presets do
NOT contain the name of the unit, network configuration, automatic
standby delay, user access rights and passwords.
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Load Preset
The preset is loaded and all settings are applied immediately. All
settings that were in the unit prior to loading the preset will be
erased. This action cannot be undone. So make sure to save your
setups in preset singles or large preset back-ups.
Access Level
The DSP has the option of locking away the front panel controls to
avoid tampering of settings by unauthorized persons. To lock the
unit, select "Lock Unit" from the “Hardware” drop down menu at the
top of the screen.
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