Phase Technologies dARTS DCB-1.0-LR User manual

EQUIPMENT Review
Phase Technology dARTS System
High-End Performance In A Pedestrian Looking Package
“Clarity was outstanding, and I was
never less than thrilled with the
performance.”
DCB 1.0-LR
Tweeter: 1-inch soft dome
Woofer: 2 x 6.5-inch glass/honeycomb
Frequency: 40 Hz - 30 kHz
Sensitivity: 93 dB
Impedance: 4 Ohms
Finish: Black, Paintable
Dimensions (WHD In Inches): 14 x 14 x 8.57
Weight (In Pounds): 27
DCB 5.0-C
Tweeter: 1-inch soft dome
Midrange: 6.5-inch glass/honeycomb
Woofer: 6.5-inch glass/honeycomb
Frequency: 40 Hz - 30 kHz
Sensitivity: 93 dB
Impedance: 4 Ohms
Finish: Black, Paintable
Dimensions (WHD In Inches): 18.75 x 8.25 11.5
Weight (In Pounds): 28
DCB-SURR
Tweeter: 2 x 1-inch soft dome
Woofer: 2 x 5.25-inch glass/honeycomb
Frequency: 60 Hz - 30 kHz
Sensitivity: 93 dB
Impedance: 4 Ohms
Finish: Black, Paintable
Dimensions (WHD In Inches): 10.5 x 20.25 x 4.63
Weight (In Pounds): 12
DP-2000
Dimensions (WHD In Inches): 17 x 5.625 x 17
Weight (In Pounds): 31
Manufactured In The United States By:
Phase Technology
6400 Youngerman Circle
Jacksonville, FL 32244
888 742 7385
www.phasetech.com
SPECIFICATIONS
John Kotches
readers who own a loudspeaker with a
soft dome tweeter, I invite you to
research US Patent number 3328537,
which was issued to Bill nearly 40
years ago.
Defining Reference?
Sometimes it seems as though we
reviewers toss about the term “refer-
ence” on a regular basis. What in the
world do we mean when we type it? Of
course that depends on context. You have
read mentions to my reference system
in the past here in the pages of
WSR .
In this context it means that it’s my pri-
mary system of high-grade components;
what I’m acclimated to, and what I use
as my personal sonic benchmark for
discussing audio performance.
Widescreen Review • Issue 113 • October 2006
2
Industry Legacy
Off the top of your head, can you
name someone who’s been in the
industry and with the same company
for 50 years? I’m sure there are some
names coming to mind, but one that
won’t is Bill Hecht. Bill is the patriarch
of Phase Technology whose parent
(United Speaker Systems, founded by
Bill) has been around for literally 50
years. Ken Hecht is the big cheese
(as they say) these days, and he
seems to be picking up where his
father left off.
I will grant you, our readers, that
Phase Tech isn’t a company that has
made their mark in the high end of our
community; they have focused on mid-
range and entry-level products, which
offer tremendous value for the money.
In addition, they are a large OEM
(Original Equipment Manufacturer),
making loudspeakers to specification
for a number of other companies, who
remain nameless. By the time this arti-
cle is through, we’ll (hopefully) all arrive
at the same conclusion: integrated
loudspeaker solutions, such as the
dARTS system, are the next “big thing”
for the audio side of home theatre.
Oh, and for those of our countless
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At this point,
with stan-
dardized
digital trans-
fer interfaces still struggling to gain
market traction, a clean A/D conver-
sion is the way to get the process
started. I would definitely prefer to
pass along the signal from processor
to the dARTS processor/amp in its
most robust digital form, but I suspect
that it will be another year or two
before we see such a product. I think
that Ken Hecht agrees with me on the
digital interface angle, but I’ve been
known to be wrong.
Digital Signal Processing is the cen-
ter of our acronym and here; the guts
being a Freescale 56367 DSP. Many
would consider this DSP to be some-
what underpowered, but all of the
heavy lifting is in the calculation of the
filters, which is done in a PC interface
program. I’m going to get into more
detail a little later about the guts of the
DSP’s role.
Closing out our acronym is Digital
Amplification. The dARTS system uses
Class D modules from D2Audio. I’m
very particular with my verbiage, and
in this case the term digital is apropos,
as the output of the DSP filters do not
undergo a D/A conversion—they are
fed directly to the modules with a PCM
to Pulse Width Modulation conversion
done entirely in the digital domain. In
the provided 7.1 (with two subwoofers)
system, there are 15 channels of
amplification: two each for
EQUIPMENT Review
There is another meaning, and it is
used by Phase Tech with the dARTS
system. In the dARTS system, the fac-
tory has a reference value for each
loudspeaker in the family, the response
of which is known. This is an important
distinction, because it’s the first part to
the performance of the system. Each
loudspeaker system is equalized at the
factory so that it is no more than ±0.5
dB away from the frequency response
of the reference loudspeaker. I should
point out that this means the maximum
variation from the reference response
is an absolute of 1 dB (+0.5 and -0.5).
This is a very tight tolerance and is at
the very limits of detectability, accord-
ing to psychoacoustic research.
Each loudspeaker is defined for its
role and labeled (i.e., the driver inputs
are numbered) for connection, and
individually matched to the appropriate
target curve using a calibrated micro-
phone, so that even the microphone’s
deviations are accounted for. It doesn’t
stop there, though, and we’ll discuss
what else occurs a bit later in the
review.
ADDSPDA
Having a “day gig” as a software
engineer, I love acronyms. This sec-
tion’s title is an acronym describing the
fundamental operation of the dARTS
system and its combined processing
muscle. I’ve also just committed one of
my documentation pet peeves—I’ve
used an acronym before I’ve defined it,
so shame on me! Bad me!
In an effort to rectify this error, let’s
expand the acronym starting with AD,
an Analog-to-Digital conversion. I’m
not fundamentally opposed to AD with
the caveat that it must be done cleanly.
front/side/rear left and right loudspeak-
ers, and three for the center-channel
loudspeaker. The D2Audio modules
are stereo, so the 16th amplification
channel is unused (the 16th process-
ing channel is used, however, for the
LFE/subwoofer line out).
What’s Inside, And
How Do You Hook
Them Up?
We’ve just scratched the surface
and haven’t really touched on what
actually comprises the dARTS system.
I guess now is the time to do just that.
dARTS is a family of loudspeakers, and
the loudspeakers are currently avail-
able only in a “custom install finish”
(flat black boxes), although plans are
to release freestanding loudspeakers
with sleekly curved enclosures. Since
my new theatre has all loudspeaker
positions hidden, this really wasn’t an
issue for me.
I received a pair of DCB 1.0 LRs as
my main left and right loudspeakers.
www.WidescreenReview.com • Issue 113 • October 2006
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EQUIPMENT Review
Widescreen Review • Issue 113 • October 2006
4
channels of amplification. This allows
for a tremendously dynamic system,
with a theoretical 250-watts-per-chan-
nel available. Now, some quick math
says that even at maximum specified
line voltage (126v) on a 30-amp circuit
and complete electrical efficiency, you
won’t get the full wattage output. This
is even true for the 16 channels that
are actually used. The point is simply
that you have all the power you will
need at your disposal with the DP2000
chassis.
Since I knew my first assignment for
my new theatre was going to be the
dARTS system, I pre-wired for this sys-
tem. In case anyone’s wondering, it
took about 850 feet to wire my new
space up with two sets to the L/R pairs
and three sets to the center channel.
My hat’s off to David Salz with
Wireworld Audio, who shipped out car-
tons of his new Horizon 52 Insta-Wire
in-wall loudspeaker cabling to use in
the build out. When the cables are not
used for multi-amped loudspeakers,
they will be shot-gunned into single
runs for my reference loudspeakers.
The remainder is going to be used to
wire up my office for surround, much to
my wife’s chagrin.
Next up was actually connecting the
system. I will take a moment here to tell
you that in normal instances this is
done by the installer; end users are not
expected to handle this task on their
own. I will say that this is a fairly com-
plex installation, and if you aren’t care-
ful, you won’t hook it up right. I didn’t
the first time and ended up having to
crack the manual. So much for my shot
at omnipotence.
Thankfully, the loudspeaker termi-
nals are actually numbered, and 1
starts at the front left woofer and 16
ends at the side left tweeter. The other
numbers are not randomly assigned;
the channels are grouped into stereo
pairs. Front L/R are paired, with inputs
1 and 2 correlating to outputs 1, 2 and
3, 4, respectively. The CC/Sub pair are
inputs 5 and 6 with outputs 5, 6, 7
going to the center channel loudspeak-
er and 8 going to each of the sub-
woofers that are installed in the sys-
tem. The side L/R pair is installed in
inputs 9 and 10, with outputs 9, 10 and
11, 12 going to L/R, respectively.
These are a traditional two-way loud-
speaker with two 6.5-inch woofers and
a single 1-inch silk dome tweeter. The
DCB 5.0C is the corresponding center
channel, with a pair of matching 6.5-
inch woofers and the same silk dome
tweeter. The woofers in the center
channel are given discrete amplifier
channels, and the loudspeaker is a
D’Appolito array for controlled disper-
sion in the vertical plane. For sur-
rounds, two pairs of DCB-SURR were
installed. These are switchable
between dipole and bipole mode but
were utilized only on dipole mode.
Original plans had matching DCB 1.0
LRs for rear surrounds for surround
music, but my columns came up 1/8 of
an inch too narrow to house the DCB
1.0 LRs. Phase Tech quickly replaced
the DCB 1.0 LRs with a pair of DCB-
SURRs and also with updated software
for the loudspeakers.
For those who think they read the
end of the previous sentence incorrect-
ly, you haven’t. The dARTS
processor/amplifier (model number
DP2000) actually has internal configu-
ration information about the customer’s
loudspeaker system. With the change
in loudspeakers, updates to the model
for rear surrounds, as well as their
response curve, had to be loaded into
the DP2000. This will occur anytime
you have to change loudspeakers so
that you can get your baseline
response back to the initial target.
I mentioned the DP2000 in passing
a moment ago. This chassis contains
the DSPs required for active
crossovers for each loudspeaker, as
well as applying the Audyssey
MultEQxt algorithm to the system in
your room. In addition, it has the
D2Audio modules for power amplifica-
tion of each output channel for your
system. At this time, dARTS is a closed
system, which is to say that it must be
used together as an integrated whole.
You’ll need a boatload of wire too—
this is an active multi-amplified system.
The DCB 1.0 LRs and DCB-SURRs
each require two channels of amplifi-
cation, with the tweeter and woofer
modules each receiving a D2Audio
amplification module. The DCB 5.0C
Center has dedicated amplification for
each woofer and the tweeter for three
Finally, the back pair uses inputs 13
and 14 with outputs 13, 14 and 15, 16
going to L/R in turn. As I said, it’s not
the easiest configuration, and I would
like it if they removed the excess
inputs to help alleviate confusion.
However, I also realize that there might
come a time when the same DP2000
chassis is used with other loudspeak-
ers that would require the extra inputs.
As I said, normally your dealer/custom
installer will be handling this for you.
Let them—and make sure they docu-
ment the connections!
Interfacing The
System And Room
One of the most important aspects
of the dARTS system is the custom
measurement taken for each room. The
system is intended to be used with a
calibrated microphone whose response
curve is already known by the meas-
urement software. In this way, even the
microphone’s sample-to-sample depar-
ture from linearity is accounted for.
At this point, just as with other
Audyssey systems, a series of meas-
urements is made. In my theatre, we
measured results at each of the six
seats, plus floor level in front of the
seats, and above the 2nd level of
seats. The low and high measurement
points are intended to even out any
room modes so that you aren’t trying to
adjust for those too aggressively in the
correction. The final goal for the soft-
ware was to create groupings of similar
responses across multiple seats and
create corrections for those groupings.
The algorithm itself is proprietary to
Audyssey and utilizes fuzzy logic.
Conventional computer logic is
Boolean, with on-and-off-type deci-
sions—an all-or-nothing affair, if you
will. Fuzzy logic is quite a bit different.
As an example, if you had a thermo-
stat, which responded to fuzzy logic,
you could say “make this room a little
warmer.”
Upon completion of these measure-
ments, a target response curve is
aimed for, and all of the calculations
are done on a PC. These calculations
are then downloaded into the DP2000
chassis. The results can be tweaked
by the dealer for the end user, if the
113 PhasetechREP 11/9/06 2:51 PM Page 4

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end user wants a little more top-end
extension that can be allowed, or a
slight bass boost, etc. All of these can
be accommodated for with the caveat
that only one curve can be stored at
any given time. I would like to have
access to multiple curves.
Music, Movies, And
TV—(Almost) All In
High-Definition
I started off with basic stereo to
check the imaging properties and to
see how the performance would be on
a system that is most clearly intended
to be implemented in a surround envi-
ronment. I have to say that I wasn’t dis-
appointed in the least with the imaging
aspects. The soundstage is impres-
sively wide, although it does lack
slightly in apparent depth.
I used Sarah McLachlan’s “Full Of
Grace” from
Surfacing in straight
stereo mode and was rewarded with
an excellent, variable soundstage, as it
suited the mix. During the verse, the
single vocal was isolated at center with
a solid phantom image. In the chorus,
with multi-tracks, the vocals extended
well out into the room in a pseudo-sur-
round effect. Clarity was outstanding,
and I was never less than thrilled with
the performance.
Moving on to surround music, I
selected the Police’s “Every Little Thing
She Does Is Magic” from their
Every
Breath You Take: The Classics
SA-CD, and
I want to touch on the one weak area of
performance, at least in my room. This
track shows off the virtuosity of drummer
Stewart Copeland’s cymbal work, and
here, I’m afraid, I was a bit dissatisfied. I
felt that the top-end of response, which
gives cymbals their characteristic bite, was
a bit too aggressively rolled off for my
taste. As a caveat, I should say that this
can be adjusted by the installer so it can
be tweaked to your liking, but I was using
the default curve as “recommended” by
Audyssey. It is possible that my room
has a bit more absorption than the program
is designed to accommodate. This is
where having access to multiple curves
would be of great value, as I never had
this issue during movie viewing.
I used Steely Dan’s
Two Against
Nature
to gauge a few performance
attributes. The track “Almost Gothic”
has the typical spread of lead vocal
across the front trio of channels, and in
most systems with a mismatched cen-
ter channel, I notice a discontinuity on
these mixes. The dARTS system is one
of only a very few where there is a truly
seamless blend providing a homoge-
nous blend of loudspeakers and the
surround equivalent of the Motown
“Wall of Sound.” There’s no height or
timbral disparity, I suspect, due to the
use of the Audyssey EQ to normalize
frequency and phase response across
the listening positions. This track also
has backing vocals in several spots
that are very hot in the sibilance
region, and here the dARTS system
tends to take the edge off ever so
slightly. This has been the case in
every room and every system, so I
have to think that this is a result of the
Audyssey EQ. The track “Negative
Girl” features a panned vibraphone
solo across the surround channels,
and here the dipolar surrounds didn’t
have the same pinpoint imaging that I
prefer. While the imaging was quite
good for dipoles, it lacked that spec-
tacular movement behind you mimick-
ing the vibraphonist’s position on the
instrument. Throughout the disc, I was
highly impressed by the clarity and
weight of the bass guitar and kick
drums. Notes on bass lines were taut
and rang out—don’t confuse the
expression “rang out” with excess
hang time or peaks and nulls; that
wasn’t the case at all.
When I moved over to movie per-
formance, it’s here that the dARTS sys-
tem truly started to shine. I recently
added the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD
player to my reference system, and
I’ve been building up a collection of
HD DVDs. I am currently using
Serenity
as a reference disc. The deep rumble
of the explosions is presented by the
subwoofers with nary a hint of strain,
with seemingly endless extension. The
transient performance of the system is
impressive, as there is a momentary
burst during the cut after the scene
where a needle is forced into River’s
forehead. As the main title sequence
plays, we hear the richness of the cello
against the backdrop of space lushly
presented when the Serenity prepares
to enter the atmosphere of the planet.
The dARTS system does very well in
the few scenes where the surround
activity is enveloping. Of special note
are chapters where the Serenity’s mule
is being chased by the Reaver ship
and the later scene as Serenity comes
out of the ion cloud into the massive
collection of Alliance ships.
[Throughout, dialogue clarity is first-
rate, and several high- to low-frequen-
cy sweeps are done seamlessly in tran-
sition from main loudspeaker to sub-
woofer.]
Conclusion
One of the problems that I ran into
was what was supposed to be a short
listening session turned into a
marathon. My quibbles with the dARTS
system are few—I would like to have
more than one frequency curve setting
so that I could have one setting with a
more extended top-end response for
music that I prefer. In addition, I prefer
direct radiators for the surround chan-
nels for the pinpoint clarity. Due to a
logistical issue on my end, this didn’t
work out. What you do get is a system
that has superb timbral match, with
top-notch dialogue clarity, seemingly
limitless dynamic range, and great
envelopment. And all this comes from
their first-generation product. It’s only
going to get better from here! ■■
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