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Wilson Electronics Sophia Series 3 User manual

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Sophia Series 3 Owner’s Manual
Sophia S erieS 3 o wner’SM anual
2
Wilson Audio Specialties
Wilson Audio®is a registered trademark of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
Sophia®, WATT/Puppy®, MAXX®, Duette®, X-1 Grand SLAMM®, and Alexandria®a r e
registered trademarks of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
WilsonGloss™, Duette™, WATCH Center™, WATCH Surround™, and WATCH Dog™
are trademarks of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
This manual was produced by the Wilson Audio Engineering and the Sales and Mar-
keting Department. The information contained herein is subject to change without
notice. Current Revision 1.0. If you are in need of a more recent manual, please
contact your dealer.
The information in this manual is the sole property of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
Any reproduction, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of
Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc., is prohibited. No material contained herein may be
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose,
without the express written permission of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
2
3
Wilson Audio Specialties
Table o f C onTenTS
3
Section 1 – i ntroduction ������������������������������������������������� 7
Section 1 � 1 – S ophia® S erieS 3 i ntroduction ������������������ 9
Al l -new A rchitecture with new M idrAnge e nclosure M AteriAl � � � � � 9
revised c rossover ����������������������������������������������� 10
crossover And r esistor A ccess P Anel ���������������������� 11
ne w M idrAnge d river �������������������������������������������� 11
ne w t weeter������������������������������������������������������� 11
ne w w oofer ������������������������������������������������������� 12
Section 2 – i nY our r oom ���������������������������������������������� 13
Section 2 � 1 – t h e W ilSon a udio S etup p rocedure ������������ 15
finAl l istening r ooM s etuP ( v oicing)������������������������� 15
Zone o f n eutrAlity: M Ain l eft And r ight c hAnnel ��������� 15
Section 2 � 2 – r oom a couSticS ������������������������������������� 17
slAP e cho���������������������������������������������������������� 17
stAnding w A v e s ��������������������������������������������������� 20
coMb f ilter e ffect����������������������������������������������� 21
Section 2 � 3 – r eSonanceS ������������������������������������������ 22
structurAl r esonAnce������������������������������������������� 22
voluMe r esonAnce ������������������������������������������������ 22
Section 2 � 4 – Y our r oom ������������������������������������������� 23
rooM s hAPes ������������������������������������������������������ 23
sPeAker P lAceMent v ersus l istening P osition �������������� 25
sPeAker o rientAtion ��������������������������������������������� 25
Section 3 – u ncrating Y our S ophiaS ��������������������������������� 27
Section 3 � 1 – u ncrating the S ophia S erieS 3 ������������������ 29
initiAl c heck ������������������������������������������������������ 29
Sophia S erieS 3 o wner’SM anual
4
Wilson Audio Specialties
uncrAting the s oPhiA �������������������������������������������� 29
Section 3 � 2 – c r a t e c ontent c heckliSt ������������������������� 30
Section 4 – F inal S etup ������������������������������������������������� 33
Section 4 � 1 – F inal S etup ������������������������������������������ 35
PrePArAtion �������������������������������������������������������� 35
Section 4 � 2 – S ophia S pikeS���������������������������������������� 35
AsseMbly ����������������������������������������������������������� 35
Section 4 � 3 – W iring a ttachmentS�������������������������������� 36
Section 4 � 4 – r emoving the p rotective F ilm ������������������� 37
Section 4 � 5 – r eSiStorS��������������������������������������������� 37
woofer d AMPing ( Q ) r esistor ���������������������������������� 38
Section 5 – c are o F the S ophia ��������������������������������������� 39
Section 5 � 1 – c are o F the F iniSh ��������������������������������� 41
dusting the s oPhiAs ��������������������������������������������� 41
cAre o f the g rilles���������������������������������������������� 42
breAk-i n P eriod ��������������������������������������������������� 42
Section 5 � 2 – e ncloSure t echnologY ���������������������������� 42
MAteriAls ���������������������������������������������������������� 42
Adhesive ������������������������������������������������������������ 43
Section 5 � 3 – d epth o F d eSign ������������������������������������ 43
Section 6 – t roubleShooting ������������������������������������������ 45
Section 6 – t roubleShooting �������������������������������������� 47
Section 7 – S YStem S peciFicationS ����������������������������������� 51
Section 7 � 1 – S peciFicationS ��������������������������������������� 53
Section 7 � 2 – S ophia d imenSionS ���������������������������������� 54
5
Wilson Audio Specialties
Table o f C onTenTS
Section 7 � 3 – i mpedance c u r v e ������������������������������������ 55
Section 8 – W arrantY i nFormation ����������������������������������� 57
Section 8 – W arrantY d etailS ������������������������������������� 59
liMited w ArrAnty ������������������������������������������������� 59
conditions ��������������������������������������������������������� 59
reMedy�������������������������������������������������������������� 60
wArrAnty l iMited t o o riginAl P urchAser �������������������� 60
deMonstrAtion e QuiPMent ��������������������������������������� 61
MiscellAneous����������������������������������������������������� 61
Wilson Audio Specialties
Section 1 – Introduction
Sophia S erieS 3 o wner’SM anual
8
Wilson Audio Specialties
SeCTion 1 . 1 – S ophia® S erieS 3 i nTroduCTion
9
Wilson Audio Specialties
9
Section 1.1 – Sophia® Series 3 Introduction
Since her initial release, Sophia has changed the way many music lovers think of high-end loud-
speakers – and Wilson Audio. Sophia challenged the idea that some audio qualities are, by their very
nature, mutually exclusive: high resolution and musicality, very wide bandwidth and a relatively compact
enclosure, large dynamic swings and a load almost any amp can drive. A designer had to choose; he
could include one of these qualities, but this meant omitting or at least compromising the other. And yet
Sophia possesses each of these qualities in nearly equal measure.
Perhaps because of this unusual combination of virtues, Sophia, in both Series 1
and 2 iterations, has attracted an almost cult following since her introduction in 2003.
When the decision was made to upgrade Sophia to Series 3, the primary engineering
goal was to preserve the qualities that endeared Sophia to so many music lovers. The
team had advanced the art of music reproduction in the Alexandria Series 2, MAXX
Series 3, and in the all-new Sasha W/P with a variety of new technologies developed
for those projects. In order to employ the same technical improvements in Sophia, it
became clear early on that it would be necessary to design an all-new loudspeaker. At
the same time, it was critical to Dave that he honor, preserve, and (ideally) build upon
those qualities that clearly define Sophia’s character.
The result of those efforts is the Sophia Series 3.
All-new Architecture with new Midrange Enclosure Material
When it comes to a loudspeaker’s architectural design, Wilson’s philosophy is driven by the notion
that a loudspeaker’s form is inextricably tied to its function. The unique physical features of correct propa-
gation delay and lowering enclosure panel resonances have for decades now given Wilson loudspeak-
ers their look. Arguably, there is a form of beauty singular to the congruent interplay of technology and
aesthetic ideals.
With Sophia, the primary engineering goal was to further reduce the already very low resonant
enclosure. To this end, the X-material enclosure panels of the upper and lower modules are thicker. A new
Sophia S erieS 3 o wner’SM anual
10
Wilson Audio Specialties
internal bracing strategy, which now includes X-material, also contributes to Sophia’s performance by
lowering resonance-borne colorations in its enclosure panels.
Additionally, the Sophia Series 3 joins Sasha W/P in its use of Wilson’s latest pro-
prietary composite – S-Material. Used in the mid/tweeter baffle of the Sophia Series 3,
S-Material dramatically reduces measurable and audible noise. S-Material is combined
with X-Material to form an extremely inert and low-resonance enclosure.
Revised Crossover
In his earliest commercial designs, David Wilson recognized and uniquely addressed the re-
lationship between the mechanical alignment of a loudspeaker’s drivers and its time-domain per-
formance. Since that time, Dave and his engineers have worked to discover additional sources of
time-domain distortion. During the development of the original Alexandria, Wilson found that the
interaction between the high- and low-pass lters created a specic type of time-domain-generated
noise, which he dubbed “crossover jitter.” In each successive design project, Wilson has worked to
substantially reduce crossover jitter along with its deleterious audible effects. Continuous renements
in crossover topologies and specic component choices are made in large part with this in mind. The
latest beneciary of this cumulative design approach is now the Sophia Series 3.
Lowering jitter-induced noise and distortion in the Sophia Series 3 allowed Dave, in turn,
hear deeper into the loudspeaker. Problems previously obscured by noise were now clearly
audible. Thus, reducing crossover jitter not only improved expected areas (lower noise floor and
less grain structure), it also facilitated enhancements in other performance categories as well.
Midrange beauty and musicality, already a strong point of Sophia, are noticeably improved in
the Series 3. These traditional strengths are further enhanced by a greater transparency, spacial
resolution, bass linearity and dynamics, and midrange clarity. Instrument texture and timbre are
more convincingly rendered and complete. Details masked by low-level noise in the prior ver-
sions now effortlessly surface from a black background.
10