Zu Audio DW 6 Standard User manual
12.0"
12.0"
36.0"
STANDARD | SUPERFLY | SUPREME
OWNERS MANUAL [2023]
DW 6
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE
Key Points –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 3
Welcome and Thank You ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 4
Manual Information & Copyright ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 4
Included With DW 6 Loudspeakers –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 5
Safety Precautions ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 5
Unboxing DW 6 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 9
Design Overview –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 11
DW 6 vs DW 6 Supery vs DW 6 Supreme –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 12
Burn-In / Break-In –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 13
Burn-In Overview –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 13
Burn-In Main Points –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 15
Burn-In & Fatigue Prole –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 16
Fatigue Proles –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 17
Initial Placement ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 20
Connecting Amp and DW 6 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 22
Connector Detail ZuB3 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 23
Amplication Guidance ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 24
Speaker Cable Guidance ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 25
Room & Speaker Acoustic Tuning –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 27
Terms Attack - Sustain - Decay –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 27
Zu Mono & Mirror Method ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 29
Bass Tuning –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 31
Midrange Tuning –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 31
Treble Tuning ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 33
Riser Tuning –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 33
Care & Maintenance ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 33
Special Care - Animal Urine ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 36
Specications ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 37
Impedance Curve –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 38
Warranty ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 39
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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We know you’re excited to get your new DW 6 red up—still, we strongly recommend you
study this manual. Here are a few key points:
• Burn-in is dramatic with DW 6, and very dramatic with the Supreme version—Supery
version falls in between. Please read the Burn-In/Break-In section.
• Remove the slip-t full-range driver protective covers to listen. These protective disks have
the sticker remove to groove on them.
• 60-day trial period can be extended if you email us. We’re happy to open up additional time
for burn-in, room tuning or trial of amps and other components as long as you are dealing
fairly with us.
• We oer exceptional customer service, and the people you will talk to at Zu have a lifetime
of experience and will deal honestly with you.
• Implementing the information detailed in the Room & Speaker Acoustic Tuning section
will get your room and DW 6 working well together without a lot of eort.
• If your DW 6 are to be shipped or returned to Zu, you need to read and follow the
instructions outlined in the Unboxing section. Failure to do so may result in damages that
you will be liable for.
• Return of Materials Authorization (RMA) is needed if you are sending your speakers back
for any reason. Failure to do so may result in refusal of the shipment. You may call or email
us for an RMA number.
• We only issue return authorization after at least four weeks of daily play and an honest
eort to follow our suggestions, six weeks for DW 6 Supreme. We expect you to read this
owner’s manual and give us a call if you are running into any issues—we’re here to help.
KEY POINTS
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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WELCOME AND THANK YOU
Thank you for your purchase of DW 6 loudspeakers. They are designed and built for a lifetime
of trouble-free high-performance playback. It is our desire to exceed your expectations in
product performance, quality, durability and customer service. If we have fallen short we would
sincerely appreciate knowing how we may improve. If we have exceeded them we hope you
will let your family and friends know.
David Toop in his book Ocean Of Sound paints a powerful image of today’s musical creativity,
“...Starting with Debussy in 1889, is an erosion of categories, a peeling open of systems to
make space for stimuli, new ideas, new now, this environment included sounds of the world—
previously unheard musics and ambient sounds of all kinds, urban noise and bioacoustics...
unfamiliar tuning system and structuring principles, improvisation and chance.”
The quantity and qualities of music the modern world has at its ngertips is unfathomable—we
want to amplify your nds and choices and extend the time you immerse yourself in them.
Thanks again, and welcome.
–Zu Audio
MANUAL INFORMATION
The latest version of the manual can be found at www.zuaudio.com/downloads
© 2000 - 2023 Zu Audio All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any
form or by any means for other than your own use without the written permission of Zu Audio.
Products that are referred to in this document may be either trademarks and/or registered
trademarks of the respective owners. Zu Audio make no claim to these trademarks.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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Read and follow these precautions to use DW 6 loudspeakers safely.
Zu Audio is not liable for any failures, damages or problems caused by the use or misuse of
DW 6 loudspeakers by the purchaser or any third party.
This mark indicates the possibility of hazardous situation, which if not
avoided could result in serious injury or death.
This mark indicates the possibility of hazardous situation, which if not
avoided could result in serious injury.
This mark indicates the possibility of hazardous situation, which if not
avoided may result in minor injury or property damage.
This mark signies prohibited action, which must not be done to use this
product safely or to prevent premature wear.
This mark signies required action, which must be done to use this
product safely, to get good sound or to prevent premature wear.
DANGER
WARNING
CAUTION
REQUIRED
PROHIBITED
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS TERMS
Included with each pair of DW 6 loudspeakers
(2x) slip-t hard plastic driver covers - installed
(8x) 1” long [26 mm] 3/8–16 stainless-steel oval-end feet - installed
(8x) 9/16” [14 mm] hex 3/8–16, stainless-steel thin (jam) nuts - installed
Additional Items Included In Package
(1x) nish cleaning cloth
Packaging is double-wall cardboard with closed-cell foam frames and end-caps.
INCLUDED WITH LOUDSPEAKERS
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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DANGER - avoid electrocution by making sure your amplier is powered down (or the
amp’s power cable is disconnected) prior to disconnecting/connecting loudspeakers.
Electrocution through touching of bare metal amplier output posts, bare metal
loudspeaker cable connectors when connected to amplier, or bare metal loudspeaker
connectors when connected to the amplier is possible though extremely rare.
Ampliers designed to output enough power to cause electrocution while operating
will feature touch-proof contacts such as Neutrik® speakON® connectors.
DANGER - place your loudspeakers so there is little to no chance of them falling or
tipping over on someone.
DW 6 loudspeakers are very stable when oor standing and footers adjusted so there
are four points of contact. Nevertheless, children, and especially infants and toddlers,
should not be left unsupervised near them.
DANGER - DW 6 loudspeakers are moderately heavy at about 76 pounds packaged
[34.5 kg] and should only be handled and moved by the physically able. Those lifting
and moving the DW 6 loudspeaker should practice good lifting techniques (lift with
your knees and not your back—and ask a friend to assist.) While not acutely at risk
of death, back injuries can and often do cause chronic pain, sometimes reaching
unbearable levels.
DANGER - RISK OF SEVERE INJURY OR DEATH
WARNING - potential shock hazard exists when touching of bare metal loudspeaker
and loudspeaker cable contacts. To avoid this make sure your amplier is powered
down prior to connecting or disconnecting cables to your amp or loudspeaker.
WARNING - DW 6 loudspeakers are capable of very high sound pressure levels, play
responsibly—consider your neighbors and consider your hearing.
WARNING - again, when moving or lifting DW 6 loudspeakers, be careful with your
back—lift with your legs, not your back, and ask a friend to assist you.
WARNING - the drivers of the Zu DW 6 loudspeaker create stray magnetic elds that
extend beyond the boundaries of the cabinet. We recommend you keep magnetically
sensitive electronics and media at least eight inches [20 cm] from the loudspeaker.
WARNING - RISK OF INJURY
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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CAUTION - RISK OF MINOR INJURY OR PROPERTY DAMAGE
CAUTION - corners are fragile, do not set or pivot your DW 6 loudspeaker on the
corner of cabinet. (Pivoting them on the installed footers or spikes is not a problem as
they are designed to take those forces.)
CAUTION - with wood nishes we recommend you keep the loudspeakers out of
prolonged and frequent direct sunlight. How long is prolonged and frequent? Well,
three hours a day of direct sunlight every day will cause some color changes after a
year or two. Painted nishes will not. While we use materials and top coats with the
highest levels of UV resistance and absorption, some color changes to wood nish is
going to happen when sitting in direct sunlight day after day.
CAUTION - amplier may be damaged if the loudspeaker outputs are shorted, i.e., the
red (+) and black (–) contacts of a loudspeaker cable come in direct contact with each
other while the amplier is switched on.
CAUTION - turn your audio equipment o anytime you leave your home. Yeah, yeah,
solid-state electronics sound better warmed up and not being turned o every time
you go out—while the risk is very low there have been house res from all forms of
electronics, including the best designed audio.
CAUTION - turn your audio equipment o and unplug the mains power cables from
the wall during a lightning storm to prevent your gear from being damaged. If lightning
strikes your home, or very near it, damage to your audio gear is possible even if
switched o.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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CAUTION - RISK OF PROPERTY DAMAGE
CAUTION - do not use the tops of your loudspeakers as a bar table, condensation
forming on a container will pool and may cause water damage to the nish, especially
wood veneer nishes.
CAUTION - do not use solvents save water to clean DW 6. A slightly water-damp soft
cloth should be all that is needed. For dusting of the driver we recommend a can of
compressed air.
CAUTION - do not use tools to tighten binding posts, hand-tight is all that is
necessary. Applying high torque on posts may damage binding post and is not
covered by warranty.
CAUTION - if smoke or an electric odor is emitted by the loudspeaker or any device,
turn o all components. If you have tools and skill you may troubleshoot the problem
one device at a time, working your way to the amplier—typically the source of
the problem. If you do not have the tools or skills call the brand of the amplier or
suspected component for assistance.
CAUTION - screws fastening the full-range driver and connector plate need only be
torqued to 26 inch-pounds [3 N-m].
CAUTION - we do not recommend storage of DW 6 in non-climate controlled spaces.
DO NOT STORE THEM LONG TERM WRAPPED IN NON-BREATHABLE PLASTIC
FILM AS THIS MAY CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE FINISH.
PROTECT - When storing your speakers, we recommend placing a clean, thin soft
fabric such as felt or eece between speaker and packaging. Tolerable long-term
storage maximum temperature range is 20˚ F [-17˚ C] to 122˚ F [50˚ C] with a humidity
average not to exceed 90%.
PROTECT - when not in use, specically when there are unsupervised animals such
as cats, dogs and kids abiding near your speakers, we recommend you snap the
protective driver covers on. This will also help safeguard from foreign materials.
REMOVE - the protective driver covers that come installed on your loudspeaker to let the
sound out. They don’t sound good at all when covering the driver. “This one time, at band
camp, they left the slip-t driver covers on and nobody liked it.”
PROTECT - when transporting DW 6, wrap them with new stretch wrap lm, ne felt or
eece to protect the nish from being marred by the packaging foam. Failure to do so
will result in scung and marring of the nish.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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Save all packaging except for the polyester banding and the metal staples. All other parts are
needed for repackaging. Failure to repackage as they were originally is likely to result in the
loudspeakers being damaged when transported.
We recommend you remove rings, watches, belt buckles, anything you might be wearing
that can mark or scratch the nish, or lessen your grip. Also, trade your button-up or snap
shirt for a tee.
If DW 6 loudspeakers are sent back to Zu for refund (RMA required) they must be
repackaged as sent including the thin protective plastic lm directly wrapping the
loudspeaker. The exception is the banding and staples as we know few have convenient
access to them. In place of staples please secure all cardboard edges with packing tape. In
place of banding please secure all edges of the edge protectors with packing tape. If they are
sent back to Zu for refund and are not packaged as outlined the purchaser is liable for damage
to the loudspeaker.
1. With the box standing up, cut banding and dispose, banding is 100% polyester.
Save the thick cardboard edge protectors for future use.
2. Starting at either stapled corner, with the model/serial number label on top and facing you,
lift the cardboard ap until the staple releases from the underlying cardboard. This is easily
done without a tool but a heavy-duty staple lifter makes releasing and removal of staples
easier.
3. Continue releasing the remaining staples so the ap is free to fold back and out of the way.
We recommend removal of the released staples to prevent the sharp edges from
accidently snagging or scratching your clothing, skin, walls, oor or your new
loudspeakers. If you are careful this is easily done with bare hands, just bend them straight and
twist them out.
UNBOXING
PET
1
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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Unboxing Continued
4. Remove the two loudspeaker-length cardboard sheets. There is one on the left and one on
the right, sitting between the foam frames and the main cardboard box. These reinforce
the packaging, and when removed provide the space needed to shimmy your speakers out
from the box.
5. Now shimmy-slide the DW 6 speaker out from the main box.
6. Remove (and save) the top and middle foam frames. We recommend keeping the bottom
foam frame in place, it makes sliding the speaker into position easy and will prevent the
installed oval-end footers from scratching your oor when speaker is slid.
7. Leave the plastic wrap and move/slide speaker to near about where you want them.
The plastic wrap protects the nish while handling and dramatically increases grip.
8. Remove the bottom foam and plastic lm once you have the speaker near where you want
them. Laying the speaker face down on the removed foam makes removal of the bottom
foam easy. It also makes installing spikes or alternate footers easy.
9. With the speaker standing, remove the plastic lm.
10. Remove the ip-t driver covers. Keep them near as they are eective guards, quickly
pressing on to protect the cone from the curious. Installing them when you’re on vacation
also safeguards the full-range driver from bugs and dust.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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There are three performance levels available in the Dirty Weekend 6: DW 6 (standard), DW
6 Supery, and DW 6 Supreme. Connector input/nameplate clearly marks each version.
Dierences will be detailed here and in the specications pages.
DW 6 is a high performance yet aordable oor-standing loudspeaker that will deliver great
sound in almost any home. It also matches up very well with most ampliers and receivers. DW
6 is also designed and built to last a lifetime—cabinet materials, adhesives, driver assemblies,
every component is a tested and known to be a very high quality part. Building a great
sounding, value visible, well built loudspeaker that will satisfy and amaze decade after decade
is rewarding in and of itself—having others enjoy the eort furthers that sense of satisfaction.
To keep DW 6 running their best just play them, dust them every so often, keep the rain and
beverages o them, and less direct sun is better than more.
DW 6 borrows signicantly from its big brother, Union—cabinetry being nearly the same.
The sound of DW 6 has much of the shove, precision and soundeld unity as Union 6 but is
characteristically a bit on the warm, wet and full-toned side. Even though the tweeter is not
co-axially mounted like Union, the integration of DW 6’s full-range driver, tweeter and cabinet
yields a very compelling and unied soundeld, both in the spatial and in the tonal. Voices and
instruments sound natural and real, with a touch of weight and warmth, characteristics that
broaden your amplier options as well as making your less than great recordings sound good.
As mentioned, DW 6 taps the work done for our Series Six loudspeakers, leveraging the Union
6’s more functional and innovative cabinet and internal acoustic design which really improves
the performance over what was done previously with Omen Dirty Weekend. For more about
what is going on with the cabinet we refer you to www.zuaudio.com, but know that in this
design the slightly ddly oor gap tuning is gone as we are able to put the exit interface out
the back—and yet you can place DW 6 as close as two inches [50 cm] from the wall behind it
without interference to function. Implementation of this new cabinet complex dovetails nicely
with our warm and rich toned Zu260-ND 10” [26.2 cm] full-range driver in ways that impress
even us. DW 6 produces deeper bass, with more detail than the Omen it replaces thanks to this
new cabinet. It also has improved midrange clarity due to a healthy reduction of external and
internal noise. Treble transparency is also improved. All these improvements scale depending
on the upgrade package selected, and there are no downsides with either Supery or Supreme
outside of cost and extra burn-in time.
The heart of the DW 6 is the Zu 260 full-range driver (FRD), with its less intense, undercut/
dynamically damped electromagnetics giving it that characteristic detailed yet smooth and
expressive sound. Acoustic cross over point between FRD and tweeter is 12k Hz—having the
vast majority of the soundeld (90%) emanating from the FRD makes for a very cohesive and
unied wavefront, one of the qualities appreciated by Zu loudspeaker users. All DW 6 versions
are designed and built around the critical human voice (A1, 55 Hz, through A6 and all the
possible harmonics, to approximately 12k Hz).
DW 6 DESIGN OVERVIEW
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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DW 6 loudspeakers are on the high-eciency end of the spectrum, are precision-matched in
stereo pairs and able to recreate compellingly real sound in tone, dynamics and in stereophony.
DW 6 is nished to a much higher level than its predecessor Omen and Omen Dirty Weekend.
Walnut and hickory are done to a ner/atter surface, with inter-stage ne sanding between
top coats, producing a deeper, more crafted looking wood nish. Painted nishes are also
cut to a atter surface and also feature inter-stage sanding. Results with the painted nishes
resembling monolithic ne-honed stone. Rear-exit port is lined in felt, and the bottom is
nished in a durable black composite with spattered texture.
DW 6 SUPERFLY DIFFERENCES
• Supery-grade full-range driver matching
• Supery-grade tweeter driver matching
• Mission Mk. II internal cable harness (in place of simple hookup wire)
• ClarityCap MR capacitor upgrade
• ZuB3 connection addition
• Machined aluminum connection/nameplate
• Extra 100 hours of factory burn-in
The Supery performance additions are engineered to give the DW 6 Supery noticeably
improved resolution and smoothness without altering its forgiving nature and great tone.
Supery upgrade also increases connection options and functionality with the
inclusion of ZuB3.
DW 6 Supery features Grade-1 full-range drivers. These are driver pairs that match to a
very tight tolerance, both in deviation in magnitude and also in impulse response—the tighter
the left/right matching the more natural and satisfying the soundeld, creating stereo best
described as realistic.
DW 6 Supery features Mission Mk. II cable harness instead of standard Mission hookup wire
for internal interconnections. This triples the conducting area reducing resistance and reactive
ratios improving dynamics and resolution while also improving tone. The improved sound
imparted by the Mission Mk. II internal cable complements the ClarityCap MR capacitors, also
part of the package.
DW 6 Supery features pair matched ClarityCap MR capacitors in the tweeter high-pass
network. These capacitors have a very natural and resolving character, improving the “at ease”
quality and yet reveal more detail and nuance.
DW 6 Supery features the ZuB3 connection which is absent in the standard. Use of the
Mission Mk. II loudspeaker cable internally in the DW 6 Supery facilitates this. The ZuB3
is connected in parallel with ve-way binding posts. This connection is via the silver plated
Neutrik speakON NL8 barrel-type locking connector. This connection lets you get the most
from the improved internal cable, reduces contact resistance over binding posts, and gives the
best electrical pass-through matchup when using Zu loudspeaker cable. The connection also
safeguards against you getting the hot/cold out of phase, short-circuiting your amp and having
the connection work loose or corrode.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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DW 6 SUPREME DIFFERENCES
DW 6 Supreme is wholly a performance related upgrade focused on maximum delity within
the DW 6 platform. DW 6 Supreme builds upon the Supery package—you still get the Supery
machined from billet nameplate and ZuB3 connection addition. Staying true to the DW 6’s
forgiving nature and amazing tone, Supreme additions improve areas of nuance and resolution
all while increasing smoothness and neutrality. There are no drawbacks save the price and
extra burn-in, the proof of these claims we think you’ll nd in album after album marathon
listening where you nd yourself totally lost in the music.
DW 6 SUPREME DIFFERENCES OVER SUPERFLY
• Supreme-grade full-range driver matching
• Supreme-grade tweeter driver matching
• Event Mk. II internal cable harness
• Jupiter Copper capacitor upgrade
• Extra 100 hours of factory burn-in
DW 6 Supreme feature Grade-2 full-range drivers and tweeters. These are driver pairs that
match to an extremely tight deviation tolerance in magnitude and impulse response—the
tighter the left/right matching the more natural and satisfying the soundeld.
DW 6 Supreme gets Event Mk. II internal cable, improving resolution over Mission Mk. II cable.
Event Mk. II internal cable features Teon insulation and silver based conductors, within a ZuB3
format. A combination that gives a broad and uniform characteristic impedance to the cable.
Conductance is on par with Mission Mk. II but the propagation velocity is higher and the noise
oor is noticeably lower. Event Mk. II internal cable harness increases the resolution of the
loudspeaker system to a point where Jupiter Copper capacitors combine in mesmeric ways—
DW 6 Supreme features these caps.
Jupiter Copper Caps - Jupiter Copper Foil & Paper and pure silver leadout capacitors are
utilized in the tweeter high-pass network of DW 6 Supreme. These capacitors matchup
extremely well with the Event Mk. II internal cable. The combination imparts a sense of grace
and sexy magic to the whole of the sound, and once experienced it’s hard to live without.
BURN-IN OVERVIEW
DW 6 speakers require considerable break-in and burn-in to sound their best. The changes
in performance they undergo is remarkable. While there is signicant heavy-handed factory
break/burn-in, more is required once they are in your home. The factory break-in phase is
engineered to target the full-range driver’s cone—a process that is out of reach for the vast
majority of users . Breaking in the membrane requires extreme levels of shear force to set the
membrane into its performance prole, and there’s a ne line between membrane break-in
and permanent deformation. During this time other aspects are also breaking in, the drivers’
suspension and also the dielectrics and electronics, but these, particularly the electronic, will
continue to burn-in within typical home playback levels.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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DW 6 receive a minimum of 100 hours of factory burn-in.
DW 6 Supery receive a minimum of 200 hours of factory burn-in.
DW 6 Supreme receive a minimum of 300 hours of factory burn-in.
We discourage the use of any special burn-in specic program material—
no special “tones” and no “demagnetizing” material.
Just play as often as you can, maybe a bit louder than normal, and selecting big
full-scale recordings. The more they play the sooner they will sound their best.
Break-in is a fairly simple, straightforward, once-and-done thing (sarcasm eyes). Not funny?
Likely not. The humor assumes you like audio-dad jokes and that this is not your rst set of
new Zu loudspeakers. Unless specied otherwise, what follows are generalizations about burn-
in specically relating to home audio direct radiating Zu loudspeakers.
Each version of DW 6 has a dierent burn-in prole. Most nd DW 6 to sound good right out
of the box, maybe a bit at dimensionally and a little veiled or hooded, and a bit lackluster in
the bass. Patience, they will open up and become expansive with play. The other two versions,
particularly the Supreme, are a bit more complicated when it comes to their burn-in changes.
DW 6 Supreme usually sounds a bit harsh when new. Some nd them to sound strident and
not so promising. Some nd them amazing right out of the box. DW 6 Supery sits between. In
all cases users should know there is going to be signicant change. The sound and enjoyment
you will get from them after two to eight weeks of daily evening use is going to be night and
day compared when you rst get them. Also know that in the case of Supreme the changes
are not going to be linear for the vast majority of listeners. And for reference, specic to DW
6 Supreme there’s a very real chance that they will actually get worse for a period within the
burn-in. This has not yet been observed with the standard or Supery. But again, patience will
reward and your new Dirty Weekend speakers will snap out of any funk they might go through
while burning in.
If you are now thinking, “I’ve been doing this my whole life and I have never had a speaker
sound worse as it was breaking in...” we again say, patience on your part is very likely to have
a big payout. We too have been doing this a hell of a long time, fully immersed most every day,
with thousands of customers as data points. If you have purchased DW 6, listened for a week
or so and then hastily concluded that they are not your sonic cup of tea give us a call or email,
please let us help.
The majority of potential Zu owners that we talk to feel that burn-in is a thing, but that its not all
that pronounced. We agree when applied to other brands —the vast majority of loudspeakers
change very little, some so little that you wouldn’t even know burn-in was a thing. But Zu
DW 6 are not like normal speakers and the burn/break-in changes they go through is an
interesting and not subtle phenomenon.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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BURN-IN MAIN POINTS
Here are some points to help inform and guide your setup, tuning and burn-in expectations.
Eecting the speaker’s transition from sounding new to sounding full and engaging include:
• The length of time played
• Power levels and program material played
• Temperatures they might have been subject to in shipping or storage
• The unknowable relationship they might have with Schrödinger’s cat
• Even though DW 6’s sound will change with play, we still encourage you to follow our
guidance on room tuning as performance gains made there increase your enjoyment during
the burn-in phase(s).
During the burn-in phase we don’t recommend swapping of components without reason
and method as burn-in is heavily impacting the sound.
• If you have amps and other components that are burned in and near-to-hand maybe give
them a try. But for the rst three weeks or so we would advise against purchasing new gear
to solve problems that might soon evaporate. New gear is going to also go through burn-in,
and listening through burn-in on top of burn-in is rarely worth anything.
• If you do change an amp and notice a change for the better, you should also switch back to
conrm that it is in fact the amp the made the dierence. It could also be that the change
was coincident with a burn-in related improvement, or some other change.
• Disconnecting and connecting gear can clean a dirty connection and improve sound. Even
a clean contact that is not snug will reduce delity.
Your brain is a component of the playback system. The act of swapping gear or feeling
like you are doing work on your system has a powerful psychoacoustic eect and is likely
to allow you to hear deeper into the sound.
• Burn-in changes DW 6 (standard) will go through lean toward the linear in how progress
is noticed. Most nd them to settle in to their long-term performance prole after two to
three weeks of them being in your home, playing for two to four hours a day. If they are
transported in the winter (if they get cold) they will take a bit longer. Or if they have sat in
storage for three months or longer.
• Specic to DW 6 Supreme, burn-in changes during the initial ten to forty hours of in-your-
home play will very likely be linear, then seem to plateau—more changes are coming. The
second-phase of burn-in will be nonlinear. There is usually one very noticed transition
where the day before you were listening and your system was sounding good and you were
happy, or close to happy, say six weeks in, again we’re talking about Supreme DW 6. Then
rather unexpectedly you become aware that things are sounding more open and involving,
so compelling, so good.... This is the result of burn-in, mostly electrically related, seemingly
quantum mechanical. This change indicates that DW 6 Supreme are now settling into their
life-long (human life) performance prole.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
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• DW 6 Supery’s burn-in prole lies somewhere between DW 6 Supreme an DW 6. Generally
a bit closer to the DW 6’s prole. While Teon is not used in the Supery upgrade, the
ClarityCap MR capacitor does take longer than the standard IC polypropylene capacitor
used in DW 6.
• Once your DW 6 speakers have made that very noticeable transition to sounding good, you
may need to revisit how you have them placed in your room.
• Even after they are full burned in, if DW 6 lie dormant for three months or more they will not
sound just as they did when they were removed from service and will go through a shorter
phase of the burn-in phenomenon. If they were stored in the cold, or got cold, a week or
two additional time should be expected. Cold - about 40º F [4º C] and below.
BURN-IN / GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
Predictive speaker qualities regarding the schedule and impact of burn-in seams to be
eciency and the extent to which speaker-level electrical ltering is employed. A speaker’s
sensitivity to electric power inputted and the resulting sound levels outputted is colloquially
declared as eciency. How extensive the use of speaker-level electrical components to
achieve the desired sound is crossover complexity.
We think the combination of very low eciency and extensive crossover ltering are strong
indicators that the design will have little change from burn-in. Conversely, DW 6 Supreme with
its sonic design targets has resulted in a high eciency, crossover-less design that requires
extensive burn-in to sound right.
BURN-IN AND FATIGUE PROFILE
In quick conversation, Zu use the terms burn-in and break-in interchangeably, to generally
refer to the changes a loudspeaker goes through on its way to reach its long-term performance
prole. Technically however there is a dierence between them. Burn-in is the domain of the
electric and break-in is the domain of the mechanical. Understanding each is interesting and
might help with expectations of the loudspeaker when new, and when returning them to service
after not being used for a while.
The life of a loudspeaker can be proled in three phases: burn-in/break-in, performance, and
aging-out. All DW 6 loudspeakers are engineered to operate within the performance prole for
a minimum of 100,000 hours of in-home use under normal living conditions and assuming loud
listening levels.
In the graphs we zoom in on the burn-in proles of DW 6, DW 6 Supery and DW 6 Supreme.
The reason for the odd burn-in prole of DW 6 Supreme 6 is largely the result of the near
exclusive us of Teon as a dielectric in the cable harness. The Jupiter Copper capacitors also
take considerable time to come around and so contribute to the long burn-in schedule.
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
Page 17
0
10
100
1000
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 SUPREME BURN/BREAK-IN PROFILE [2023]
Dynamics break-in profile average (driver's suspension and membrane)
Electronic break-in profile average (capacitor, dielectric/cable harness)
Electronic variability
Performance profile, targeted butter zone
103
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
104
105
106
Le
10
Fatigue profile
Variability in fade-out from performance to half life (permanent magnet fade,
membrane fiber shear, suspension breakdown)
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 SUPREME LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM FATIGUE PROFILE [2023]
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
Page 18
0 10 100 1000
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 SUPERFLY BURN/BREAK-IN PROFILE [2023]
Dynamics break-in profile average (driver's suspension and membrane)
Electronic break-in profile average (capacitor, dielectric/cable harness)
Electronic variability
Performance profile, targeted butter zone
103
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 SUPERFLY LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM FATIGUE PROFILE [2023]
104105106
Le
10
Fatigue profile
Variability in fade-out from performance to half life (permanent magnet fade,
membrane fiber shear, suspension breakdown)
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
Page 19
0 10 100 1000
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 BURN/BREAK-IN PROFILE [2023]
Dynamics break-in profile average (driver's suspension and membrane)
Electronic break-in profile average (capacitor, dielectric/cable harness)
Electronic variability
Performance profile, targeted butter zone
103
Pn
P0
[HOURS]
DIRTY WEEKEND-6 LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM FATIGUE PROFILE [2023]
104105106
Le
10
Fatigue profile
Variability in fade-out from performance to half life (permanent magnet fade,
membrane fiber shear, suspension breakdown)
DW 6, DW 6 SUPERFLY & SUPREME OWNER’S MANUAL
Page 20
This is an overview, to get your new speakers up and running and sounding good enough.
An expanded Zu speaker placement section is further in the manual.
Start with the DW 6 speakers placed where you’ve visualized them, likely anking that rack or
casework you have, and hopefully symmetrical.
DW 6 are not overly sensitive to being in just the right place—bass integration may prove
otherwise. Bass wavelengths are very large, and moving the speaker a few inches this way or
that will not make a meaningful impact in the bass region.
• From centerline, DW 6 should be equidistant, with matching toe (horizontal splay) and
lean-back.
• From the main listening chair (sweet spot) the angle formed by the speakers should be
between 40 and 90 degrees. Wider is usually better for stereo and home theater, 60˚
(equilateral triangle) is a great starting point.
• DW 6 pairs are very tightly matched which is one of the reasons you can have a wider than
normal stereo spread and not have the middle fall out. If the middle of the stereo soundeld
collapses, scoot them in and/or mess with toe-in.
• Toe: Start with DW 6 speakers pointing (shining) right at the main listening chair, listen. Then
splay them out so they are pointed a few feet [0.8 m] behind. Then try wider still. Then back
to pointing right at you (toe in) and then try having them pointing in front of you. Experiment
and let listening be your guide.
We all hear dierently. Even those with functionally near-identical hearing have
considerable variants in what each thinks sounds good.
• Use the installed oval-end footers for whatever the ooring. Coasters or coins may be
placed between oor and footers to keep your ooring mark free. If you are using DW 6 on
carpet or a rug consider spikes, but after you have them positioned and sounding good—
spikes make moving them around dicult.
Contrary to much of what is reasoned regarding spikes as feet for your loudspeakers,
spikes cut through the rug or carpet and more tightly COUPLE the loudspeaker to the
oor. Spikes do not decouple your speakers.
• DW 6 do not require a gap between oor and speaker bottom. You can rest them directly
on the oor or you can raise them up, experiment.
INITIAL PLACEMENT
This manual suits for next models
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