INTRODUCTION
Thank you for purchasing Bowers & Wilkins Custom Wall Mount speakers.
Since its foundation in 1966, the continuing philosophy of B&W has been the quest for perfect sound reproduction. Inspired by the company’s founder, the late John Bowers, this quest has entailed not only high investment in audio technology and innovation but also an abiding appreciation of music to ensure that the technology is put to maximum effect.
It is also our policy to make sure the advanced features pioneered on one product are incor- porated into others we manufacture. The Custom Installation series incorporates woven Kevlar® cone mid/bass drive units for lowest coloration and maximum definition.
However, no matter how good the speakers themselves, they must work well into the listening room and time spent on planning the installation will reap the reward of many hours listening pleasure. Please read through this manual fully. It will help you optimise the performance of the system.
B&W distribute to over 65 countries worldwide and maintain a network of dedicated distributors who will be able to help should you have any problems your dealer cannot resolve.
UNPACKING
(figure 1)
Check the contents:
•2 x Baffle with drive units, crossover and foam
•2 x Wall frame with swing out dogs
•2 x Loudspeaker grille
•1 x Alignment template
•1 x Accessory pack containing:
8 x Self-Tapping screws (for frame to PMK fixing)
8 x Machine screws (fixing baffles to wall frames)
We suggest you retain the packaging for future use. Remove the grilles and baffles from the wall frames and, to avoid damage, keep them in their plastic bags (and preferably in the carton) away from the work area until you are ready to fit them.
POSITIONING – NEW CONSTRUCTION VERSUS RETROFIT
Check that there is no conflict with other in-wall installations (pipe work, air conditioning, power- cabling etc.). In existing construction, use a stud-finding tool to map the wall construction accurately and a pipe detector to scan the proposed installation position. Avoid installing the speakers in the same cavity of the wall as flimsy ducting, which may be induced to rattle.
The speakers are designed to operate satis- factorily in a wide range of cavity volumes, ideally above 15 litres (0.5 cu ft).
The speakers are balanced for half-space mounting (i.e. flush in a wall or soffit). Placement near a wall/ceiling, wall/floor junction or in a corner is to be avoided as it may give rise to too much bass and a boomy quality to the sound.
If possible, keep the speakers more than 0.5m (20in) from the wall edges.
The speakers may be mounted in either portrait or landscape orientation. Wherever possible, however, portrait orientation, with the drive units mounted one above the other, is to be preferred as it gives better horizontal dispersion and a more stable stereo image. If landscape orientation is used, orient the baffle so that the tweeters are towards the centre of the room. Do not mix portrait and landscape at left and right, as an imprecise stereo image will be created.
The following sections give guidance on optimum positioning, but this may be modified in line with domestic constraints.
Normal Stereo and Home Theatre Front Left and Right Applications (figure 2)
Note: The assembly should be installed with the tweeter at the bottom.
The speakers should be positioned with the tweeters at a little above ear height. If the speakers are to be used low in the wall invert the speaker so the treble unit is uppermost. The spacing between them will depend on the size of the room and distance to the listeners. As a general rule they should not be closer to the listener than 1.5m (5ft) and the distance between them should not exceed their distance from the listeners. Having the speakers and listeners approximately at the corners of an equilateral triangle is not a bad rule to follow. This arrangement generally provides the best stereo imaging. If the speakers are placed too far apart, a hole-in-the-middle effect may become apparent. Too close and the panoramic effect will be lost, accompanied by a reduction in depth information.
For Home Theatre Installations, the speakers should not be closer together than the width of the screen and their height should be approximately at centre screen height.
Home Theatre Centre Channel Applications
Theoretically, the best position for a centre channel speaker is behind the centre of the screen, but this can only be realised when using an acoustically transparent projection screen. In most cases the speaker will be positioned in a laterally central position either directly above or directly below the screen. All other things being equal, choose the position that is nearest ear height. However, if this leads to a below screen position, you should be careful to ensure that the speaker is not too close to the floor (see above) and that the sound will not be muffled by the later placement of furniture. See also the comments on baffle orientation in the preceding section.
Home Theatre Surround Speaker Applications
The sound from surround speakers should be as diffuse as possible. This ensures that the frontal audio image is not distorted by changes of listener position or head movements. The speakers should generally be placed behind and 0.6m (2ft) or more above ear height. Ceiling mounting often gives good results in this application. The orientation is less important in this application than in other cases.
WARNING: The Signature™7NT speakers produce a static magnetic field that extends outside the speakers boundary. As such They should not be placed within 0.5m (20in) of equipment that may be affected by such a field, e.g. Cathode Ray Tubes in TVs and Personal Computers.
DAMPING THE WALL CAVITY
A foam pad is supplied to damp the area behind the drive units. In addition, loosely fill the whole section of the wall cavity with wadding. Fibreglass and mineral wool matting supplied for heat insulation are suitable, but not closed cell foam or expanded polystyrene. Check that there is no debris that may fall into the speaker (especially in ceiling mount situations).
IMPORTANT: YOU SHOULD CHECK THAT THE INSTALLATION ITSELF AND THE MATERIALS YOU USE MEET THE LOCAL FIRE AND BUILDING REGULATIONS.
FITTING THE WALL FRAME
New Construction (figure 3)
Fit the separately available pre-mount kit PMK800 for the Signature™7NT to the studding before the drywall panels are fitted, following the instructions supplied with the kit. The drywall panels should be fitted up to the pre-mount frame and plastered over.
Screw, but do not tighten, 4 of the screws provided through the holes in the wall frame into the pilot holes in the pre-mount frame.
Existing Construction (figure 4)
Push out the slots in the template provided. Position the template on the wall as required. Mark along the inside edges of the slots and cut out the aperture neatly.
Position the frame in the wall and screw in the 6 screws visible from the front of the frame. These screws swing out clamping dogs that locate behind the drywall. Ensure that they have located properly and loosely tighten the screws.
