MK Sound SURROUND-550THX operation manual Speaker Phasing Test

Surround-550THXspeaker page 6

6.PLACEMENT OF THE SURROUND-550s AS SURROUND CHANNEL SPEAKERS IN A HOME THX AUDIO SYSTEM

Your Surround-550 speakers are specifically designed to be used as surround channel speakers in a multichannel audio system (either Home THX or non-THX. The instructions given here apply to surround channel applications, including Dolby Digital, MLP, DTS, and multichannel music modes such as ambience recovery or acoustical environment synthesis.

Your surround speakers can be installed in a wide variety of locations, but in some rooms their installation can be quite a challenge to install. If you have questions, please don't hesitate to contact your M&K dealer or the M&K factory. We will be happy to discuss your system with you.

In general, the Surround-550s should be located high on the walls and to the sides of the listening position. Typically, they should be placed on the left and right room side walls at the center of the main listening area.

a. POSITION RELATIVE TO SEATING

The Surround-550 speakers should be located adjacent to the seating position. If there is one row of seats, the Surround-550s should be located directly to the left and to the right of this row of seats. If there are multiple rows of seats, then the Surround-550s should be located directly to the left and right of the geometric center of the listening area.

If the Surround-550s cannot be located exactly adjacent to the seating area, it is better for them to be located slightly towards the back of the room, behind the listening positions, rather than in the front of the room, between the listening position and the screen.

It is also acceptable to locate the speakers on the back wall of the room. In this case, they should be located symmetrically relative to the back corners. Another good location is in the corner itself. In addition to the flush mount brackets provided with your speakers, M&K makes a variety of very high quality speaker mounting brackets that can be used to mount the speakers to the side or back walls, as well as in the corner itself.

b. HEIGHT

In general, the Surround-550 should be located near the ceiling. Placement above the listeners' heads is very important, with the cabinet's bottom at least two feet above a seated listener's head. In fact, if at all possible, the speakers should be located above a standing listener's head, so that people walking around the room will be unable to localize them.

c. WALL LOCATION

Your surround speakers can be mounted on either the side walls or on the back wall, or even directly in a corner. They can be flush on the wall, on shelves, on brackets, etc. If you find the sound to be too directional, you can angle the speakers towards the back wall or towards the side wall surface closest to the speaker. If you are angling the speaker for this purpose, it should be angled in the same direction that the tweeter is angled (towards the back of the room if the speaker is mounted on the side wall, and towards the nearest corner if the speaker is mounted on the back wall).

d. USING MULTIPLE PAIRS OF SURROUNDS

Some listeners prefer multiple pairs of surround speakers. Multiple pairs of surrounds can make a dramatic improvement and provide a deeper and broader surround effect. When using multiple pairs of surround speakers, a symmetrical installation pattern works best. For example, one pair could be mounted on the back wall of the room, mounted equidistant from the back corners, wit the other pair mounted on the side walls of the room, equidistant from the same back corners.

7. SPEAKER PHASING TEST

In any system using a subwoofer separate from Satellite speakers, especially in multichannel surround sound applications, a phasing test must be performed to insure proper phase in the system, thereby achieving optimum sound in the critical bass frequencies.

For a Home THX Audio system, follow the system instructions provided with the THX controller, as you will need to have correct phase among all the speakers in the system. These instructions will take you through the front channels, surround channels, and subwoofer, by comparing phase between individual channels until you have established that all units have identical phase.