Setting Up The Loudspeakers; Hearing Distance - T+A Solitaire CWT 1000-40 User Manual

Setting up the loudspeakers

Hearing distance

The loudspeakers are designed symmetrically. This means that there is a left
and a right loudspeaker. To get the best possible sound quality the
loudspeakers should be positioned with the electrostatic tweeters at the
outward facing side of the speakers (see fig. 5).
It is also recommended to adjust the loudspeakers slightly angled inwards to
your listening seat.
The new SOLITAIRE® loudspeakers are designed to act as Cylinder Wave
Transducers (CWT). The mid-range drivers form what is known as a
Line Array, and the electrostatic unit a Line - Source, with the net result that
the sound field is concentrated in the area between the top and bottom
edges of the loudspeaker. Above the cabinet and in the downward direction
the effective radiation of the speaker's entire bass-mid-range and treble
frequencies is low. This results in greatly reduced reflections from ceiling
and floor, and the virtual elimination of the listening room's influence on the
sound image and the speaker's imaging characteristics.
The CWT are inclined slightly to the rear, so that the cylinder wave rises as it
moves into the listening space. The listener should therefore be positioned
in the area in front of the speaker baffles, and certainly not higher than the
cabinets.
The listening distance should be about 10% greater than the distance
between the loudspeakers, and should be no less than 3.5 metres.
Please bear in mind that the bass level is increased by about 3 dB if you
position the speakers against a wall, and by up to 6 dB if you place them in
the corner of the room. To avoid excessive bass response it therefore makes
sense to set up the speakers at least 0.5 metres from the side walls of the
listening room; if at all possible they should be free-standing, i.e.
unobstructed by other furniture etc. (see „Level adjustment" section).
Hiding the loudspeakers behind furniture or curtains has a very marked
adverse effect on their treble reproduction.
Position the speakers in such a way that the terminals cannot be touched
when the speakers are operating - especially by children!
Fig. 2
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