Dipolar Speakers And Your Room; Solid Footing - MartinLogan Montis User Manual

Dipolar Speakers and Your Room

MartinLogan electrostatic loudspeakers are known as dipolar
radiators. This means that they produce sound from both their
fronts and their backs. Consequently, musical information is
reflected by the wall behind them and may arrive, either in or
out of step, with the information produced by the front of the
speaker.
The low frequencies can either be enhanced or nulled by the
position from the front wall. Your Montis's have been designed
to be placed two to three feet from the front wall (the wall in
front of the listening position) to obtain the best results; how-
ever, your room may see things differently. So listening to the
difference of the bass response as a result of the changes in
distance from the front wall can allow you to get the best combi-
nation of depth of bass and tonal balance.
Now that you know about reflective surfaces and resonant
objects, you can see how the midrange and high frequencies
can be affected. The timing of the initial wave as it radiates to
your ears, and then the reflected information as it arrives at your
ears later in time, can result in confusion of the precious tim-
ing information that carries the clues to imaging. Consequently
the result is blurred imaging and excessive brightness. Soft walls,
curtains, wall hangings, or sound dampeners (your dealer can
give you good information here) can be effective if these nega-
tive conditions occur.

Solid Footing

After living and experimenting with your Montis's, you may want
to use ETC (energy transfer coupler) spikes supplied with the
Montis (see figure 4). With the use of these spikes, the Montis
will become more firmly planted on the floor and, consequent-
ly, bass will tighten and imaging will become more coherent and
detailed. It is best not to implement the spikes, however, until
you are secure in the positioning, as the spikes can damage the
floor if the speaker is moved. The feet that attach to the bottom
of the Montis use a common 3/8- 16 thread.
28 Room Acoustics
Spike Installation Instructions:
1 Carefully lay your speaker on its side to gain access to the
bottom.
2 Remove existing feet or spikes. Thread new spikes into
holes and screw them in all of the way. If the speaker
does not sit level loosen one spike until level is achieved.
3 Tighten the jam nut snugly by hand. Do not over tighten the
nut.
4 Right the speaker.
Caution: Make sure your hands and any cabling are clear of
the spikes. Do not slide speaker as spikes are sharp and can
damage your floor or carpet.
5 Adjust to level by rotating spikes. Tighten the jam nut
securely when satisfied that speaker is level.
Caution: Walking the speaker may result in a broken spike.
Figure 4. The ETC™ Spike.