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owners manual
3
INTRODUCTION
We are proud to welcome you as a new owner of a MIRAGE subwoofer.
The finest components and materials are manufactured to exacting standards
and tested with sophisticated manufacturing and quality control techniques to
ensure exceptional performance that is superior to subwoofers costing several
times their price. This approach to the development of the LF Series has
resulted in a significant improvement over other subwoofer designs in terms
of performance and aesthetics.
COMPANY BACKGROUND
MIRAGE loudspeakers and subwoofers are designed and manufactured by
Audio Products International Corp., known throughout the industry as “API”.
A Canadian company founded in 1973, API is one of the largest speaker
manufacturers in North America, supplying products to over fifty-five
countries worldwide.
The API factory is a modern 165, 000 square foot research, development and
manufacturing facility located in Scarborough, a suburb of Toronto, Canada.
More than 280 people are employed in this state of the art facility, designing,
manufacturing, and marketing MIRAGE transducers, cabinets, amplifiers and
crossovers. A talented research and development team utilizes advanced
computer-based design and sophisticated measurement techniques in its
ongoing quest for new and better acoustic technologies.
LF SERIES
Subwoofer Positioning and Adhesive Isolation Feet
MIRAGE LF Series subwoofers can be placed in either an upright position to
provide a small footprint or a horizontal position for a lower profile. Either
position will provide equal, impressive performance.
Once the subwoofer’s position and orientation has been chosen, attach the 4
provided adhesive feet to the 4 corners of the bottom of the subwoofer.
The feet prevent the transference of signal from the subwoofer to the ground
for tighter bass performance. See diagram 1.
Room Acoustics and Subwoofer placement
MIRAGE LF Series subwoofers can be placed virtually anywhere in your
listening room without significantly affecting the stereo image of your main
speakers. However, interactions between any subwoofer and a room’s
acoustic properties will have some impact on the overall bass performance.
Reading this section will help you find a placement for the subwoofer in your
room, which will yield the best bass performance.
There is a common misconception with regard to subwoofer placement.
The best position is not necessarily the one with the loudest bass, but the
position with the smoothest bass. Keep this in mind while determining your
preferred placement.
A subwoofer’s omni directional bass propagation allows placement
almost anywhere in the room. But, just because the brain finds frequencies
below 100Hz difficult to pinpoint doesn’t mean that all locations are ideal.
Because the low frequency wavelengths can be as long as 50 feet, the
position of a subwoofer is hard for the brain to pinpoint, but it must be
stressed that it is still a point source with sound waves radiating out from it.
Corner placement
The most popular location for subwoofer placement is in a front corner of
the room, to either the left or right of one of the main speakers. There is
absolutely nothing wrong with this unobtrusive location if a few simple
boundaries can be respected. Start off by placing the subwoofer near a
corner, which will produce maximum bass output. Slowly move the
subwoofer away from the corner in small stages to find the position that
yields maximum bass output while maintaining clarity.
Although a clear path between the subwoofer and listening position is not
required, it is recommended to leave approximately 2-4 inches (5-10cm) of
clearance between the subwoofer and walls or room furnishings to ensure
maximum performance. Moving a subwoofer out from it’s typical placement in
a corner can change the amplitude of standing waves and either increase or
decrease the amount of perceived bass at your listening position.
Finding the Ideal Location
If the placement of the subwoofer and its effect to the room décor is not an
issue, you may want to determine the ideal location where the subwoofer
performance can be maximized. An effective method of determining the
ideal subwoofer location requires that you place the subwoofer in your
preferred listening position. Then, slowly walk the boundaries of the room
until you’ve determined the spot where bass is at it’s fullest. Switch positions
between you and the subwoofer and the ideal location has been located.
Stereo Placement
If you are using a pair of subwoofers in stereo, it is preferable to place each
subwoofer adjacent to the main speaker of the same channel.
Remember to use familiar musical recordings with an abundance of low
frequency information when you experiment with subwoofer location.
Cabinet Placement
The MIRAGE LF Subwoofer series was also designed to excel in custom
applications. The front port design allows all MIRAGE LF subs to be installed
into a wall or cabinet while maintaining its sonic integrity. In this situation, it is
best to install the feet to the bottom of the cabinet to eliminate the
transference of resonance to the environment.
SUBWOOFER CONNECTIONS
Caution: Do not use both low level and high level methods simultaneously.
Turn off all power in your stereo system before proceeding with the
installation of the subwoofer.
Recommended connection for
Dolby Digital Systems: Xover Bypass
This method bypasses all subwoofer controls, other than phase, in favor of
the bass management controls integrated into your receiver or processor.
The rear panel is equipped with a low level input marked Xover Bypass. This
method uses an RCA cable to connect the “Subwoofer Output” jack from
your receiver or processor to the Xover Input on the rear panel of the
subwoofer. See diagrams 2, 3.