ACI Emerald XL Owners Manual

Emerald XL

Table of Contents:

Mini-Monitor

Owner's Manual

Guarantee/Warranty …2
Specifications …4
Design Philosophy …4
Using your Speakers …6
Avoiding Damage …6
Hookup …7
Positioning the Emerald XLs …8
Adding Subwoofers …9
Troubleshooting …10
Warranty Registration …12

901 South 4th Street, La Crosse, WI 54601 Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone]

All Rights Reserved 2007

Audio Concepts, Inc.

Website: www.audioc.com Email: [e-mail]

Official ACI Forum at: www.audiocircle.com

Sound that Satisfies… Since 1977

Audio Concepts, Inc.

Our Guarantee and Warranty

Satisfaction Guaranteed:

We’re sure you’re going to love your new Audio Concepts, Inc. (ACI) products! In the unlikely
event that you are not satisfied, please contact us within 30 days of receipt of your ACI products

for a hassle-free return.

Simply follow these procedures:

1. Return Authorization: Call us at [phone] or email [e-mail], within 30 days of receipt of your

ACI products for a return authorization number. Boldly mark the return authorization number on the outside of the
box. Include a brief note stating your name, address and daytime telephone number, along with a short description
why the products are being returned.

2. Returning: We request that you return the ACI products to us in their original packaging and include packaging

materials, manuals, etc. Ship by the most economical means (preferably UPS) and insure the products for the
invoice purchase price. The customer is responsible for return shipping. Please note: ACI can not accept C.O.D.

returns.

3. Credit: Upon receipt and inspection, we will issue a refund for the invoice purchase price and invoiced UPS

Ground service only. Please note this return policy is in effect only if the ACI products are in new condition, in their
original packaging, without drilled holes, disassembled or any other modifications.

2

Speaker Manufacture’s Warranty:

ACI’s Five Year Standard Warranty and One Year Total Assurance Guarantee
For five years from receipt, Audio Concepts, Inc. will, at its option, repair or replace factory

defective components. This warranty excludes products that have been abused, modified, or
disassembled in any way. This warranty does not apply to products, which have been damaged in
shipping. Audio Concepts, Inc. liability is limited only to the replacement of defective parts. No
other liabilities or obligations are expressed or implied.

For the first year of ownership, ACI also provides a unique Total Assurance Guarantee, (TAG).
TAG from ACI not only covers everything included in our standard five year warranty, but we will

also pay for shipping to ACI and back to your front door. TAG is limited to shipping destinations in
the Continental U.S.

The ACI Five Year Standard Warranty and One Year Total Assurance Guarantee are fully
transferable from the original owner to a secondary owner provided that the original owner
notifies ACI, by phone call or by filling out the on-line form: www.audioc.com
No warranty will be transferred absent this notification.

Simply follow these procedures:

1. Return Authorization: Call us at [phone] or email [e-mail] for a return authorization number.

If the warranty repair is during the first year of ownership, additional instructions will be given to you at that time.
Boldly mark the return authorization number on the outside of the box. Include a brief note with your name,
address and a daytime telephone number, along with a short description why the products are being returned.

2. Returning: Carefully repack defective ACI merchandise in their original packaging. Ship by the most economical

means (preferably UPS) and insure the products for their full retail value. The customer is responsible for return
shipping (unless the first year TAG applies). Please note: ACI can not accept COD or Freight Collect returns.

3. Replacement: Audio Concepts, Inc. will inspect and determine the cause of failure and will pay return shipping on

the defective goods replaced or repaired.

Please ship any returns to the following address:

Audio Concepts, Inc., 901 So. 4

th

Street, La Crosse, WI 54601 [phone]

IMPORTANT NOTICE

All new speakers require a minimum of 60 hours break-in-time before
they sound the way they are supposed to. A speaker's performance improves
significantly once broken in. It is critical that you have at least 60 hours on your speakers
before you evaluate them. Don't worry if your speakers do not sound perfect the first time
you play them. This is normal until they are broken in. If you are having difficulty getting
enough hours on your speakers and your 30 day return privilege is getting near, call us.
We will work with you. Please give us the courtesy of breaking the speakers in before you
determine they don't sound right.

3

Many of our customers break their speakers in by:
A) Leaving them on at moderate listening levels when they are not home.

B) Leaving them on at moderate listening levels while they sleep.
C) Running pink noise through them.

These methods are not convenient for everyone and we understand this. But
please know that you are not giving yourself, your speakers or us a fair chance if you do
not break them in before critical evaluation.

THANK YOU!

The Emerald XL

Thank you for your order and congratulations on becoming the owner of an ACI speaker system.
These fine speakers will provide you with many years of listening pleasure!

ACI speakers are designed to offer extremely high value and performance. Read the rave reviews
of the Emerald series going all the way back to the early 90s. The Emerald series has the reputation of
being a tremendous value in a compact monitor. Musicality combined with great balance, flexibility of use,
and classic ACI build quality. By purchasing directly from the factory you eliminate costly markups. Go
ahead, compare your Emerald XLs with more costly and larger systems, you’ll feel even more pride of
ownership!

The Emerald XL has all the detail and resolution you crave, yet none of the harsh or bright quality
that many speakers have. It is extremely coherent from top to bottom and the resolution and fullness of
tone has been significantly improved from its predecessors.

The bass response of the little XL belies it’s inconspicuous sizing. We’re not the kind of company
that claims to beat the laws of physics. However, what you’ll find is bass quality that allows you to hear
every note and pitch, combined with surprising fullness and a sense of solidness rarely found in this size
speaker. The response is tight, deep and tuneful. For those wishing for full-range performance, adding one
or two of our superb powered subs is a logical next step.

The Emerald XL is an extremely versatile performer. Stand mount it, put it on a bookshelf . . . use it
for main speakers, use it for extension speaker throughout the home, our use it for rears and surrounds in a
home-theater setup. Whatever your Emerald XL application, you will be thrilled with the performance.

4

The Emerald XL is the result of ongoing research and development by the ACI design team.

Specifications

Frequency response: 70-20kHz ± 3db anechoic
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms, minimum impedance 7 ohms, low reactance
Sensitivity: 86db 1 watt/1 meter
Bass-loading: 4th order, low Q, rear ported system
Recommended RMS Power: 20 to 150 watts per channel
Tweeter: 1” hand-damped silk dome with aperiodic rear chamber and ferro-fluid
Bass-mid: 4” cast-frame with paper cone, rubber surround; long throw, low distortion motor system with

vented pole piece
Cabinet: Full 3/4" MDF all around with interlocking bracing structure. Internally damped with dacron and
acoustic foam.

Finish: Satin Black . . . with many other options available
Inputs: Gold plated binding posts
Dimensions: 10” H x 5 7/8" W x 8 1/4" D
Weight: 11 lbs each
Recommended accessories: Sanus speaker stands, WB-1 wall mount bracket, Force XL, Titan XL or

Maestro XL Powered Subwoofers, DH Labs Cables.

Design Philosophy for the Emerald XL

Modern speaker design is a combination of science, art and sweat. A successful design such as
the Emerald XL requires countless hours of computer modeling, several generations of prototypes,
precision testing, critical listening and many “fine tunings”.

Our design goals for the Emerald XL were to produce a tiny, attractive speaker with smooth,
uncolored, wide-range response, holographic stereo imaging, good sensitivity, high power handling, and
long term enjoyability. The Emerald XL had to be extremely versatile to allow it to play a wide variety of