Alto MONITORS M Owners Manual

LTO

OWNER'S MANUAL

M SERIES MONITORS

PASSIVE & ACTIVE MODELS

www.altoproaudio.com

Version 1.4 SEPTEMBER 2007

English

IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTION

CAUTION

RISK OFELECTRIC SHOCK

DO NOTOPEN

TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE THE COVER OR THE BACK PANEL OF THIS EQUIPMENT. THERE ARE NO PARTS NEEDED BY USER INSIDE THE EQUIPMENT. FOR SERVICE, PLEASE CONTACT QUALIFIED SERVICE CENTERS.

This symbol, wherever used, alerts you to the

presence of un insulated and dangerous voltages within the product enclosure. These are voltages that may be sufficient to constitute the risk of electric shock or death.

This symbol, wherever used, alerts you to important operating and maintenance instructions.

Please read.

Protective Ground Terminal AC mains (Alternating Current)

Hazardous Live Terminal ON: Denotes the product is turned on. OFF: Denotes the product is turned off.

CAUTION

Describes precautions that should be observed to prevent damage to the product.

Read this Manual carefully before operation. Keep this Manual in a safe place.

Be aware of all warnings reported

with this symbol.

Keep this Equipment away from water and moisture.

Clean it only with dry cloth. Do not use solvent or other chemicals.

Do not damp or cover any cooling opening. Install the equipment only in accordance with the Manufacturer's instructions.

Power Cords are designed for your safety. Do

not remove Ground connections! If the plug does not fit your AC outlet, seek advice from a qualified electrician. Protect the power cord and plug from any physical stress to avoid risk of electric shock. Do not place heavy objects on the power cord. This could cause electric shock or fire.

Unplug this equipment when unused for long

periods of time or during a storm.

Refer all service to qualified service personnel

only. Do not perform any servicing other than those instructions contained within the User's Manual.

To prevent fire and damage to the product,

10.

use only the recommended fuse type as indicated in this manual. Do not short circuit the fuse holder. Before replacing the fuse, make sure that the product is OFF and disconnected from the AC outlet.

WARNING

To reduce the risk of electric shock and fire, do not expose this equipment to moisture or rain.

Dispose of this product should notbeplacedinmunicipalwaste and should be separate collection.

MovethisEquipmentonlywithacart,

11.

stand, tripod, or bracket, specified by the manufacturer, or sold with the Equipment. When a cart is used, use caution when moving the cart / equipment combination to avoid possible injury from tip over.

12.

Permanent hearing loss may be caused by exposure to \ extremely high noise levels. The US. Government's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has specified the permissible exposure to noise level. These are shown in the following chart:

HOURS X DAY

8 6 4 3 2 1,5 1 0,5 0,25 or less

According to OSHA, an exposure to high SPL in excess of these limits may result in the loss of heat. To avoid the potential damage of heat, it is recommended that Personnel exposed to equipment capable of generating high SPL use hearing protection while such equipment is under operation.

The apparatus shall be connected to a mains socket outlet with a protective earthing connection.

The mains plug or an appliance coupler is used as the disconnect device, the disconnect device shall remain readily operable.

SPL

EXAMPLE

Small gig

train

Subway train

High level desktop monitors

Classic music concert

100 102 105 110 115

Rock concert

IN THIS MANUAL:

1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1

2. PHILOSOPHY ................................................................................................ 2

3. INSTALLATION .............................................................................................. 3

4. PANEL CONTROLS .........................................................................................5

5. HOOKUP EXAMPLES ......................................................................................7

6. WALL MOUNTING ..........................................................................................9

7. APPENDIX ....................................................................................................10

8. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION.............................................................................11

9. WARRANTY ..................................................................................................13

1. INTRODUCTION

Thank you for your purchasing of the ALTO M Series compact Studio Monitors. The increasing number of home studios and small audio / video production has created a large demand for compact monitors with excellent performance and affordable price. With the M Series Monitors we have addressed these needs. Available in different formats and configurations the M Series also come with a 2-channel amplifier built-in and electronic Xover. Made of durable high-tech Italian designed injected polypropylene, they are almost indestructible and, in they passive version they are also advised for outdoors use given the fact that also the speakers are waterproof. We have also included in the design top, side and bottom groove for easy hanging on the wall of the M Series Monitors through optional bracket.

M series MonitorEnjoy your and make sure to read this Manual carefully before

operation!

SPOTLIGHT

2. PHILOSOPHY

WHY PLASTIC?

Because we can produce thousands and thousands of piece with the same characteristics of material integrity. Our Plastic is water and moisture resistance and it is finished with a "velvet-touch" paint that protects the unit from fingertips and scratches.

WHY TWO WOOFERS?

Because two is better than one. Joke apart, it is always difficult to get a decent amount of low frequencies out of a compact speaker cabinet. Low frequencies are produced by moving air so the more air you move the more low frequencies you get. Therefore the amount of low frequencies you get out from speaker cabinet is directly related to moving surface of the woofer. One woofer=limited moving surface. Two woofers=more moving surface. In fact you get more bass out from your Alto M Series Monitor than any other cabinet of the same size. But two woofers also mean two moving coils. Take our M3 as an example. Each woofer includes a 25 mm (1") moving coil, so with our two woofers we have 50 mm (2") of moving coil. Such moving coil is usually used in PA cabinet able to handle at least 200 watt. Therefore, you can put a lot of power into your M Monitor without producing heat in the moving coils of the woofers with consequent power compression.

WHY THE TWEETER IN SUCH AN UNUSUAL POSITION?

Positioning the tweeter in the middle of the two woofers allows for a more coherent sound image. Furthermore, the tweeter is almost out of the baffle and can give much more breath and depth to the sound. IN conventional Monitors tweeter are in the middle of a much larger baffle. Try to put your open hands around your mouth and sing. You hear that "ducky, nasal" sound. Now remove the hands and sign again. See the hands are the baffles. Compact Monitors are usually positioned on the top of the mixer or in any case only a few feet from the Listener. The amazing depth of the M Series with high frequencies is the effect of the position of the tweeter.

WHY PASSIVE AND ACTIVE VERSION?

Small Studio Owners will prefer the active version. Although, some people will privilege the set up with a passive Monitor and an external power amplifier. For example, Alto just introduced a very high-end digital stereo amplifier: the A200.2. It is a half / rack, 1U little animal that can produce up to 240 watts of power. And it does not need a fan! Try this amp with one of the M Series Monitor. You will hear a surprising level of high fidelity and dynamic that it is not possible to achieve in self-powered models.Passive Monitors are then becoming popular for Dolby 5.1 and up to 8.1 set ups.

3. INSTALLATION

Compact Studio Monitors are also generally addressed as "Near-Field Monitors" In big Recording Studios the Monitors are usually far away from the Listeners. They interact the room since the sound will reflect on ceiling, wall and floor thus affecting the sound quality. Near-filed Monitors are positioned a few feet away from the Listener and as a consequence the sound is less depended to the room conditions. For this reason we have made our M Series Monitors as flat as possible and did not add any frequency control because there would not be any need for it. Let's explore some possible positionings for your M Series Monitors.

2 CHANNELS NEAR-FIELD

This is the typical Control Room situation. The Monitors will be poisoned on the Meter Bridge of the Mixer or in any case very close to the Listener. You should measure a simple equilateral triangle with the two monitors on two corners and

the head of the listener in the other corner. In this way, the Left and Right Monitors will be placed with an angle of 60 at the same distance to the Listener's head.

2 CHANNELS MID-FIELD

This configuration is similar to above. In some situations the Mixer Meter Bridge could be too narrow to sustain the Monitors especially if you are using the M5 or M4 version. In such case, the Monitors are moved back usually on speaker stand making sure that the height of the woofer is above the upper line of the mixer. If you have no possibility for this set-up try to activate the "FAR-FIELD" switch on the back of your M Monitor.

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