Cambridge Soundworks Model 17 User Manual

Instructions for:

Model Seventeen

by Henry Kloss

Contents

Introduction .............................................................................................. 1

Unpacking The System .............................................................................. 2

Connecting The System .............................................................................. 2

Optimizing Your System ............................................................................ 3

About Amplifier Power ............................................................................... 4

10-Year Limited Warranty .......................................................................... 5

Difficulty? ................................................................................................. 5

Introduction

hank you for purchasing
Model Seventeen speakers by
Henry Kloss. More than 30
years ago, Henry Kloss

T

designed the KLH
Seventeen, an affordable, compact
two-way speaker system that went
on to become one of the best sellers
of all time. A decade later he took
the two-way concept even further
with the Advent
once again one of the best selling
speaker systems ever.

Today, with the Cambridge
SoundWorks Model Seventeen,
Henry Kloss has once again
exploited the cost/performance
advantages of a properly designed
two-way speaker system. We hope
you enjoy your new speakers for
years to come.

™

Model

®

Loudspeaker,

Cambridge SoundWorks

1-877-YES-HIFI

(1-877-937-4434)

24 hours a day,

every day

In Canada: 1-800-987-9104

Outside US or Canada:

Tel: [phone]

Fax: [phone]

www.cambridgesoundworks.com

E-mail:

[e-mail]

1

1. Upon unpacking your Model
Seventeen speakers, please
examine them carefully for any
signs of shipping damage. If
there is evidence of shipping
damage, do not discard the
shipping carton, do not install
or use the Model Seventeen
speakers, and contact the store
where you purchased the system
or call a Cambridge SoundWorks
Audio/Video Consultant
immediately at 1-877-YES-HIFI.
Your Audio Expert will tell you
how to proceed and will help
minimize any inconvenience.

2. Check to make sure the box
includes four rubber feet per
speaker. Simply peel the feet off
their backing, and place them
near the corners on the bottom
of each speaker.

3. We suggest that you keep the
shipping carton and packing
materials in case you later
move, or have to ship your
speakers.

Insert wire marked with a stripe
or molding into the red terminal
(+), and insert the unmarked
wire into the black terminal(-).

Connecting The SystemUnpacking The System

1. We recommend 18 gauge wire (or
regular electrical “zip” cord) to
connect your Model Seventeen
speaker to your amplifier or
receiver. For runs of more than
50 feet, we recommend the next
size larger wire, 16 gauge or
heavier wire.

2. Strip about half an inch of
insulation off the ends of each
speaker wire to expose the two
conductors (as shown in A).
Twist the wire strands tightly (as
shown in B).

3. Be sure that no individual
strands of wire short across
terminal pairs on the speakers or
on your amplifier or receiver. On
each speaker, press the spring
loaded red or black tab back to
reveal the connecting hole, insert
the stripped end of the speaker
wire, then release the tab.

4. It’s important that you connect
both speakers identically.
Connect the amplifier’s red
terminal to the speaker’s “+”
terminal, and the black terminal
to the speaker’s “–” terminal.

Look for the ribbed insulation on
one lead of the wire – or for
different colored wire strands
after you strip off the insulation
– as a means of telling the two
leads apart.

While reversing the connections
on one speaker will do no
damage, it will be “out-of-phase”
with the other, which can
diminish the stereo or surround
effect .

A

Ridge or stripe on insulation

1"

1/2"

B

2

Optimizing Your System

We encourage you to experiment
with different locations for your
Model Seventeen speakers. Of
course, if the speakers sound
satisfactory from the moment you
connect them, you may wish to go
no further. If you wish to see if an
improvement can be made, use
these guidelines to experiment
with placement.

1. Let your ears be your guide, and
trust them. When the speakers
sound right to you, you’ve
found the best placement.

2. A small change in placement
can have a large effect on the
sound. For example, low-bass
increases as you move the
speakers closer to intersecting
room surfaces. The sound
appears brighter with the
speakers close to the listening
area. The fullness of the sound
is greater with the speakers
against a wall than with them
out into the room.

3. Program material varies greatly,
so be sure to listen to a variety
of recordings. This avoids being
misled by the unusual character­istics of a particular recording.

4. Model Seventeen’s high-
frequency output has been
chosen to take full advantage of
the very best program material,
as well as, to accommodate the
scattering and reflecting of high­frequencies by room surfaces. If
you find the sound too bright on
older, noisy recordings and/or
with the speakers placed close
to the listeners, adjust your
amplifier or receiver’s
treble control. If it is necessary
to place the speakers close to
the listening area, try placing
the units so that listeners aren’t
directly on axis.

5. The mid-bass and midrange
balance of Model Seventeen
speakers will be appropriate
with the speakers against a
wall. If you position them out
from the wall and the sound is
too “thin” (particularly on vocal
recordings), move them back
against a wall. If they are
against the wall and sound to
“heavy” or “boomy,” particularly
on male voices, move them out
from the wall.

6. The Model Seventeen’s woofer is
an accurate reproducer of low­bass, such as bass drum, organ
pedals, and the lowest notes of
string basses and synthesizers.
The strength of these sounds,
some of which are more felt
than heard, is affected by the
position of the speakers. Bass
output becomes stronger when
the speakers are placed close to
a wall. Bass output is even
stronger when the speakers are
placed near the intersection of
two planes in the room (e.g. a
corner where two walls meet).
Bass output becomes stronger

yet when the speakers are
placed near the intersection of
three planes in a room (e.g. on
the floor in a corner). Unfortu­nately, corner placement
generally causes vocal reproduc­tion to become heavy and
unnatural. Please note that not
all recordings have true low­bass on them, so be sure to
make judgements on recordings
which do.

7. If more than dusting is needed,
the finish on your Model
Seventeen speakers can be
cleaned with a window or vinyl
cleaning product. Avoid
spraying the cleaner directly on
the speaker grilles to prevent
damage to them or the speaker.

8. If you’re not happy with what
you hear and are having trouble
improving it, call the store
where you purchased the system
or a Cambridge SoundWorks
Audio/Video Consultant. Either
can be of great assistance
making suggestions for
improvements or trouble­shooting your entire stereo
system if necessary.

3

About Amplifier Power

The Model Seventeen speakers can
be used safely to play music with
the most powerful amplifiers and
receivers designed for home
listening. However, take reason­able care to prevent strong non­musical transients. Keep the
volume turned down when
connecting or disconnecting
components, and so on. This will
help protect your ears as well as
the speakers.

If at a given volume level the
sound is consistently “grainy” or
“gritty,” you may be overdriving
your amplifier or receiver. Back off
on the volume control until the
symptoms disappear. If that is not
loud enough for you, you may
need a more powerful amplifier or
receiver for satisfactory results.
Call your store or a Cambridge
SoundWorks Audio/Video
Consultant, who will advise you
on how much power would be
appropriate for your particular
circumstances.

4

10-Year Limited Warranty

To the original purchaser,
Cambridge SoundWorks, Inc. will
warrant the Model Seventeen
speakers to be free from defects in
material and workmanship for a
period of ten (10) years from date
of purchase. With respect to
defects, Cambridge SoundWorks
will, at its option, replace the
product or repair the defect in the
product with no charge to the
original purchaser for parts
or labor.

This warranty does not extend to
any defect, malfunction or failure
caused by misuse, abuse, accident,
faulty hookup, defective associated
equipment or use of the speaker
with equipment for which it is
not intended.

This warranty is valid only when
the speaker is returned to an
Authorized Service Station or if
you bought directly from Cam­bridge SoundWorks, call for a
Return Authorization Number for
the unit and return it to the
address below, freight prepaid,
together with a copy of the
original sales slip to establish
warranty status. Please do not
return the Model Seventeen, or any
of its parts, to the factory without
prior authorization.

This is the sole and express
warranty. This warranty is in lieu
of all other warranties, expressed
or implied, of merchantability,
fitness for purpose or otherwise. In
no event shall Cambridge Sound­Works be liable for incidental or
consequential damages or have
any liability with respect to defects
other than the obligations set
forth above.

To ensure warranty coverage it
is incumbent upon the original
purchaser to inform Cambridge
SoundWorks or any of its
Authorized Service Stations of the
defect within the warranty period.
The only acceptable method of
establishing warranty status is a
copy of the original proof of
purchase indicating customers
name and purchase date.

For warranty information
contact:

Cambridge SoundWorks, Inc.

311 Needham St.

Newton, MA 02464

1-877-YES-HIFI

(1-877-937-4434)

www.cambridgesoundworks.com

email:

[e-mail]

Difficulty?

If you suspect there’s a problem
with your Model Seventeen
speakers, contact the store where
you purchased them, or call a
Cambridge SoundWorks Audio/
Video Consultant who will help
you track the problem, which
could be in some other component
in your system. If together you
agree that there is something
wrong with your Model Seventeen
speakers, you should return them
to the store where purchased.
Or, if you bought directly from
Cambridge SoundWorks, we will
supply you with a Return
Authorization Number. Please
do not return the Model Seventeen
speakers, or any of its parts,
to the factory without prior
authorization.

® Cambridge SoundWorks is a registered trademark of Cambridge SoundWorks Incorporated
® Advent is a registered trademark of Recoton Audio Corp.
™ KLH is a trademark of Lavcon, Inc.

5

311 Needham Street, Newton MA 02464

1-877-937-4434 Fax: [phone]

www.cambridgesoundworks.com

Email: [e-mail]

P81-0740 0400 A Company