MK Sound S-1C, S-90, S-80, SX-7 User Manual

operation manual

S-100B S-1C S-90 S-80 SX-7

Miller & Kreisel Sound Corporation

satellite speakerssatellite speakers

satellite speakers

10391 Jefferson Boulevard Culver Cit y, CA 90232 USA (310) 204-2854 FAX (310) 202-8782

satellite speakers

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................3

2. PLACEMENT OF YOUR SATELLITE SPEAKERS.............................................................3

3. S-100B SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE.............................................................................3

HOOK-UP...........................................................................................................................4

VARIATIONS OF SOUND........................................................................................................4

4. S-90 SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE.................................................................................6

HOOK-UP............................................................................................................................6

VARIATIONS OF SOUND........................................................................................................6

5. S-80 SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE.................................................................................8

HOOK-UP............................................................................................................................8

VARIATIONS OF SOUND........................................................................................................8

6. S-1C SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE................................................................................10

HOOK-UP...........................................................................................................................10

VARIATIONS OF SOUND.......................................................................................................10

7. OPTIMIZING SPEAKER PLACEMENT.............................................................................13

8. HOME THEATRE USAGE..................................................................................................15

9. SATELLITE/SUBWOOFER PHASING TEST....................................................................17

10. SPEAKER DAMAGE & HOW TO AVOID IT.......................................................................18

11. BI - AMPLIFICATION WITH M&K HIGH-PASS FILTERS..................................................18

12. IF YOU NEED SERVICE.....................................................................................................18

13. CABINET MAINTENANCE................................................................................................19

14. SELECTING THE RIGHT OMNIMOUNT®BRACKET.......................................................19

15. SPECIFICATIONS.......................................................................................................19

DIAGRAMS

FIGURE 1 WIRING WITH THE S-100B...................................................................................5

FIGURE 2 WIRING WITH THE S-90........................................................................................7

FIGURE 3 WIRING WITH THE S-80........................................................................................9

FIGURE 4 WIRING WITH THE S-1C.......................................................................................11

FIGURE 5 BI - WIRING WITH THE S-1C.....................................................................................13

FIGURE 6 SEPARATION BETWEEN SPEAKERS..............................................................14

FIGURE 7 SELECTING THE RIGHT OMNIMOUNT® BRACKET...........................................20

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1. INTRODUCTION

Congratulations! Your new M&K Satellite speaker system will give you years of unmatched enjoyment and

excitement while listening to your favorite musical and audio/video sources.

We encourage you to read this owner’s manual, as there is a great deal of information provided here to help you

achieve the best possible performance.

If you have any questions about your speaker system, please contact your M&K dealer or call the M&K factory directly at (310) 204-2854, from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time, Monday through Friday. We will be happy to help you with any question, no matter how simple or complex it may be.

This manual gives you basic hook-up instructions first, followed by more detailed technical, installation, and service information. For specific hook-up and usage information, please find the section that refers to your Satellite model. For the S-100B, see page 3; for the S-90; page 6, for the S-80; page 8; and for the S-1C, page 10.

2. PLACEMENT OF YOUR SATELLITE SPEAKERS

Your M&K Satellites can be installed in a wide variety of locations. Their compact size gives you great flexibility in installation. They can be placed on stands, shelves, or bookcases, or more permanently mounted using brackets, direct attachment to a wall, or a ceiling suspension system.

If you do wish to mount your Satellites permanently using wood screws, their cabinet thickness is 3/4". Be sure to use hardware shorter than 3/4" in length to avoid making a hole in the sealed cabinet that would adversely affect its sound quality.

You can place the Satellites virtually anywhere in the room, but certain locations are better than others. In general, locate them away from obstructions that would interfere with the direct path from the speakers to your ears (such as walls, furniture, lighting, plants, etc.). They will sound better when they are around ear height, or when angled towards your favorite listening location. In general, they sound best when they are not sitting directly on the floor.

M&K speaker stands are designed to set M&K Satellite speakers at the right height for the average person and chair, and they also allow you to use spiked feet and to add mass to the stand to improve the Satellites' sound (by filling the stand upright with sand or buckshot, etc.). Your M&K dealer has more information on these stands.

The S-100B, S-90, and S-80s can be used with OmniMount because their cabinets have integral threaded hardware in patterns for OmniMount

tremendous flexibility for installation in a wide variety of environments. For more information, see Section 14 (page 19),

or contact OmniMount

at (602) 829-8000.

For more detailed information on placement of your speakers, see Section 7 (page 13).

SPECIAL NOTE - TV SHIELDED SATELLITE SPEAKERS

If you place your Satellite speakers close to a television set (about 2 feet), the speaker magnets may cause distortion of the television's picture. For these applications, M&K makes special TV Shielded versions of the S-100B, S-90, and S-80. The S-1C is made only in a shielded version. Shielded Satellites are identified by markings on the shipping carton and by a label on the back panel of the speaker. Unless your Satellites are Shielded, allow 2 - 3 feet of clearance around any television.

If you do own a pair of Shielded Satellites, please note that in some installations, a small amount of residual magnetism may cause a slight geometric or color distortion of the picture on your television set. If you do get this distortion, try moving the Satellite speaker slightly until the problem disappears. If you have difficulty solving any magnetic problems, please contact the M&K factory.

Systems brackets, without the use of wood screws,

brackets. These brackets offer

3. S-100B SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE

The sound quality that you get from your Satellites can be affected by the type of speaker wire that you use to connect them. While it is possible to use speaker wire as thin as 22 gauge to hook your Satellites up, we recommend using the largest diameter wire that you can. This means a minimum of 18 gauge wire. Over 10 feet, you should use 16 gauge, and for more than 30 feet, we recommend using 14 gauge or heavier. The smaller the number, the thicker the wire.

satellite speakers

There are a very wide variety of premium speaker cables available from a number of specialist manufacturers. We do not endorse any specific brand of premium cable, but we do recommend using as high quality a cable as fits your budget. Using better quality cables will improve the sound of your Satellites.

M&K Satellites are not designed for bi-wiring. Do not use the four input terminals to bi-wire your Satellites, as this may damage your amplifier and speakers. If you wish to bi-amplify your Satellites in combination with an M&K Powered Subwoofer, see Section 11 (page 18) for more details.

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S-100B HOOKUP

There is one set of terminals on the backplate, one Red terminal and one Black terminal. Connect the Positive (+) lead from your amplifier or receiver to the RED (+) INPUT terminal, and the Negative (-) lead from your amplifier or receiver to the BLACK (-) INPUT terminal. See Figure 1 (page 5).

S-100B VARIATIONS OF SOUND

Your M&K Satellites reproduce sound with exceptional transient accuracy and a very wide dynamic range. Because of these qualities, they give outstanding results with any high quality amplifier or receiver in virtually any listening environment.

However, getting the best tonal balance in any given room involves many variables. Therefore, your S-100B Satellites allow you to alter their tonal balance in order to get the ideal sound quality at your favorite listening location (where it counts!), through the use of two three-position switches.

The best way to find the ideal setting for these switches is to listen to some familiar music with the switches in the NORMAL position, and then listen to how the sound changes as you set the switches to the other positions.

If you find the sound to be too bright or harsh-sounding, try the TREBLE CONTOUR switch in the MID TWEETER or LOW TWEETER position. You can also try setting the MIDRANGE CONTOUR switch to MID or LOW EFFICIENCY. If the sound lacks brilliance or sounds bass-heavy, set the TREBLE CONTOUR switch to HIGH TWEETER or set the MIDRANGE CONTOUR switch to MID EFFICIENCY or NORMAL.

It is not possible to tell in advance which settings will produce the ideal response (which is a flat frequency response at your ears), because this is dependent on your room, its size, its furnishings, your listening location, and more. The switch choices, however, can help you create the ideal response in your room. Therefore, set the switches for the best sound balance for your ears and your room, giving you maximum enjoyment from your speakers.

S-100B MIDRANGE CONTOUR SWITCH

The MIDRANGE CONTOUR switch is the primary control for altering the tonal balance of your Satellites. Its major effect is in the midrange, but it does shift the balance over the entire audible spectrum.

The NORMAL position gives the flattest anechoic frequency response, and works well in many rooms and installations. Start with this position. If you find the sound quality to be too forward or too bright, there are two additional choices of tonal balance, MID EFFICIENCY and LOW EFFICIENCY. Relative to NORMAL, the MID position is mellower, with less high frequency energy and a more recessed sound. The LOW EFFICIENCY position has an even warmer mid-bass sound and a more distant perspective.

When you are locating the speaker directly on a surface such as a wall, floor or ceiling, you may find that using the SPECIAL INPUT terminals gives the best response. This is because this position is designed to account for the increase in midbass response that occurs when a speaker is directly against a room surface. (This is referred to as 2π space, as opposed to a speaker located out in a room, which is known as 4π space. The SPECIAL INPUT terminals should be tried first for 2π conditions, and the regular INPUT terminals should be tried first for 4π conditions).

If you are optimizing your system's response with a third-octave equalizer and calibrating the equalizer by using a third-octave analyzer, use the SPECIAL input terminals. The SPECIAL terminals will give you maximize output and dynamic range, while placing the least demand on your power amplifier.

The MID and LOW EFFICIENCY positions trade efficiency and output for a warmer, mellower sound. If your room has a lot of reflective surfaces or you have an otherwise bright-sounding system, try these positions. Some listeners will prefer one of these to the NORMAL position in any room, so we suggest that you at least make a comparison.

All positions have the same power handling capacity, but their output varies (from highest to lowest) as follows: SPECIAL input terminals, NORMAL, MID EFFICIENCY, and LOW EFFICIENCY. Bear in mind that as you switch to a higher efficiency, it requires a higher setting of the subwoofer level. Conversely, when you switch to a lower efficiency, the subwoofer level should be set lower.

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FIGURE 1

WIRING WITH THE S-100B

S-100B

SATELLITE SPEAKER

NORMAL

LOW

TWEETER

MID

TWEETER

TREBLE

CONTOUR

CONNECT AMPLIFIER TO ONLY ONE RED

AND ONLY ONE BLACK TERMINAL

SPECIAL INPUT

(see instructions)

MADE IN USA

MILLER & KREISEL SOUND CORPORATION

10391 Jefferson Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 310/204-2854

LOW

EFFICIENCY

NORMAL

MID

EFFICIENCY

MIDRANGE CONTOUR

INPUT

4 ohms

LEFT RIGHT

S-100B

SATELLITE SPEAKER

NORMAL

LOW

TWEETER

MID

TWEETER

TREBLE

CONTOUR

CONNECT AMPLIFIER TO ONLY ONE RED

AND ONLY ONE BLACK TERMINAL

SPECIAL INPUT

(see instructions)

MADE IN USA

MILLER & KREISEL SOUND CORPORATION

10391 Jefferson Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 310/204-2854

LOW

EFFICIENCY

NORMAL

MID

EFFICIENCY

MIDRANGE CONTOUR

INPUT

4 ohms

AMPLIFIER

S-100B TREBLE CONTOUR SWITCH

The TREBLE CONTOUR switch slightly rolls off the upper midrange and treble frequencies when set to the MID and LOW position. These carefully shaped contours minimize brightness due to room conditions, other electronics, or the source material. It does more than a simple tweeter level control.

The LOW position gives the greatest reduction of high frequencies. The MID position gives a lesser reduction of the highs, while the NORMAL position does not reduce high frequencies at all.

This control is useful not only to match your room environment and speaker location, but also because audio and audio/video program material varies widely in terms of high frequency level and distortion. For example, many recordings and film soundtracks have artificially boosted, excessive high frequencies that will be clearly reproduced by the exacting and extended high frequency reproduction of your M&K Satellites, and the MID and LOW TWEETER positions will help these recordings.

Don't hesitate to set this switch to MID or LOW for fear of the sound not being "flat". Few recordings are actually "flat", due to equalization in the recording process, and artificial alteration of high frequencies is common.

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4. S-90 SPEAKER HOOK-UP & USAGE

If you wish to bi-amplify your Satellites in combination with an M&K Powered Subwoofer, see Section 11 (page

18) for more details.

S-90 HOOKUP

S-90 VARIATIONS OF SOUND

However, getting the best tonal balance in any given room involves many variables. Therefore, your S-90 Satellites allow you to alter their tonal balance in order to get the ideal sound quality at your favorite listening location (where it counts!), through the use of two three-position switches.

If you find the sound to be too bright or harsh-sounding, try the TREBLE CONTOUR switch in the MID TWEETER or LOW TWEETER position. You can also try setting the MIDRANGE CONTOUR switch to NORMAL or LOW EFFICIENCY. If the sound lacks brilliance or sounds bass-heavy, set the TREBLE CONTOUR switch to HIGH TWEETER or set the MIDRANGE CONTOUR switch to NORMAL or SPECIAL.

S-90 MIDRANGE CONTOUR SWITCH

The NORMAL position gives the flattest frequency response in most rooms and installation conditions. This should be the starting position for you in determining the optimum setting for your system. Relative to this position, you will find the SPECIAL position to be brighter and more forward-sounding, and the LOW EFFICIENCY position to be mellower and more recessed-sounding.

When you are locating the speaker directly against a wall or directly against the floor or ceiling, you may find that the SPECIAL position gives the best response. This is because this position is designed to account for the increase in midbass response that occurs when a speaker is directly against a room surface. (This is referred to as 2π space, as opposed to a speaker located out in a room, which is known as 4π space. The SPECIAL position should be used for 2π conditions, and the NORMAL position should be used for 4π conditions).

Use the SPECIAL position if you are optimizing your system's response with a third-octave equalizer and calibrating the equalizer by using a third-octave analyzer. The SPECIAL position will always maximize output and dynamic range, while placing the least demand on your power amplifier.

The LOW EFFICIENCY position trades efficiency and output for a warmer, mellower midbass sound. If you have a room with a lot of reflective surfaces or an otherwise bright-sounding system, try this position. Some listeners will prefer this position to the NORMAL position in any room, so we suggest that you at least make that comparison.

All positions have the same power handling capacity, but because of their greater efficiency, the NORMAL will be louder than the LOW EFFICIENCY, and the SPECIAL position will play the loudest. Bear in mind that as you switch

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MK Sound S-1C, S-90, S-80, SX-7 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

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