Niles Audio HDCTR, HDLRS User Manual
INSTALLATION & OPERATION GUIDE
MODELS
•
HD
HD•CTR
HD
HD
HIGH DEFINITION
CTR
•
•
LRS
LRS
www.nilesaudio.com
Niles Audio
Corporation
1 2331 S.W. 130 Street
Miami, Florida 33186
Tel: (305) 238-4373
Fax: (305) 238-0185
Printed in Taiwan
©1999 Niles Audio Corporation. DS00196A
B LENDING H IGH F IDELITY AND A RCHITECTURE
®
®
Congratulations!
Features and Benefits
Introduction
Thank you for choosing a Blueprint Series In-Wall Loudspeaker®from Niles.
With proper installation and operation, you'll enjoy years of trouble-free use.
Niles manufactures the industry's most complete line of custom installation
components and accessories for audio/video systems. For a free full line catalog
write: Niles, Catalog Request, P.O. Box 160818, Miami, Florida 331 16-0818
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 2
FEA TURES AND BENEFITS 2
INST ALLATION CONSIDERA TIONS 4
SPEAKER PLACEMENT 6
INST ALLATION FUNDAMENTALS 1 0
INSTALLATION OF BRACKETS, FRAMES AND GRILLES IN NEW CONSTRUCTION 14
INSTALLATION OF BRACKETS, FRAMES AND GRILLES IN EXISTING WALLS 16
INSTA LLATIONOFTHE SPEA KER AND GRILLE INNEW OREXISTING CONSTRUCTION 17
OPERA TION 20
SPECIFICA TIONS 2 1
LIMITED WARRANTY 22
©1999 Niles Audio Corporation. All rights reserved. Because Niles strives to continuously improve its products, Niles
reserves the right to change product specifications without notice. Niles, the Niles Logo, Blueprint Series In-Wall
Loudspeakers and Blending High Fidelity and Architecture are registered trademarks of Niles Audio Corporation. Dolby
is a registered trademark of Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation. Decora is a registered trademark of Leviton
Manufacturing Co. DS00196A
The HD or
Blueprint Series In-Wall Loudspeakers
offers speakers expressly designed for
superior sonic quality. They employ
advanced technology components
designed to extract the subtle nuances in
recorded music or the thunderous action
in a movie. They are perfect anywhere
that quality of sound is the
consideration.
High Definition
most
group of
important
Features and Benefits
Dolby Digital Ready
The HD•CTR (Center) and HD•LRS
(Left/Right/Surround) are specifically
designed for Home Theater Sound. They
exceed the specifications set forth by
Dolby Laboratories for the accurate reproduction of Dolby Digital Encoded Sources.
Directed Sound Field Geometry™
(DSFG)
Both the HD•CTR and HD•LRS employ
Niles’ Directed Sound Field Geometry
(DSFG). With DSFG, the tweeter is offset
from the center of the dual woofers. The
resulting acoustic interaction between the
woofers and the offset tweeter results in
the flattest frequency and phase response
approximately 15° off-axis from the tweeter. This gives optimum performance to a
seated listener even if the loudspeakers are
mounted above a built-in TV.
Mica Filled Polypropylene Woofers
with Inverted Butyl Rubber Suspension
The unusually stiff and light polypropylene
cone is filled with mica to enhance its rigidity for the fastest, most accurate response.
Additionally, the use of an Inverted Butyl
Rubber Suspension offers substantial benefits including: increased movement without
An HD•CTR or HD•LRS Speaker Kit;
®
CTR•LRS Bracket Kit; and CTR•LRS
Frame/Grille Kit are required to install
one HD•CTR or HD•LRS In-Wall
Loudspeaker in either new or existing
construction.
mechanical limitations; weather resistance;
and improved midrange damping for better
detail and clarity.
ElastoDynamic™ Hybrid Dome
Tweeter
Constructed from a composite matrix of
elastomers and natural fiber substrates, the
ElastoDynamic™ tweeter offers extended
high frequency response without any harsh
ringing or overshoot.
Video Shielding (HD•CTR)
The HD•CTR utilizes special video shielding to enable it to be installed in close
proximity to a video monitor without negative effects on picture quality.
Acoustic Fine Tuning
Both the HD•CTR and HD•LRS feature baffle mounted Acoustic Fine Tuning Controls.
The HD•CTR’s controls enable optimization
of the high frequencies and the Dialog with
3dB of Treble Cut and 3dB of Dialog
Enhancement. The HD•LRS’s controls
enable optimization of both low and high
frequencies with 3dB of Bass and Treble Cut.
2
Features and Benefits
DSFG Defeat (HD•CTR)
Main/Surround Configuration (HD•LRS)
Both the HD•CTR and HD•LRS feature
crossover mounted switches which customize the response of the speaker. In the
HD•CTR, the switch controls whether the
Directed Sound Field Geometry feature is
On or Off. (It is useful to switch it Off when
the speaker is installed at ear level, for example, behind a perforated screen). In the
HD•LRS, the switch sets the speaker’s
response for Main (front) or Surround. The
Surround setting manipulates the response of
the speaker to provide a diffuse sound field.
BumpBack™Woofer Magnet(s)
Niles engineers have utilized a unique
magnet construction allowing far greater
“throw” or voice coil excursion. This
allows a new level of deep bass performance to be achieved.
X-Matrix™ Reinforced Baffle
The X-Matrix Baffle design uses specially
molded ribs to add rigidity to the baffle
assembly. The end result is better bass and
improved midrange detail.
Absolutely Flush to the Wall
Appearance
The unique mounting system of the HD
loudspeakers powerfully clamps the frame
to the bracket, sandwiching the wall material between them. Because the clamping
action is totally uniform around the frame,
there are no shadows or gaps between the
wall and the frame. Additionally, the Niles
mounting system is carefully optimized to
stiffen the surrounding drywall and prevent it from resonating. You hear only the
music, not the drywall.
Easy Retrofit Installation in your
Existing Home
Designed for ease of installation, the Niles
mounting system makes retrofit installa-
tions simple and fast. A supplied template
assures fast and accurate hole cutting. The
bracket slips behind the drywall and the
screws secure the bracket to the frame,
sandwiching the drywall between them.
The speaker baffle attaches to the frame,
and the grille mounts over the speaker.
Three Stage Installation System for
Remodels or New Construction
You install only the parts you need for a
particular stage of construction. When the
framing and wiring are finished, you
install the
but before the painter begins to paint, you
install the
aluminum
they can be painted to match the surroundings. Only when construction is
completely finished do you put the valuable
to mask or prep the speaker for painting,
and worries about theft during the final
phases of construction are never an issue!
Infrared Sensor Mount
The speaker baffle has a locator designed
for the Niles MS-1 MicroSensor,™ a
miniature infrared sensor. The MS-1
installs discreetly behind the aluminum
grille and therefore minimizes wall clutter in your home. When you want to
control your equipment, you simply
point your remote control at the speaker
from up to 15 feet away.
Low Diffraction, Paintable
Aluminum Grilles
HD speakers come standard with aluminum grilles. The grille has hundreds of
precisely sized perforations, creating an
acoustically transparent grille. The aluminum construction is 100% rustproof.
bracket
frame
speaker
. After the drywall is up,
and provide the rustproof
grilles
to the painter so that
in the wall. You don’t have
Bracket
Acoustic
Fine Tuning Controls
Installation Considerations
Recommended Amplifier Power
For satisfactory performance, we recommend an amplifier with a power rating of
ten to one hundred fifty watts. Curiously,
most speakers are not damaged by large
amplifiers but by small amplifiers. If your
system is playing loudly, a small amplifier
will run out of power very quickly. When
an amplifier runs out of power it creates
damaging “clipping” distortion. A more
powerful amplifier will play at the same
volume without distorting. See the section
on operating the speakers for more information about clipping distortion.
Speaker Wire
Use 2-conductor speaker wire when connecting HD speakers to your receiver or
amplifier. For most applications, we recommend you use 16 or 18 gauge wire.
For wiring runs longer than 80 feet we
recommend 14 gauge wire. The spring
loaded terminals of the HD speakers will
accommodate up to 12 gauge wire
directly. Larger sizes can be accommodated via pin connectors.
When you run wire inside walls, special
jacketing (CL-2 or CL-3) is required to
both protect the wire and for fire prevention. In some areas conduit is required.
For a trouble-free installation, low voltage
wire such as speaker wire must be run in
accordance with the National Electrical
Model HD•LRS Shown
New Construction Wings
Frame
Figure 1
SpeakerBaffle
IR Knockout
Installation Considerations
Grille
3
4
Installation Considerations
Code and any applicable provisions of the
local building code. If you are unsure of
the correct installation techniques, wire
jacket or type of conduit to use, consult a
professional audio/video installer, your
building contractor, or the local building
and inspection department.
Incorporating a Remote Control
If you are planning to use a stereo system
with a hand held IR remote control, consider the advantages of installing a Niles
IR Repeater system. You are able to control all of the functions of your system
from the room with the remote pair of
speakers. Niles makes a number of IR sensors which install in the wall, in the ceiling,
in cabinetry, on tabletops, or even behind
the grille of your Niles HDspeakers.
An IR sensor requires that a 2-conductor
shielded wire (West Penn D291 or equiva-
Wire size is expressed by its AWG (American Wire
Gauge) number. The lower the number, the larger
the wire, i.e. twelve AWG is physically larger than
lent) be home run from each sensor location to the main equipment location. This
wire is normally run beside the speaker
wire at the same time. Typically, the sensor is placed in a location that faces your
listening position. Most remote controls
will have an effective line of sight range of
18 to 30 feet with any Niles sensor placed
in a wall, ceiling, on a cabinet or tabletop.
However, when you place a Niles MS-1
MicroSensor behind the perforated aluminum grille of a speaker the effective
range is reduced to 9 to 15 feet.
Insulating the Wall Cavity
For best performance from your speakers fill
the wall cavity behind the speaker with
fiberglass insulation (e.g.R-1 9 unbatted insulation). Try to keep the same amount of
insulation for each speaker, particularly in
the same room, for consistent bass response.
TECH TIP
fourteen AWG.
Speaker Placement
Placement of the Front Left and Right
Speakers (HD•LRS)
In a home theater, the intelligibility of dialog and action reproduced by the front
speakers is paramount! The position of the
speakers plays a very important role in
how clear the sound is and how a stereo
image is created. Here are some guidelines to make the process of placement
quick and easy.
Make sure the sound will not be blocked
or reflected off of furniture or other objects.
You should have a direct line of sight with
the front of the speaker. To determine the
best position, measure the “listening” distance between the ideal listening position
(your favorite chair or couch) and the wall
in which you plan to install the speakers.
Try to place the speakers so that they are
equally distant from your listening spot and
at least one half of the listening distance
apart (this maintains a large pleasant stereo
“image”). In home theater applications
where there is a center channel you may
choose to space the left and right main
speakers farther apart for a “bigger than
life” sound with Dolby
and TV shows. However, for combined
music and movie usage stay within the
good placement zone
ple; if you are ten feet back from the wall,
the speakers should be between five and
ten feet apart (See Figure 2).
The front left and right speakers should be
placed on either side of the picture source at
a height that allows their tweeters to be not
more than 24 inches above or below the
tweeter in the center channel speaker (See
Figure 3). Be careful that you do not place
®
encoded movies
for music. For exam-
Speaker
Placement
Zone
Speaker Placement
10’
Speaker
Placement
Zone
10’5’
Figure 2
5
6
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