PSB the CustomSound Series, Custom Sound series, CW50R, CW80R, 160R Installation Manual

In-Wall Loudspeaker

Installation Guide

®

I.

Materials And Tools

A. Required Tools
B. Other Tools

Layout

II.

A. Listening Locations
B. Speaker Locations
C. System and Supply
D. Obstructions
E. Weather Resistance
F. Tricks of the Trades—Nothing's Plumb, Square, or True

CONTENTS

III.

IV.

V.

VI.

Installation

A. New Construction
B. Enclosure Volume and Insulation

Wiring

A. Rough-in Wiring
B. Finish Wiring
C. Tricks of the Trades—Drilling

Grilles

A. Installing and Removing
B. Grille Alternatives—Scrims, Hole Shapes and Sizes

Painting

A. Construction Dust and Paint Shield
B. Painting Finish Frames
C. Painting Grilles

VII.

Setup

A. Swivel Tweeter
B. High and Mid Frequencies Switches
C. Bipole and Dipole Switches
D. Listening—Balance, Range, and Imaging

2

I. MATERIALS AND TOOLS

The only other materials necessary to install CustomSound speakers are paint
and extra fine sandpaper if you wish to change the color of Grills and/or Finish
Frames from their standard white. Of course, wire cable of appropriate length and
size will be necessary to connect speakers to amplifiers (or volume controls) in
the music system.

A. Required Tools

The following tools are needed for normal, simple installations:

Tape Measure, Pencil, and Level

Utility Knife and Wallboard Saw (and extra blades)

Philips Screwdriver and Putty Knife

Drill and Bits (smaller for lead holes and larger for cabling)

Probe Wire (a heavy coat hanger can substitute for a short fish-tape)

Flashlight

B. Other Tools

Particularly when installing a quantity of speakers, or installing in wood paneling
or other wall materials, the following tools are desirable for neater and more
efficient installations:

Stud Finder (helpful—particularly with simple, wallboard-on-studs
construction)

Metal Straight Edge (Ruler or Framing Square) and Masking Tape

Wallboard Rasp/Sanding Block (or a piece of wire lath around a block)

Awl or Worn Screwdriver (for initial, exploratory holes) and Hammer

Wire Cutters/Strippers and Electrical Tape

Battery Screwdriver and Power Drill and Extensions (with extra bits)

Jig Saw and Blades

Wallboard Router and Cutout Bits

II. LAYOUT

A. Listening Locations

Consider the desired, intended, and probable locations of listeners when
considering speaker locations. Ideally, listeners should have a clear line-of­sight/hearing to all speakers in their listening area—not too far off axis and not
obstructed by structure or furnishings—for most balanced frequency response.
Where will listeners be—primary and secondary? Where will listeners’ ears
be—sitting, standing, walking? No installation is absolutely ideal, but considering
listener locations with speaker location can greatly improve the final result—and
simplify the effort and expense to achieve it.

3

B. Speaker Locations

Here are three simple ideals, which are never fully satisfied:

1. Locate speakers equidistant to listeners, preferably at ear level.

2. Locate speakers closer to each other than their distance from listeners.

3. Locate speakers symmetrically to each other and to their physical
surroundings.

Ideally, listeners will be equidistant from front right and left and center channel
speakers and from rear (or side) left and right surround channels for most
accurate spatial imaging. If listeners are too close to front or to rear channel
speakers the image cannot come together and flow seamlessly across. While
ear-level mounting is ideal, the swivel tweeters can be aimed towards the
listeners, increasing the accuracy of frequency response when speakers are
located further off axis from listeners’ ears. Most importantly, a center channel
speaker should be located centered on the TV screen—to keep center channel
sound coming from the center of the screen.

Balance adjustment can compensate for some physical location difference between
left and right. Time-delay adjustment of surround sound can compensate for some
physical location difference between front and rear. With mono signals equidistant,
symmetrical location is still desired to minimize balancing requirements. Proximity to
additional side wall, ceiling or floor surfaces will cause increases and decreases in
frequency response which are very difficult to electronically equalize for smooth
response overall—particularly when only some of the speakers are affected.

Ceiling locations are generally good locations, particularly for rear channel and
secondary listening, allowing symmetrical layouts and the increased volume
between floor joists for improved bass response. Some sound output will transmit
through the wall behind (or floor above) a speaker; and, while this can be lessened
with insulation and other installation techniques, it should be considered in finalizing
locations.

All CustomSound models are designed to maintain the same tonal balance when
different models are mixed in a system. The same model should be used in
symmetrical listening locations in a system—front left and front right; rear left and
rear right.

Any of the PSB in-wall systems can be used as surround speakers. We also offer
dedicated surround systems with special radiation patterns optimized for use as a
surrounds, such as the CW260.

Surround systems should be located via the following guidelines. If you are using
one pair of surround speakers (a 5.1 system) the optimum location would be directly
to the sides or to the sides and slightly back of the primary listening area. This will
create the most enveloping surround field. Using 2 pair of surrounds (a 7.1 system)
is recommended as it both creates a more diffuse and a more even sound field.
There will be less variation for multiple seating positions. If your system has four
surround speakers then one pair should be mounted to the left and right sides of the
listener (connected as “sides”) and the second pair mounted to the rear (connected
as “rears”). If you could view your room layout from above the best surround
speaker location would have each speaker a fairly even angle removed from its
adjacent surround, that is, dispersed at equal angles around the listening area.

4

Surround speakers will give a more diffuse sound field (a good thing) if they are
mounted fairly high on the walls and somewhat removed from the listener. Don't be
afraid to mix in-wall and in-ceiling mounting.

The CW88R is a special ceiling mount (round) system for use where space is limited.
In some rooms of the house, typically in bathrooms, space is limited such that there
isn't room for two ceiling speakers. Mounting a single speaker forces a choice of
whether to use the left or right channel signal. This can lead to strange effects were
a number of the musicians or some of the members of a talk show drop out entirely.
Creating a mono signal ahead of the driving amplifier is a possibility but adds
unnecessary wiring complications. The CW88R solves these problems by offering a
dual channel system built into one speaker assembly. The woofer utilizes dual voice
coils with separate electrical crossovers for each. For high frequencies, the system
features two tweeters both coaxially mounted and angled to give a modest stereo
effect.

The location of subwoofers will interact with the dimensions of the room to determine
the low frequency response of the overall system. Unlike with a free standing
subwoofer the in-wall subwoofer can't be mounted away from the wall surfaces!
The key question is: Where on the wall should they best be located?

Generally the main front speakers should be located first by following the guidelines
for placement (above) with regard to angles around the listener. Their location is
more critical than the location of the subwoofers. Once the main front speakers and
surround speakers are located then you may want to mount the in-wall subwoofer in
a spot that visually looks appropriate relative to the front speakers. This might be in
the same stud bay but directly below the front left or right. Alternatively they may be
mounted at just the same height as the other front speaker, yet outside them and
more towards the corners. Either approach is generally acceptable. Be aware that
mounting the in-wall subwoofer nearer a corner will generally increase the overall
bass level and that will increase its output capability, a good thing.

Avoid mounting the subwoofers at the rear of the room or on the side walls far from
the front wall. Although our sense of location for very low frequencies is poor it will
still degrade the blend between bass and upper frequencies when the subwoofer
and the front speakers are mounted far apart. An exception to this is when one
subwoofer is mounted in the center of the front wall and a second subwoofer is
mounted in the center of the rear wall. Recent studies have shown such a technique
to generally give a very good low frequency room response.

Each CustomSound speaker carton contains a full-size template of the front of the
speaker. These templates can be used when initially locating speakers and then
when marking and cutting out speaker locations. We encourage temporarily taping
templates in the intended locations and then sitting in the primary listening location
and considering the above guidelines again—also realizing that behind-the-wall
conflicts will probably require some adjustment to the intended locations before they
are final.

C. System and Supply

Typically, a cable with a wire pair must connect every speaker to the sources. This
amplified and controlled source supply may go directly from a power amplifier or
through a local, supplemental volume control. In some, mono-only systems, a single
wire may "daisy chain", entering and exiting from one speaker to
another—beginning and ending at the amplifier.

5

Increasingly, different source signals may be provided to different
rooms/zones/speakers—at the same time. Increasingly, control systems allow
adjustments from locations different/remote from the signal sources, switching, tone
control, and amplification. Some rectangular models include a knockout in the baffle
into which an infrared signal remote receiver can be installed. With increasing levels
of multi-zone and remote control sophistication, it is increasingly desirable to have a
simple volume control local to speakers distant from the main equipment. This
control—for volume up and down and off and on—may be in a small, freestanding
box or flush-mounted in a wall.

Overall, a musical source—audio or video—is fed first through a preamplifier with
switching and tone controls—and then through a power amplifier and onwards to
each speaker. The preamplifier provides a level of tone controls—bass, treble, and
balance left to right. Surround processors, operating between the preamplifier and
amplifier stages, can provide surround decoding and another level of channel
balancing—front left, right, and center; surround left and right; and subwoofer. An
equalizer before the amplifier can provide some adjustment to smooth response for
field conditions and preferences. Multiple amplifiers may be used for multiple zones
and speaker loads.

D. Obstructions

With tentative speaker locations determined, potential obstructions must be
explored and the conflicts resolved: Structural; Mechanical—Electrical, Plumbing,
and HVAC; and Furnishings.

Temporarily mark and view tentative speaker locations and the existing construction
carefully to determine the existing structure and mechanical installations and
potential obstructions. Adjust the speaker layout, the furnishings, the mechanical,
and/or the structural to resolve the conflicts. Layout, review, and resolution on
building plans can be a very efficient process. However, some conflicts will inevitably
appear and need to be resolved as actual conditions are reviewed and as
installation proceeds.

Most typically and very basically, residential walls are constructed of wooden
studs—nominally 2" x 4", but measuring 1½” x 3½" (sometimes, particularly on
exterior walls 2" x 6", measuring 1½" x 5½") and normally located on 16"
centers—with 14½" between studs. This stud pattern usually begins from one,
exterior corner and results in a smaller than normal spacing at the other corner. The
full height "common" studs extend from a flat "sole" plate on the floor to a "top" plate
(often doubled) at the top of the wall. Top headers of doubled 2" x 4"s (or larger) are
placed on edge spanning over doorways and windows, and doubled sill headers run
under window openings. "Trimmer/jack" partial studs run under the ends of all
headers, doubled against full studs against the ends of all headers. Shorter partial
"cripple" studs run over headers to the top plate and under sills to the bottom
plate—at nominal spacing. Blocking may be between studs about mid-wall, behind
cabinets and other fixtures mounted to the wall, and over and under ductwork
through the stud cavity. Electrical receptacles and switches are mounted in electrical
boxes, usually mounted to a stud. Removing electrical cover plates in finished walls
is a good initial step to determine where studs are located.

Floors typically are constructed of wooden joists—nominally 2" x 8" or deeper, but
measuring 1½" x 7¼" or deeper and normally located on 16" centers (but not
uncommonly on 12" centers). Roofs typically are constructed of wooden

6

rafters—nominally 2" x 6" or deeper, but measuring 1½" x 5½” and located on 16"
centers (but not uncommonly on 24" centers). Ceilings are usually backed by 1" x 3"
strapping leveled beneath the floor joists or roof rafters and located on 16" centers.

Electrical cables run to, and most often from, all electrical boxes—which are
grouped on circuits. Plumbing supply, drain and vent lines run to and from all
plumbing fixtures—which are grouped on vertical risers. Heating supply lines
circulate through radiation fixtures—which are grouped in zones off vertical risers.
HVAC ductwork runs to all supply grills and from all return grills. Control wiring
(sometimes tubing) runs to all controls.

Corner bay locations should be avoided since at least one corner bay is usually
smaller than normal, which will decrease bass response, and closeness to the side
wall will cause some unevenness in frequency response. Mechanical activity that
occupies volume in the speaker wall cavity will decrease bass response and may
transmit sound to other, unintended areas. Electrical power wiring should not run
close to the speaker or it's audio supply; crossing away from the speaker and its
supply has minimal effect.

E. Weather Resistance

CustomSound speakers are designed for outstanding durability as well as
outstanding sonic performance. Polypropylene cones with rubber surrounds,
stainless steel fasteners, aluminum grilles, and ABS plastic frames with UV
resistance increase the range of locations where CustomSound speakers can
continue to satisfy. It should be remembered that nothing is fully weatherproof
(or soundproof or fireproof). Salt water, driving rains, direct sunlight, and freeze
and thaw cycles will degrade all materials—even granite—over time. Almost any
interior locations other than submerged, baked, or frozen are fine. Good exterior
locations provide some protection from the weather, and these are usually also
better locations for improved sonic performance. Porch ceilings and walls are
fine. On exterior walls, some weather shelter is desirable—under overhanging
eaves is fine. Totally exposed, unsheltered locations will not sound as good and
will deteriorate over time.

F. Tricks of the Trades—Nothing's Plumb, Square, or True

All people in construction realize that it is an exacting but inexact craft—nothing is
exactly, absolutely plumb, square, or true. The craft is to understand and respect the
tolerances of materials, tools, makers, and users—what will look right to the eye, is
reasonably possible to build, and will retain it's position over years—within the
budgets of money and time. Planning, measuring, and coordinating are important;
but conflicts, tradeoffs, and imperfections are inevitable in the final construction.
Pre-construction drawings are very valuable to further the process mentally before
the physical begins. Post-construction, as-built drawings are valuable to assure
performance and aid modification. However; no drawings will be entirely complete
or consistent with the construction. Proceed with an open and responsive mind.
Prepare to be surprised, challenged, and rewarded—to solve the many small riddles
along the path to completion.

III. INSTALLATION

A. New Construction

The PSB in-walls covered in this manual use a particularly effective mounting
technique with toggle style mounting clamps. They are so named because the

7