Snell AMC-800 Owners manual

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Owner’s Manual

AMC

720

760

800

900THX

SPECIFICATIONS	AMC720	AMC760
Frequency Response (±3dB)	65 Hz–20 kHz	62 Hz–20 kHz

Recommended Amplifier	10–125W	10–150W

Nominal Impedance	8 ohms	8 ohms

Sensitivity (2.83v at 1m)	87dB SPL	89dB SPL

Tweeter(s)	1” aluminum dome, ferrofluid
	cooling and heatsink. Steerable
	“Directed Power” waveguide

1” aluminum dome, ferrofluid cooling and heatsink. Steerable “Directed Power” waveguide

Midrange

n/a

Bass Driver

51/4-inch (132mm) copolymer

61/2-inch (165mm) copolymer

with butyl rubber surround

Crossover Point

2.7 khz

Composite Baffle

Specialty adhesive between two

1/4” layers of HD fiberboard

Grille

White cloth over MDF frame

Dimensions

14 x 81/2 x 33/4 inches

17 x 101/2 x 33/4 inches

(HxWxD)

(356 x 216 x 95mm)

(432 x 267 x 95mm)

Rough Opening Cutout

127/8 x 73/8 inches

157/8 x 93/8 inches

(HxW)

(327 x 187mm)

(403 x 238mm)

Finish*

White trim, suitable for painting

Weight

21 lbs (9.5kg) / pair

23 lbs (10.5kg) / pair

AMC720

AMC760

2	* Custom paint and grilles are available for an extra charge

AMC800	AMC900THX
65 Hz-20 kHz	78 Hz-20 kHz

10–200W	10–150W

4 ohms	6 ohms

90dB SPL	87dB SPL

1” Aluminum dome, ferrofluid cooling and heatsink. Steerable “Directed Power” waveguide

(2) 1” aluminum dome, ferrofluid cooling and heatsink. “Directed Power” waveguide in dipole configuration

n/a

31/2” Midrange, edge-mounted in dipole

configuration

61/2-inch (165mm) copolymer with

61/2-inch (165mm) copolymer with butyl

butyl rubber surround

rubber surround

600 Hz, 3kHz 21/2 way

400 Hz, 2.5 kHz, 12dB/octave

Specialty adhesive between two

1/4” layers of HD fiberboard

White cloth over MDF frame

231/4 x 131/4 x 33/4 inches

(590 x 336 x 95mm)

22 x 12 inches

(559 x 305mm)

White trim, suitable for painting

22 lbs (10kg) each

AMC800

AMC900THX

INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS A HIGH END IN-WALL?

The new Snell AMC series units bring a novel approach to the design and construction of in-wall loudspeakers, expanding the boundaries of in-wall performance.

Our primary goal was to develop loudspeakers that delivered performance that was as close as possible to that of our highly regarded freestanding loudspeakers, like the K.5 mk2 and E.5 mk2. To do this, several issues had to be addressed.

The bass performance of conventional loudspeakers mounted in wall cavities is very unpredictable. Cavity volume can be large, which should be good for bass performance. However, with one very short dimension (approximately 4”) and one very long dimension (up to 8’), the wall cavity takes on the characteristics of a closed-end organ pipe. This creates a strong resonance that tends to null out the bass. Lining this cavity with fiberglass will reduce the “Q” of the notch but not restore the bass. What is needed is a defined volume of a more regular size. This is best done with fully enclosed in-wall speakers.

The Snell AMC loudspeaker enclosure is a thin, but strong, aluminum tub. It is both damped and braced. This largely contains the back radiated sound of the woofer within the enclosure. An added benefit of containing the woofer output is a reduced chance that resonances will be excited in the house walls. Furthermore, sound “bleed through” to adjacent rooms is reduced.

To minimize resonances in the Snell enclosure, the speaker baffle uses a technique first pioneered on our .5 and XA series loudspeakers. The baffle is a three part composite with MDF (fiberboard) outer layers around a thin, but highly effective, damping layer. This controls the panel resonances of the baffle that can obscure midrange clarity. As we have found with our freestanding loudspeakers, a better loudspeaker cabinet means a better sounding loudspeaker.

Conventional in-wall speakers also suffer from poor stereo imaging. Freestanding speakers can be angled inward to produce a better central image and make listening position much less critical. In-wall speakers obviously cannot be angled in this way. Some in-wall speakers use a pivoting post-mounted tweeter in attempt to overcome this limitation. The pivoting mechanism produces reflections that adversely affect the tweeter’s response and sound. Also, the small baffle area of the pivoting tweeters means that only the highest frequencies can be angled inward.

The Snell solution is a unique tweeter that incorporates a waveguide with a fixed 20 degree angle. The DPT (“Directed Power Tweeter”) waveguide design controls reflections to ensure smooth response. The waveguide is also large enough to function effectively over the full range of the tweeter. The DPT driver can be easily unfastened and rotated to any of eight positions in 45 degree increments. This, together with the designed-in angle of the driver, lets you direct the sound inward to focus a stereo image. Or the sound can be directed away from the listening area to produce a more diffuse sound field when the AMC 720, AMC 760 or AMC 800 are used as surround speakers.

In addition to these unique solutions, all traditional Snell attributes are retained. Highly coherent in-phase crossover networks ensure a seamless blend from driver to driver. Drivers are designed for smooth, wide range response and low distortion. Long sessions of listening and adjusting give each system that special, characteristic Snell sound. Finally, that Snell sound is guaranteed in every production pair by Snell’s proprietary 0.5dB production tuning techniques.

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