The Speaker Company Speaker System Home Theater Speaker User Manual

 
Thank you. And congratulations!  
2) Stand mounting: This is your second option and it’s an attractive  
one for many owners. If you’re placing your TSC bookshelf  
speakers on stands, you can use a material like Blu Tack®, a  
moldable, reusable adhesive compound, to keep your speakers  
firmly (but not permanently) attached to the stands. If you can’t  
find Blu Tack, just ask your neighborhood hardware store for the  
generic equivalent.  
Our thanks for buying your new speakers from TSC. We sincerely  
appreciate your confidence in us and our products.  
Please read this Owner’s Manual! It contains many tips on getting your  
new speakers set up, connected, and sounding as good as they should.  
We hope you find it clear, concise, and helpful.  
Again, thank you.  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Placing Your Speakers Properly  
Out of the Box  
Main Speakers: Try to put the main speakers (Left and Right for stereo,  
Left, Center, and Right for home theater) along the same wall of your  
listening/viewing room. If you can place your speakers along the long  
wall, so much the better.  
You should save the carton and the inserts your speakers came in. You  
may need to store or ship your TSC speakers in the future and the  
packaging is designed to protect them from damage.  
Use the “Rule of Thirds” whenever possible. This suggests that the best  
placement for your Left speaker is approximately 1/3 of the way along  
the wall behind your speakers. Similarly, the best place for the Right  
speaker is usually 2/3 of the way across the same wall. Remember that  
the “Rule of Thirds” is a guideline only.  
Where Should You Put Them?  
We realize that the real world (family opinions, room traffic patterns,  
etc.) will have major impact on where you place your TSC speakers.  
That being said, here are some guidelines you should find useful.  
For TSC bookshelf/center channel/surround speakers:  
1) Shelf mounting. Logically, this may be your first consideration.  
That’s fine if the shelf is sturdy enough and deep enough to hold  
your speakers securely. Remember that the shelf should be at  
least 2” deeper than the speaker itself to allow for cable  
connections, etc. So if your TSC speaker is 13” deep, you’ll  
need a shelf about 15” deep to hold it safely.  
Remember that most TSC speakers are bass reflex enclosures.  
Some have ports on the rear panel. Because the port is very  
important for proper bass reproduction, please do not block it.  
In fact, if you’re shelf-mounting your speakers and can leave 6”  
to 8” of open space behind the rear panel, so much the better.  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 3  
 
– your seated ear level are ideal. (This may pose a challenge if you  
have to place your Center Channel speaker either above or below your  
TV screen but you shouldn’t worry too much.)  
Make sure that the speaker-to-listening/viewing position distance is the  
same for each speaker.  
Some professionals recommend placing the main (Left and Right)  
speakers so that they form an equilateral triangle with the prime  
listening/viewing position.  
Try to place the center channel speaker at exactly the same distance  
from your listening/viewing position as the main Left and Right  
speakers. This helps create the most convincing image.  
Surround Speakers  
Surround speaker placement is challenging. If you’re using a pair of  
TSC bookshelf speakers, you have two options.  
If you’re primarily a music listener, place them on the back wall of  
your listening/viewing room but a bit closer to the side walls than the  
“Rule of Thirds” indicates. Make sure the tweeters are at approximately  
the same height as are the tweeters of your front Left, Center, and Right  
speakers.  
This is as close to ideal as you can get.  
If your room won’t allow this, don’t be overly concerned.  
Just place your speakers as close to this ideal as possible  
and enjoy the sound.  
Reflections from side walls have a major impact on your sound so try  
not to place your main speakers close to them. Try not to place your  
main speakers so they’re exactly the same distance from the closest  
side wall. A bit of asymmetry here is actually preferable.  
When you take the time to properly place your Main speakers, you’ll  
enjoy better “imaging” (the apparent placement of individual instruments  
or voices), and more depth.  
Center Channel Speakers  
For a home theater system, place the center channel speaker between  
your Left and Right speakers as close to your TV screen as possible.  
Try to keep the tweeters of all three speakers (Left, Center, and Right)  
as close to the same height as possible. Tweeters at – or very close to  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 4  
 
If you’re a movie fan, mount the surround speakers on the side  
walls flanking your primary listening/viewing position. Make sure  
they’re slightly behind your couch or chair and at least 1.5 to 2’ above  
ear level.  
If that still doesn’t please you, then move the subwoofer further out  
into the room. You’ll have less overall “boom” but probably higher  
overall sound quality.  
Once you’ve decided on general placement, there’s another technique  
that will help you fine-tune your subwoofer’s ideal location.  
1. Identify your favorite listening/viewing position.  
2. Put the Subwoofer there. (Yes, we mean put it on or in your favorite  
chair or sofa. Don’t worry, the furniture will handle the weight.)  
3. Play some music or a soundtrack with a lot of bass content.  
4. Crawl around the room on all fours until you find the place where the  
bass sounds the best to you.  
5. Put the Subwoofer there.  
Connecting Your Speaker System  
Now that you have your speakers placed properly, it’s time to connect  
them.  
Before you begin connecting your  
speakers, turn your system  
Try not to place furniture between your speakers and your  
listening/viewing position. Make sure you can see all your speakers  
when seated there.  
components OFF. That way, you won’t  
run any chance of “shorting” your  
amplifier and possibly damaging it as  
you’re hooking up your speakers. And,  
of course, turn your system back ON  
when you’re done!  
Subwoofer Placement  
Method 1 (Line Level Connection)  
Subwoofers are not as easy to place properly as some people might  
have you believe. Although bass frequencies are omnidirectional (they  
spread evenly into a room), you cannot place your subwoofer virtually  
anywhere and enjoy quality bass reproduction.  
If your surround sound receiver has a line-level LFE (Low Frequency  
Effects) output – sometimes called a “subwoofer” output – connect it to  
the subwoofer’s rear panel Subwoofer Input via a shielded RCA-to-RCA  
cable. See your receiver’s instruction manual for more details.  
Here are some practical hints.  
For more bass, put the subwoofer in or close to a room corner. If  
you do, however, know that the resulting bass response will most  
likely be very uneven. Some frequencies will be emphasized.  
Others will be suppressed. And that pattern of exaggeration and  
repression will change as you move about the room!  
For a bit less bass but more even frequency response, move the  
subwoofer away from the corner along one wall.  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 5  
 
Next, connect your other speakers (Left, Center, Right, Left Surround,  
and Right Surround) directly to your receiver.  
Note that your receiver’s speaker connections are paired. One  
terminals in each pair is red (positive or “+”), the other black (negative or  
“-“).  
You’ll notice a pair of spring-loaded terminals on each speaker. They  
are also red and black, respectively.  
Prepare the wire by exposing about 3/8” of each conductor by removing  
the insulation with a wire stripper or sharp knife. Twist all the individual  
strands of each conductor together.  
Speaker wire, in turn, has two conductors separated by insulation and  
identified by color (if the insulation is clear) or by differences in the  
insulation itself (ridged vs. plain is the most common). Choose one  
conductor to carry the “+” signal and the other for the negative signal. It  
makes no difference which one you pick – just maintain that choice  
for all your connections.  
Polarity and Proper Phasing  
Don’t let these words scare you. They both refer to making sure you get  
all the sound your speakers are capable of giving you.  
Here are step-by-step instructions for connecting the Left front output  
from your receiver or amplifier to the Left front speaker.  
1) Locate the Left front speaker output on the receiver or amplifier.  
Note the two connectors – one marked “+” (the positive terminal  
– usually red) and one marked “-“ (the negative terminal –  
usually black).  
2) Connect the “+” conductor of the speaker wire to the receiver’s  
“+” terminal.  
3) Connect the ”-“ conductor of the speaker wire to the receiver’s “-  
“ terminal.  
4) At the speaker end of the same wire, connect the “+” conductor  
to the “+’ terminal on the speaker by pressing the spring-loaded  
tab to reveal a hole in the connector. Insert the stripped end of  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 6  
 
the wire into that hole. Release the tab to complete the  
connection.  
Then connect your main Left and Right speakers to the subwoofer’s “To  
Speakers” outputs.  
5) Connect the “-“ conductor to the “-“ speaker terminal.  
Then follow steps 1 through 5 for all other amplifier-speaker connections  
in your system. Maintain the same pattern for all amplifier-speaker  
connections!  
Why are we placing as much emphasis on consistency here? We want  
you to get all the performance you’ve paid for!  
Note that all other speakers (Center Channel, Left Surround, and Right  
Surround) connect directly to the receiver’s speaker outputs as they did  
in Method 1 above.  
When your amplifier-to-speaker connections are consistent (when “+” is  
always connected to “+” and “-“ is always connected to “-“), your  
speakers are connected “in phase.” That means the drivers in each  
speaker will push out when they get a common positive signal from an  
amplifier and pull in when they get a negative signal.  
Make sure you observe proper polarity (“+” to “+” and “-“ to “-“) for all  
connections.  
When speakers are connected “out of phase,” the drivers fight each  
other – some move out while others move in. The result? You’ll get  
less bass and blurred imaging. That’s a pretty heavy price to pay for not  
taking just a few extra seconds to make sure your connections are  
correct.  
Some Advice On Speaker Wire  
Please use 16 gauge wire if your amplifier-to-speaker  
runs are under 50’. For longer runs, we strongly  
suggest 14 gauge.  
For your reference, standard “lamp cord” available at  
most hardware stores is 18 gauge. Better to use  
heavier wire such as 16 or 14 gauge.  
Method 2 (Speaker Level Connection)  
If your receiver does not have an LFE output, simply connect your  
receiver’s Left and Right speaker outputs to the subwoofer inputs  
marked “From Receiver.”  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 7  
 
Adjusting Your Subwoofer  
Break-In  
Once everything is hooked up properly, you’re ready to “fine tune” your  
system to your preferences.  
Many people believe speakers improve with age.  
With TSC speakers, you’ll notice a change in timbre, responsiveness,  
and sheer musicality as you use them because the drivers “settle in”  
with use.  
The following suggestions will give you a good start. Remember that  
they are suggestions only. You may choose to vary the control settings  
to suit your room and speaker placement.  
How long should you wait? That depends, for example, on whether you  
listen AM radio at low volume or full orchestral music at live concert  
levels. In general, you’ll begin to hear differences after 20-30 hours of  
us.  
Care  
Your TSC speakers don’t need much maintenance. Dust them  
occasionally. And don’t your kids try to push in the drivers, either!  
Above all, enjoy! That’s what your TSC speakers were designed for and  
why we take such pride in bringing them to you!  
Set the Crossover control to 150 Hz (all the way to the right).  
This will direct most of the deep bass information to the  
subwoofer.  
Set the Volume control (actually a “bass level” control) to  
maximum.  
Select “Auto On” by choosing the middle position of the three-  
position slider switch.  
Set the Phase switch to normal (NOR).  
Play a favorite music CD or DVD. Concentrate on the amount  
of bass you hear and decide if you like that sound.  
If you think there’s too much bass, turn the Volume control  
down until you’re satisfied with the sound. (You may also want  
to tweak the Crossover control by turning it slowly to the left.)  
Once you’re pleased with the sound, flip the Phase switch  
between NOR and REV (reverse) to see if that makes a  
discernable difference.  
© 2007 The Speaker Company. All rights reserved.  
You’ll probably have to play with these adjustments several times until  
you achieve just the sound quality you really like. Don’t worry – it’s just  
part of the fun.  
The Speaker Company Home Theater Speaker System  
Page 8  
 

Thermador Range PRG30 User Manual
Toshiba Computer Drive HDD2189 User Manual
Toshiba Personal Computer 5205 Series User Manual
Toshiba Projector TDP T9 User Manual
TRENDnet Modem 108Mbps Wireless Super G Broadband Router User Manual
Tripp Lite Switch B030 002 R User Manual
Tripp Lite Switch B060 032 8 User Manual
Universal Power Group Automobile Parts Consumer Battery Solutions User Manual
Universal Power Group Battery Charger 2A 10A User Manual
Vivotek Digital Camera sd6112v User Manual