MartinLogan Xstat Summit X - Manual (Page 8)

AC Power Connection
8 Controls and Connection
Your Summit X speakers use an internal power sup-
ply to energize their electrostatic cells and the amplified
PoweredForce™ woofer system, and must be connected
to an AC power source. For this reason they are provided
with the proper IEC standard power cords. These cords
should be firmly inserted into the AC power receptacles
on the rear connection panel of the speakers, then to any
convenient AC wall outlet.
The Summit X integrates a signal sensing power supply
which will switch off after 15 minutes without music sig-
nal, and requires less than four seconds to recharge the
panels when a music signal is present.
Your Summit X speakers are wired for the power service
supplied in the country of original consumer sale. The
AC power rating applicable to a particular unit is speci-
fied both on the packing carton and on the serial number
plate attached to the speaker. If you remove your Summit X
speakers from the country of original sale, be certain that
the AC power supplied in any subsequent location is
suitable before connecting and operating the speakers.
Substantially impaired performance or severe damage may
occur to a Summit X speaker if operation is attempted from
an incorrect AC power source.
WARNING! The power cord should not be
installed, removed, or left detached from the
speaker while the other end is connected to an
AC power source.
Signal Connection
Use the best speaker cables you can. The length and type
of speaker cable used in your system will have an audible
effect. Under no circumstance should a wire of gauge
higher (thinner) than #16 be used. In general, the lon-
ger the length used, the greater the necessity of a lower
gauge, and the lower the gauge, the better the sound,
with diminishing returns setting in around #8 to #12.
A variety of cables are available whose manufacturers
claim better performance than standard heavy gauge wire.
We have verified this in many cases, and the improvements
available are often more noticeable than the differences
between wires of different gauge. The effects of cables
may be masked if equipment is not of the highest quality.
Connections are made at the signal input section on the
rear electronics panel of the Summit X. Use spade con-
nectors for optimum contact and ease of installation.
Hand tighten the binding posts, but do not overtighten—
do not use a tool to tighten the binding posts.
Be consistent when connecting the speaker cables to the
signal input terminals. Take care to assign the same color
cable lead to the (+) terminal on both the left and right
channel speakers. If bass is weak and you cannot discern
a tight, coherent image, you may need to reverse the (+)
and (–) leads on one speaker to bring the system into
proper polarity.
WARNING! Turn your amplifier off before
making or breaking any signal connections!
Break-In
When you first begin to play your Summit X speakers the
bass will sound weak. This is due to the high quality, long-
life components used in the woofers. Our custom made,
butyl surround woofers require approximately 72 hours of
break-in at 90 dB (moderate listening levels) before any
critical listening. The break-in requirements of the cross-
over components (and, to a lesser degree, the electrostatic
panel) are equivalent.
25 & 50 Hz Level Controls
After you have determined the speaker position and pri-
mary listening position (see pages 10–1) you will want to
adjust the 25Hz and 50Hz level controls.
On the rear of the Summit X are two knobs that control
the 25Hz and 50Hz frequency responses by ±10db.
MartinLogan engineers have found this frequency area
(20–75Hz) to be problematic. Low frequencies tend to
react to a room environment by creating nodes (boomy
and unnatural bass) or nulls (weak bass). By adjusting the
25Hz and 50Hz level knobs you can ‘dial out’ undesir-
able nodes or nulls and create a balanced and seamless
presentation.
To help find the optimal setting for your room, play famil-
iar material with low frequency information (such as a